Impact of Cash Flow in Small Business-Free-Samples for Students

Question: Discuss how Issues of Cash flow management influences the sustainability and survival of SMEs in Australia. Answer: Introduction In the modern business environment, the role of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) towards the economic growth of a nation cannot be ignored. In case of Australian economy, SMEs play a leading contribution in job creation and revenue growth of the economy. As of June 2016, 2.17 million registered trading businesses are operating in Australia up by 2.4 percent from June 2015 (Abs.gov.au, 2017). Moreover, the turnover of the Australian SMEs is also significant since the past decade or so. However, global growth challenges and plunging prices of commodity such as crude and coal have become one of the major worries for the SMEs in operating their businesses at different levels. Due to cuts in government spending and low GDP growth of the nation, SMEs in Australia have to face massive headwinds to manage the cash flow associated to the business. In this particular research proposal, the fundamental issues of cash flow management in the Australian SMEs are discussed providing secondary literature and practical evidence related to the study. Precisely, Australian SMEs are largely affected by poor cash flow management as growth tensions of the economy have added monetary pressure on the firms. Effectively, the proposal has been set up following three sections. In section I, an introduction of the issue, problem statement, research objectives and questions, justification of the proposed study, and expected outcome from the research have been briefly stated. In the following section II, the conceptual framework, hypothesis of the proposed research, and methodology have been described. At last, section III includes organisation of the research, Gantt chart, and effective budget to be mandatory to conduct the study. Problem Statement In case of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), managing cash flow of businesses can be identified as one of the leading business challenges. Precisely, there are a number of issues affecting the cash flow management of SMEs in Australia that have been the major discussion topic for this particular study. In order to maintain growth of SMEs businesses, management of cash flow must be done in a resilient manner so that business investment will be increased at regular intervals (Jury, 2012). Evidently, the leading problem associated with cash flow management is collection of money from the clients. Fundamentally, SMEs have found it difficult at times to collect the money from the leading business clients (Qazi, 2011). Due to economic downturns and shortcomings, larger firms have tactically delayed the payments of SMEs. As a result of the scenario, financial crisis can be seen within the firms. Meanwhile, limited financial resources and investment prospects have restricted the SMEs to make continuous losses (Gamble, 2010). As SMEs show greater dependence of major clients, delay of payments can become one of the major issues to be dealt with in managing cash flow. Also the SMEs have lower leverage to corporate finance as high-profile investors are looking to invest money in large cap businesses. Therefore, financial limitation of the SMEs has become one of the major issues in cash flow management (Lin, 2012). Simultaneously, in case of developing financial arrangements, financial issues can drag down the financial decisions of the SME managers. In order to control the adverse effect of the issues, the study will be imperative to analyse the issues and find out solutions according to the need. Research Objectives and Questions The primary objective of the research is to identify and investigate the problems faced by the small and medium scale organisations of Australia in handling cash flow and maintaining a healthy financial position. Additionally, the research aims to know how the issues of cash flow management impacts the sustainability and survival of SMEs in Australia. The research questions that will be answered in the study are presented herein below: RQ1: What are the issues of cash flow management in Australian Small and Medium Scale Enterprises? How these issues do impact the sustainability and survival of the SMEs? RQ2: What is the role of entrepreneurs in managing cash flow in SMEs in Australia? RQ3: What are the sources of fund for SMEs in Australia? RQ4: What are the differences between managing cash flow in a large firm and a SME in Australia? RQ5: How can the issues of managing cash flow are solved in SMEs of Australia? RQ6: What is the role of the government in solving the problems of cash flow in Australian SMEs? Justification of the Project The proposed research study has been aimed to investigate the longstanding business model of the Australian SMEs to scrutinise the challenges related to cash flow management. In fact, the proposed research will be evident to discuss how the affecting factors are hindering the overall growth of the SMEs in Australia. In a fundamental concept, lack of swift cash flow management can lead to bankruptcy of SMEs. Therefore, proper research will be essential to reduce the challenges. In the meanwhile, the research study will be developed based on the extensive form of secondary research previously carried out by eminent researchers. Under these scenarios, the major benefits of carrying out the research have been listed as follows: The proposed research will be helpful for the readers to identify the leading issues and challenges in cash flow management of Australian SMEs. The study will help the academic readers to broaden their concepts and understanding of the cash flow related activities of SMEs operating in Australia. The management of SMEs can utilise the outcome of the research study to figure out what the major barriers in managing cash flow of SME businesses. The study will be suitable for SME managers to adopt the best strategic moves dealing with the challenges of managing cash flow of business. The proposed research study will be also impeccable for the new entrepreneurs to understand the leading issues