Cash Flow + Reserves
Customer deposits, overbilling, and earned cash
Cash received before work is finished can make the bank balance look stronger than the business really is.
Executive lens
A useful brief turns the issue into a decision.
Trap
Trap
Spending deposits like earned profit.
Signal
Signal
Customer deposits
Move
Move
Separate earned from unearned cash
Rule
Rule
Cash can be in the bank and still belong to future work.
Why it matters
Spending deposits like earned profit.
Stakes
Cash is the part of the business that punishes vague thinking. Profit can look fine while payroll, taxes, receivables, equipment, and deposits pull cash in different directions.
Why it gets missed
Owners usually look at the bank balance because it is immediate. The balance is real, but it does not explain what has already been promised. In this case, the practical trap is simple: spending deposits like earned profit..
Field pattern
Start with the lowest expected cash point, not today's balance. A decision is safer when the business stays above its floor after payroll, taxes, payables, debt, and planned owner distributions.
Numbers to watch
The metric is useful only when it changes behavior.
Customer deposits
Separates cash received for future obligations from earned profit.
Wip
Shows work in progress that may not yet be billable, collected, or profitable.
Overbilling
Highlights cash collected ahead of work that still has to be delivered.
Operating moves
What to make visible before the next decision.
Move 01
Separate earned from unearned cash
Move 02
Track project progress
Move 03
Hold cash against future obligations
Owner questions
Use the brief in a real review.
1
If customer deposits moved this week, what decision would change?
2
Which person, process, or rule owns separate earned from unearned cash?
3
What would make this number untrustworthy right now?
4
If nothing changes for 90 days, what gets harder for the owner?
Interactive model
See the principle in numbers
More invoices
+50%
More payroll
+42%
More equipment pressure
+36%
More working capital
+48%
More management load
+45%
Reality check
A 50% sales goal is a 50% operating-system question.
Before chasing the number, decide what has to change.
JGC Hub gives cash a job: operating floor, taxes, growth reserve, debt, distributions, and decisions that depend on the next trough.
Start with the system
Make this visible in the operating rhythm.
The brief explains the idea. JGC Hub gives you the categories, rules, and review cadence to keep it from drifting.