Introduction

A financial dashboard (or dashboard) is the number one tool for monitoring the health of a SME in Quebec. Too many businesses operate "blindly" without tracking their indicators, leading to cash flow problems, tax errors, uncontrolled spending, and decisions based on intuition rather than data. This guide presents the key indicators that every business should track and how a CPA near you in Montreal can help you build a clear, useful, and tailored dashboard that meets your needs.

Legal and Regulatory Framework

The Income Tax Act and the Quebec Tax Act require businesses to maintain complete and accurate accounting records. A financial dashboard facilitates:
• The management of GST/QST
• Tracking revenues and expenses
• Financing decisions
• Preparing financial statements
• Tax forecasts and installment payments

CRA and Revenu Québec frequently audit key elements of a dashboard: sales, gross margin, operating expenses, liquidity, debts, and bank reconciliations.

Important Judicial Decisions

The courts remind that business owners are responsible for maintaining their financial records, even if accounting is delegated. In several rulings, taxpayers have been penalized for:
• Lack of clear records
• Unexplained deposits
• Inconsistencies in sales
• Gross margin incompatible with the industry
These issues could have been detected early with a structured financial dashboard.

Why the CRA and Revenu Québec Target Businesses Without a Dashboard

SMEs without indicator tracking often present:
• Unexplained fluctuations in sales
• Unstable or inconsistent margins
• Weak or negative cash flow
• Uncontrolled expenditures
• Errors in GST/QST
• Inventory discrepancies
• Accounting or bookkeeping problems

Auditors compare financial ratios to industry standards to identify anomalies.

Key Indicators of a High-Performing Financial Dashboard

1. Monthly Revenues and Sales Recurrence

Tracking monthly revenues allows for the detection of:
• Growth trends
• Slow periods
• Abnormal variations to explain
• Dependence on certain clients

Revenues must be reconciled with bank deposits and platform reports.

2. Gross Margin

The gross margin measures the profitability of sales. A decrease may indicate:
• An increase in material costs
• Pricing errors
• Inventory losses
• Accounting classification errors

Margins should be compared to industry standards.

3. Cash Flow

Cash flow is often more important than profit. A good dashboard tracks:
• Available cash
• Inflows vs outflows
• Future needs
• Customer delays

A chronic negative cash flow is an immediate alarm signal.

4. Accounts Receivable and Accounts Payable

Payment delays affect liquidity. The dashboard should track:
• Amounts overdue
• Average payment times
• High-risk clients
• Priority suppliers

A strict follow-up avoids cash flow and credit issues.

5. Operating Expenses

Expenses should be categorized:
• Salaries
• Rent
• Marketing
• Software and subscriptions
• Supplies
• Travel

A sudden discrepancy indicates a problem to investigate.

6. Sector-Specific Performance Indicators

Each industry has its own KPIs, such as:
• Customer acquisition cost (CAC)
• Retention rate
• Inventory turnover
• Project cost
• Employee productivity
• Delivery costs

These indicators help understand the actual performance.

Mackisen Strategy

At Mackisen CPA Montreal, we help businesses:
• Build a custom dashboard
• Automate daily or weekly reports
• Track margins and costs in real-time
• Detect anomalies before they become problems
• Forecast cash flow and tax installments
• Analyze sector-specific KPIs
• Improve profitability through proactive management

We integrate your accounting, banking, POS, e-commerce, and CRM data into a unified dashboard.

Real Customer Experience

A distribution SME had an unstable gross margin. Our dashboard revealed inventory errors and misclassified delivery costs. After corrections, the margin increased by 12%.
A professional service firm was not tracking its accounts receivable: average delays of more than 60 days. We instituted weekly tracking and reduced delays to less than 20 days.

Frequently Asked Questions

What software do you recommend?

QuickBooks, Zoho, Xero, Power BI, or an automated Excel spreadsheet depending on the size of the business.

How often should one consult the dashboard?

Ideally every week. At least once a month.

Can a dashboard prevent audits?

Yes, it early detects inconsistencies in billing, GST/QST, and bank deposits.

Can we automate the indicators?

Yes. Most data can be integrated into an automated dashboard.

Why Mackisen

With over 35 years of combined experience in accounting and taxation, Mackisen CPA Montreal designs powerful financial dashboards to help SMEs steer their growth. We ensure accuracy, transparency, and a clear view of your company's financial health.