Our cash balance fluctuates wildly because our project milestones take weeks to complete and bill. What weekly scorecard metric can we track to monitor work completed but not yet billed, so we can manage our working capital more predictably?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

For businesses with long project timelines, relying on standard accounts receivable metrics is a recipe for cash flow disaster. By the time you send an invoice and wait thirty days for payment, you have already funded weeks of payroll and overhead out of pocket. To manage your working capital predictably, you must track unbilled work in progress, also known as WIP, on your weekly scorecard. Your Finance seat must own this metric and report the total dollar value of labor and expenses that have been invested in active projects but have not yet reached a billable milestone. A rising WIP number indicates that your cash is trapped in operations and you are essentially acting as a free bank for your clients. If your weekly WIP metric climbs above your target threshold, it is an immediate signal to adjust your operational workflow or billing terms. During your weekly Level 10 Meeting, your leadership team must identify why these milestones are stalling. It could be due to scope creep, client delays in approvals, or project managers failing to submit invoices promptly. By tracking weekly WIP alongside your standard accounts receivable, you can predict cash flow bottlenecks weeks before they hit your bank account. This level of financial discipline ensures you always have the capital required to fund operations, and it demonstrates to prospective buyers during a clean exit that you have tight, professional control over your working capital cycle.