and affecting factors influencing the cash flow management in SME businesses. Research Output The outcome of the research will provide information about the factors that influences the management cash flow in small and medium scale organisations in Australia. The outcomes will help the Australian entrepreneurs to understand the issues and develop adequate strategies for their SMEs in order to seek better financial position in the future. Furthermore, the research will help the entrepreneurs to manage the available funds and seek better sources of finance in order to grow their business and survive in the current battle of market competition (Tsuruta, 2016). Evidently, the proposed research will be evident to provide a framework that must be followed during the further research on the same topic. By investigating the common factors that are affecting the cash flow management of Australian SMEs in the recent times, the study will present better understanding of the issues (Kennedy, Tennent Gibson, 2006). At the same point of time, the outcome of the study will be marked to eva luate how the issues of cash flow management in Australian SMEs have impacted on the labour market and capital market circumstances. The relevant discussion and evidence provided in the study can be also considered as essential academic work to redress the challenges of cash flow management in Australian SMEs. Conceptual Framework and Research Hypothesis In case of Australian SMEs, cash flow management and monitoring of the same decide the sustainability of the firms. According to the study conducted by Ntoung, Fernandez Cibran (2013), fixing the cash flow during the time of economic downturn can dictate the viability of SMEs. Due to change in macro-economic system, cash flow management can become a tough task for the managers and entrepreneurs of Small and Medium Enterprises (Eniola Entebang, 2015). The core issue in cash flow management is managing the funds and receivable from the business clients. Precisely, SMEs have found it difficult to maintain smooth capital turnover due to delay in payments (Tsuruta, 2016). Therefore, debt in business will create significant impact on business framework of the SMEs. In another review, Rahman, Doroodian, Kamarulzaman Muhamad (2015) assess the business model of modern SMEs to figure out the role of efficient cash flow management and monitoring in business innovation. Evidently, lack of pro per business model can affect the cash flow management of SMEs. For instance, if the business owner has not shown any interest in financial assessment of an SME, the financial structure of the company will be bound to weaken at a certain point of time (Kennedy, Tennent Gibson, 2006). In another review of literature, Radicic Pugh (2017) discuss how efficient management of cash flow can influence the performance of SMEs. In the research, the authors have showed effective management of cash flow including financial projection, budgetary control, and interpretation of financial statement can provide strength to the business. In the longer-period of time, lack of planning in cash flow management and monitoring can lead to insolvency. By eliminating the issues and risks associated with the cash flow, SMEs can utilise their full financial strengths (Walker, 2004). Furthermore, lack of significant cash flow management will impact on the working capital of the SMEs as well. In a literature study, Qazi (2011) dictates that if the manager of an SME will fail to implement right set of strategies to manage the cash flow in a given time, the working capital of business will be cut down. As a result of the scenario, it will create an adverse effect on the business proceedings. Effectively, Rahman (2011) points out the quality management practices that can increase the potentiality of SMEs in Western Australian region. In the research study, the researcher delivers the different financial challenges of SMEs in compared to multinational companies. For example, larger corporate businesses have got the liberty to access external capital market to manage equity and debt (Tagoe, Amarh Nyarko, 2008). However, SMEs do not have the freedom to manage cash flow at the same manner. Therefore, managers of SMEs have to find out the right theory for their respective businesses to manage and monitor the cash flow according to the order (Kobjaiklang Rojsurakitti, 2015). Apparently, it can be identified as the biggest challenge for SMEs in cash flow management. Apparently, the low profitability, limited financial resources and delay in the collection of receivables are the primary issues faced by the entrepreneurs of SMEs in managing adequate cash flow in the firm (Kennedy, Tennent Gibson, 2006). Furthermore, the lack of cash flow in SMEs makes it difficult for the management to adjust to the changing external conditions due the effects over sales, profitability and their ability to survive. According to Lowe, Moussa Lowe (2013), it can be seen that the monopoly power of the large firms dominates the free trade policy of the SMEs that further impacts the cash flow of the small entrepreneurs. For instance, the price making power of the firms like Coles, Woolworths, Tesco, and Aldi dominates the price of products and services that are supplied by the small and medium scale suppliers in the food industry (Siegel Shim, 2012). Additionally, several cases have been found in which the large firms intends to delay the payment of the SMEs in orde r to dominate their operations (Siegel Shim, 2012). In other words, the issues of fund, profitability and delay in the collection of receivables lead to poor working capital that highly impacts the ability of the SMEs to survive in the current market of competition and price war (Singh Kumar, 2017). Additionally, the lack of working capital may lead to high debt and insolvency of the firm in the long run. A conceptual framework has been presented herein below for further consideration. Figure: Conceptual Framework Source: (Faisal, 2012) On the basis of the research objectives and problem statement, the research hypothesis that will be tested in the study has been presented herein below: H1: Null Hypothesis: