Financial Strategies: The Best of Inc. Magazine
When it comes to questions about business finance, Jill Andresky Fraser has the answers. As Inc. magazine's finance editor since 1989, she writes on raising capital, cash management, and personal finance for business owners.
As a prolific writer and respected journalist, she's also worked for such publications as Forbes, The New York Times, and The New York Observer. More recently, she investigated corporate America in her book, White-Collar Sweatshop: The Deterioration of Work and Its Rewards in Corporate America.
Here we've collected some of Fraser's best articles from the Inc. archives.
How to Finance Anything
- Do-It-Yourself Growth Capital
- Cost control is essential when tight financing markets require many businesses to rely on cash flow to fund their growth.
- The Money Hunt
- In 2001 Inc. looked at the real-world financing prospects for five businesses with the help of financial experts who guided the entrepreneurs to the most likely sources of funding.
- 20 Tips for Finding Money Now
- Fraser's 1999 feature offered advice that still rings true today.
- Riding the Economic Rollercoaster
- Business owners can't control world markets, but they can -- and should -- take steps to shelter their companies from a worldwide downturn.
- Capital Steps
- Sound cash-flow management can be an entrepreneur's main source of financing. This Inc. case study reveals how one company focused on profitability and cash flow to achieve its long-term financing goals.
- What Kind of Capital Should You Seek?
- Most business owners know when their company needs money. But it's much harder for entrepreneurs to judge what type of financing is most realistic for their businesses. Use this quiz to evaluate your options.
Personal Wealth
- Cover Your Assets
- Business owners often combine personal and business assets to launch and run ventures. But when the economy gets rocky, smart entrepreneurs separate their cash.
- Divorce-Proofing Your Company
- Unpleasant and emotionally charged as it may be to contemplate, divorce planning should be an integral part of business and personal financial planning for business owners.
- A Policy to Die For
- When should you purchase life insurance? And what type? Two financial experts weigh in.
- Company for Sale by Owner -- or Maybe Not
- Who should sell your company? How to make the call
- What's Your Company Worth?
- Pricey though they may be, valuations can and should be used at key stages in any growth company's development.
Business Finances
- Hire Finance
- Waiting too long to hire a CFO can create problems for fast-growth companies. There are no one-size-fits-all guidelines, but there are a number of factors to consider when deciding whether you're ready for a full-time CFO.
- What Your Banker Forgot to Tell You
- Here's some timeless advice on checking up on your banking services. This six-step process could reveal inefficiencies and unnecessary costs.
- The Art of Cash Management
- These strategies for better managing business cash, maximizing cash flow, and allocating cash could improve your company's financial position.
- Unhealthy Increases
- Use these cost-containment strategies to get a handle on rising health insurance costs.
