Build and Exit

Most businesses do not fail overnight. They lose oversight first.

In this episode Julie walks through how financial and legal risk quietly builds inside growing businesses, including a real case where credit card spend crept to half a million a year unnoticed, an acquisition that inherited a money laundering exposure, and an internal fraud case that went undetected for years.

If your business is growing but somehow needs more of you in it, this is the episode to listen to.

Watch the full video version on YouTube: https://youtu.be/FFbEKZIhdSU?si=yyBcHwjc-8HqM9iH

Most business owners believe their valuation is driven by revenue and profit. Buyers are looking for something else entirely: confidence. 

Confidence in the numbers. Confidence in the controls. Confidence that the business is actually as sustainable as it appears on the surface. 

In this solo episode Julie Wilkinson walks through a real case study: a business with £20 million turnover that had been offered a 7x multiple by a PE firm. 

By the time due diligence was complete, the valuation had been slashed and the exit delayed by five years. 

Not because the business was fraudulent. Not because it suddenly stopped trading. 

Because of three things that are almost invisible until an outsider starts asking questions: reporting the buyer couldn't trust, a major client leaving mid-process, and a concentration risk that revealed 75% of clients came from a single channel.   

Julie also covers what businesses can put in place now — systems assessment, trading reports versus financial reports, and a controls framework — so that when questions come, they already have the answers. 

Only 10 to 15% of businesses have a contingency risk plan. This episode explains why that number needs to change, and what it costs when it doesn't.

Nothing is technically broken. Revenue is growing, teams are expanding, activity is high. So why does cash never close where you expect? Why are the same decisions taking longer every month? Why do leaders keep double-checking numbers that should already be right? 

 

In this solo episode Julie Wilkinson breaks down the three operational areas where financial systems quietly fail growing businesses — and what it actually costs when nobody catches it. 

  

She covers the gap between front-end systems (CRM, project management) and back-end finance systems, what happens when purchase orders are bypassed, and why integrity reports — not more data — are what businesses actually need.

Your finance is technically working. So why does something still feel off? 

In this solo episode Julie Wilkinson breaks down one of the most consistent patterns she is seeing across scaling businesses right now: finance is in place, teams are in place, reporting is in place — but business owners are still struggling to trust their numbers and make confident decisions. 

Julie explains why the problem is rarely the finance function itself, and almost always the flow of information between operational teams and finance. When that flow breaks down, cash lands in the wrong place, reports get reworked every week, and leaders stall on decisions they should be able to make quickly. 

She walks through a practical example — the customer who does not pay on time — and shows exactly where the process breaks, who owns each part of it, and what needs to change for leaders to get confidence back in their numbers. 

If you are running a business where finance works on paper but does not always feel reliable in practice, this episode is for you.

Is your accountant really enough to protect your business?

In this episode, I break down the five critical financial skill sets that most business owners are missing. Drawing from financial compliance audits and surveys of over 200 SME owners, I reveal why profitable businesses still run out of cash and how hidden risks are costing you thousands without you even knowing.

You'll discover real case studies including a business that lost £150,000 in unprocessed expenses, another that missed £85,000 in unbilled sales, and a post-acquisition disaster that uncovered a £750,000 discrepancy. Whether you're scaling through acquisition or preparing for exit, these skills will help you transform your business from a lifestyle into a valuable asset that runs without you.

Every business we've audited has at least a 10% cash leak somewhere. Learn how to find yours and fix it before it's too late.

 

“Business owners don't actually know what finance can do.” – Julie Wilkinson

 

You’ll hear about:

Why "I've got an accountant" leaves you vulnerable to hidden risks

Financial literacy: understanding cash flow, margins, and break-even points

Forecasting and scenario planning to protect against business-killing risks

Data interpretation and why monthly margin fluctuations signal deeper problems

Digital finance and automation to prevent operational cash leaks

Commercial and strategic thinking for sustainable business growth

 

Connect With Julie Wilkinson

 

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliewilkinson-accounting/

Tik Tok – https://www.tiktok.com/@wasolutions

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUvq6gfNoP_4dfIJulL6C6A

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/wilkinsonaccountingsolutions

Website - https://wilkinsonaccountingsolutions.co.uk/

 

Find out more about our brilliant sponsor Acquisition Masters here - https://www.acquisitionmasters.co.uk/

 

Before you go, don’t forget to leave a comment and review if you got something out of this episode!