2024 JANUARY ALERT: This website is currently a placeholder talking about past activities which still are of great interest to the founder Dr Sue Saunders. What happened? Sue was consulting in 2017 regarding software development, accounting and administration for Managed Funds. The activity was so successful that Sue and her client formed A4 Funds Pty Ltd and in time, Business in Control has had to take a back seat. In the past five and a half years, Sue as managing director together with her business partner have grown that business to include administration of many different types of wholesale funds, including crypto funds, traditional share trading funds, property trusts and private equity funds. A4 Funds has been known for its ability to innovate new and highly flexible software to meet the needs of ambitious managers.
2024 JULY ALERT: Bardak Ventures Pty Ltd has sold its shares in A4 Funds Pty Ltd to Non Correlated Group. The time has come for the original partners of the firm to move in different directions. Bardak Ventures wishes to further develop its Fund Administration and Accounting Software designed for the smaller and emerging Australian wholesale funds. The idea is for these funds to inexpensively upgrade from spreadsheet to a service that integrates with existing state-of-the-art software in conjunction with the Bardak Unit Register/Xero based system. Bardak is currently building a new web site to be launched soon that will explain the software and the service offered.
Business in Control is a trading arm of Bardak Ventures Pty Ltd. It is a (currently dormant) boutique management consultancy that helps small to medium sized businesses thrive financially by operating efficiently and providing a fulfilling experience for both customers, employees and owners.
I’m Dr Sue Saunders, founder and principal consultant. My mission and passion is to find smart ways to help businesses achieve their goals by using effective management information systems.
If you are a business owner, non-executive director or responsible for financial information in your organisation, I am able to help you interpret what is really happening in your business using tried and true investigative procedures and analysis of current data.
My method of operation is to begin by providing a monthly business mentoring service. Sometimes just meeting once per month to go over what is happening in your business, to discuss strategy and to review performance, is the best and most positive step towards improving performance. The attention to information needs usually arises as the mentoring process progresses. Mentoring does not have to be a strain on the budget and it is amazing how being able to have an outside view of your business’s dynamics is so helpful in formulating policy and actions that can incrementally move you business forward.
There are two prime reasons that small business owners are constrained in formulating strategy and making informed business decisions.
- TIME – There is never enough time to sit back and review the status of your business.
- DATA – Information flows and data collection may not be up-to-date or worse still, not being collected accurately.
The monthly review process with an external consultant provides a regular time for stepping back from the day-to-day to consider progress and where the business is headed. Being able to measure past performance accurately is the first step in being able to forecast ahead, try out different strategies and set action plans for the future.
My approach involves taking an overview of the whole business or organisation to identify areas that need improving. Very often I find that software integration and add-on systems can improve information flow leaving more time for people to be doing the things that grow the business. For example, assessing the efffectiveness of point of sale, production control or the accounting system. Are these systems talking to each other? Is the original data input only happening once? Do your systems produce relevant summary information to help in decision making? Is there some performance analysis? Does the information assist you in planning ahead?
I work with well known software systems such as Xero, MYOB, Vend, Lightspeed, Retail Express, Quickbooks and others. I develop bespoke software integration systems using the Claris FileMaker platform. Often a simple software application added onto your existing information system can make life so much easier. FileMaker systems are quick to develop and can can be enhanced in stages as and when development funds become available. Sometimes a simple Excel application can be used to good effect as well. I am also well familiar with web site software such as WordPress, Joomla! and similar that can be integrated with common in-house business processes.
Businesses that already have a well designed and functional accounting system may be interested in my proprieary financial modelling software known as the Business in Control Model or the BIC Model for short. This system is designed to allow businesses to build and maintain a rolling forecast with regular analysis of performance. In most cases the BIC Model engine is customised to meet specific needs of each organisation where it is applied.