{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"Ep 308 Contractor Cash Flow Fix \u2014 The 4 Numbers Every Subcontractor Must Track with Dustin Young","description":"Contractor Cash Flow Fix \u2014 The 4 Numbers Every Subcontractor Must Track with Dustin Young   Find Rocky Lalvani @ www.ProfitComesFirst.com or email him at rocky@profitcomesfirst.com   Pay-When-Paid Cash Flow: How Subcontractors Survive Long Payment Terms    Subcontractors and GCs don\u2019t usually go broke because they don\u2019t have work\u2014they go broke because cash timing, contract terms, and decision-making lag quietly squeeze them until payroll becomes a crisis. In this episode, Rocky Lalvani sits down with Dustin Young, a fractional CFO who works specifically with construction companies doing roughly $3M\u2013$30M in annual revenue. Dustin shares the patterns he sees across contractors: \u201cpay-when-paid\u201d bottlenecks, contracts signed without understanding payment terms, books that are months behind, and owners stuck fighting fires instead of building systems.   In This Episode, You\u2019ll Learn: Why subcontractors often get stuck with \u201cpay when paid\u201d terms\u2014and how to reduce the damage with cash forecasting and up-front negotiation before you sign.  The question Rocky asks that exposes a common blind spot: most contractors don\u2019t know payment terms before signing, and that can mean funding payroll for 90 days without cash coming in.  The 4 numbers Dustin wants contractors tracking consistently (weekly\/monthly): cash, sales, gross profit, net profit\u2014so you can make decisions based on reality, not vibes.  Rocky\u2019s gross profit mindset shift: top-line revenue can fool you, but gross profit tells you what size business you can actually run.  Why Dustin\u2019s \u201cfield + finance\u201d background matters: construction companies often have a disconnect where field operations and accounting don\u2019t speak the same language, which leads to waste, margin surprises, and chaos.  The failure pattern Dustin sees: businesses die when they can\u2019t make decisions fast enough\u2014especially when job margins are unknown and the books are months behind (he mentions a company six months behind that still \u201cthinks\u201d they did ~$40M).  Why the hardest bottlenecks aren\u2019t spreadsheets\u2014they\u2019re people problems (trust breaks, safety incidents, long-time employees) and why owners delay decisions even when they know what has to happen.  The real cost of \u201ctax advice\u201d spending and shiny purchases (like the $120,000 truck example), plus how to pressure-test big spends (including marketing retainers) using a cash forecast before you commit.    The Big Takeaway: If you don\u2019t know your contract terms, don\u2019t measure job-level profitability, and don\u2019t keep your books current, you\u2019re not running a construction business\u2014you\u2019re financing projects for other people and hoping you survive the wait. Forecasting and a few core numbers create the clarity to negotiate better, avoid cash traps, and make faster decisions before problems become payroll emergencies.   Bio: helps construction company owners get their lives back. Most contractors he meets are doing good with sales but are trapped\u2014working 70-hour weeks, constantly putting out fires, missing their kids' games, and wondering why they built a business that owns them instead of the other way around. He knows because he\u2019s been there.   He grew up around construction and spent the last decade building and scaling construction companies\u2014some successful, some that taught expensive lessons. He\u2019s been in the field getting projects through the finish line and in the back office building financial systems to make the whole thing work.   What he learned is this: revenue growth without the right systems just means you\u2019re working harder for less freedom. And freedom\u2014time with family, the ability to step away, actually enjoying the business you built\u2014that\u2019s what matters most.   Now, as a Fractional CFO for $3M+ construction firms, he helps owners build the financial clarity and systems they need to scale profitably and get their time back. Because hitting $5M or $10M in revenue means nothing if you\u2019re still drowning in cash flow problems and can\u2019t take a week off without everything falling apart.   Links: Website: https:\/\/www.raveninsights.co\/ LinkedIn: https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/dustinhyoung\/ Instagram: https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/dustinhyoung\/   Conclusion: Dustin\u2019s message is simple: construction businesses don\u2019t need more hustle\u2014they need visibility. Know what you signed, know when cash actually arrives, and track the numbers that tell the truth. Then build systems so the owner isn\u2019t the firefighter, estimator, and bottleneck all at once.   Want to stop guessing and start running your business with real numbers? Listen to the full episode and then pick one action to implement this week: review your next contract\u2019s payment terms before signing, build a simple cash forecast for the next 13 weeks, or start tracking Dustin\u2019s 4 numbers consistently.   #ProfitAnswerMan #ProfitFirst #ProfitComesFirst #ConstructionBusiness #Subcontractors #GeneralContractor #CashFlow #CashFlowForecast #JobCosting #GrossProfit #NetProfit #ConstructionAccounting #FractionalCFO #ConstructionFinance #BusinessSystems #Operations #Leadership #SmallBusiness #Entrepreneurship   Watch the full episode on YouTube: https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@profitanswerman Sign up to be notified when the next cohort of the Profit First Experience Course is available! Free Copy of the Profit Blueprint Book: : https:\/\/lp.profitcomesfirst.com\/landing-page-page  Monthly Newsletter signup: https:\/\/lp.profitcomesfirst.com\/newsletter-signup Relay Bank (affiliate link): https:\/\/relayfi.com\/?referralcode=profitcomesfirst Profit Answer Man Facebook group: https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/groups\/profitanswerman\/ My podcast about living a richer more meaningful life: http:\/\/richersoul.com\/ Music provided by Junan from Junan Podcast Any financial advice is for educational purposes only and you should consult with an expert for your specific needs. ","author_name":"Profit Answer Man: Scaling with Profit First & Beyond","author_url":"http:\/\/profitanswerman.libsyn.com\/website","html":"