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Most Cash Surprises Aren’t Surprises, They’re Ignored Data

Mark Stanley
January 10, 2026

If your cash flow feels unpredictable, it’s usually not because your business is “random.” It’s because the early-warning numbers were whispering for weeks…and you weren’t listening.

Most cash crunches show up in the data before they show up in the bank account:

  • Sales activity slows → pipeline dries up → revenue dips later

  • Invoicing slips → accounts receivable creeps up → cash tightens

  • Margins erode quietly → profit disappears → cash follows

  • Inventory/WIP balloons → cash gets trapped on the shelf or job site

That’s why EOS puts so much emphasis on the Data Component and a simple weekly Scorecard. A good Scorecard gives you a weekly pulse on a handful of leading indicators so you can spot problems early and act before they turn into “surprises.”

The shift that changes everything

Monthly financials are important, and they’re also lagging indicators. By the time you “see” a cash problem in the financials, the decisions that created it already happened. Weekly leading indicators help you steer in real time.

The two-minute exercise you use this week

Pick three cash-relevant leading indicators and put them on a simple weekly Scorecard (owned by one person each).

Examples:

  • Invoices sent (count or dollars)

  • AR over X days (dollars)

  • Gross margin on work completed this week

  • Sales calls/appointments held

  • WIP or inventory turns

Then ask one question every week: “If this stays true for 4–8 weeks, what happens to cash?”

That’s how ignored data becomes owned data.

And if you want a fast way to see what’s really driving cash in your business, the 8 Cash Flow Drivers tool is a great exercise to create visibility and accountability around the levers that move cash.

In our upcoming Data Workshop, you’ll build (or tighten) your weekly Scorecard and identify the few leading indicators that prevent cash surprises so you can lead with clarity and confidence.

Register here.

Want a quick primer before the workshop? These are solid:

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