The issues of cash flow management do not negatively impacts the sustainability and survival of SMEs in Australia H2: Alternative Hypothesis: The issues of cash flow management negatively impacts the sustainability and survival of SMEs in Australia Methodology The methodology section presents the blueprint that describes the research design, techniques and procedures used in the study to conduct the test and analysis. The research methodology has been presented herein below: Literature Review A detailed study will be conducted in order to critically evaluate the previous literatures related to the research topic by collecting information from several secondary sources such as books, articles, journals, newspapers, government reports that are available in printed format or over the internet. The research and findings of the previous authors is required to understand the background of the topic and the problems taking place among the SMEs of Australia (Orobia, Byabashaija, Munene, Sejjaaka Musinguzi, 2013). Additionally, the critical review of the literature will help to understand the theories and frameworks that are required for answering the research questions. Data Collection The collection of data is one of the complicated and time consuming activities of a research. In this research, both primary and secondary data collection methods will be used to collect information regarding the issues of cash flow management faced by the SMEs of Australia. The secondary data will be collected from financial websites, accounting firms, journal articles, books, newspapers and several other online sources. However, the primary data will be collected in the form of a survey using questionnaires related to the topic. The primary data will be collected by surveying 125 managers and owners of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (Orobia, Byabashaija, Munene, Sejjaaka Musinguzi, 2013). Information will be collected regarding the problems that are faced by the managers and owners in planning and keeping track of the cash flows. Additionally, the participants will be asked about their thinking regarding the payment terms and funding options that they actually experiences in t he real life scenario. Data Analysis Two different data analysis techniques will be used in this research such as Qualitative and Quantitative analysis methods. The qualitative method will be used to conduct the literature review and backup the findings of the research through theoretical findings and descriptive explanations. Furthermore, the quantitative analysis technique will be used to conduct descriptive statistics analysis that include calculation of standard deviation, mean, median and distribution of key variables. Furthermore, the quantitative analysis will be used to conduct the hypothesis testing and regression analysis to know to what extent the issues of cash flow management do impacts the sustainability of SMEs in Australia. Organisation of the Study The structure of the study has been presented in details herein below: Chapter 1: Introduction The research proposal of the study will be presented in the introduction section provide a brief understanding of the background, research problem, research questions and objectives. Chapter 2: Literature Review This chapter will present an in-depth analysis of the cash flow theories and problems faced by the SMEs in Australia. Chapter 3: Methodology The methodology section will present the tools and techniques that will be used in order to conduct the study. Chapter 4: Analysis and Results The analysis and results section will present the analysis of the data and the results of the research. Chapter 5: Discussion The discussion chapter will present an argument regarding the issues and backup the findings through literature. Chapter 6: Recommendations The recommendation chapter will present suggestions for the entrepreneurs to effectively manage the cash flows of SMEs in Australia. Chapter 7: Conclusion The conclusion chapter will present the implications, limitations and future scope of the research. Gantt chart It is expected that the research will take around 4 months to be completed. The research will begin on XXXXXX and end on XXXXXX. The Gantt chart has been given below present the detailed schedule of the research. Gantt chart Activities Duration Weeks 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Approval of the research topic 1 Week Resource Planning 1 Week Development of research proposal 2 Weeks Submission of research proposal 1 Week Collection of secondary data 2 Weeks Literature Review 2 Weeks Collection of primary data 6 Weeks Data Analysis 3 Weeks Discussion findings 2 Weeks Submission of final report 1 Week Project Budget and Justification It is estimated that the proposed project will require around $3000 in order conduct the literature review, collect data and conduct the analysis. A breakdown and justification of the project costs have been presented herein below: In order to conduct the literature review, the research will need to collect data from secondary resources such as textbooks, articles, and other online resources that are not always freely available. Hence, it is estimated that around $1,000 will be required to purchase the secondary sources of data. Secondly, there is a need of incurring cost for printing, travelling and mailing the questionnaires in order to collect primary data in the form of survey. It is expected that the collection of primary data will cost around $1,000. Finally, in order to analyse the collected data, there is a need of statistical analysis software such as SPSS. Additionally, the charts, tables and figures may also cost as these data is not always freely available. Hence, it is assumed that the analysis of the research will cost around $1,000. The budget of the research has been presented in the table given below: Research Budget Particulars Amount Secondary Data Collection (Literature Review) $ 1,000 Primary Data Collection $ 1,000 Analysis $ 1,000 Total $ 3,000 References Counts of Australian Businesses, including Entries and Exits, Jun 2012 to Jun 2016. (2017).Abs.gov.au. 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