Guides and playbooks

How to keep multichannel inventory in sync and stop overselling

Overselling across channels comes from keeping more than one stock figure. This guide shows how to build a single stock record that every channel and the shop floor update automatically, so an item sold once cannot be sold again.

Purchase approval process: how to set spend limits by role

Approving every order slows the business down, and approving none lets overspend through unnoticed. This guide shows how to give each role a line item limit and a total PO limit, so routine orders flow and only larger spend waits for sign-off.

Exporting your data from Xero: what you can get out and how

Xero exports contacts, invoices, bills and the chart of accounts as CSV, and reports as Excel, PDF or Google Sheets. Here is the order and date discipline that keeps the files usable.

MCS training courses: which ones installers actually need

MCS does not run or require one course. Learn how UK installers match approved qualifications to solar PV, heat pumps and battery storage, then prove competence to their certification body.

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Electrical quotation: what to include so the customer signs

An electrical quotation wins work and protects margin when scope, materials, labor, exclusions, validity and payment terms appear in a fixed order. Here is what each section should contain and how the layout makes variations easy to price.

Invoice finance: how the advance, fees and repayment actually work

A step-by-step worked example in pounds of one invoice moving through an invoice finance facility, from the 85% advance to the final balance, with the fees, the annualised cost and when credit control is cheaper.

Supplier onboarding checklist: what to collect before the first PO

A practical checklist of the legal, bank, insurance, pricing and delivery details to collect and verify from a new supplier before you raise the first purchase order, so fraud and mismatches are caught early.

Getting on the MCS installer list and turning it into leads

The public MCS installer list is where customers go to shortlist certified installers. Learn how to get listed, what to keep current to stay on it, and how to answer every enquiry the same day.

Late invoice payments: how to chase, claim interest and get paid

UK suppliers do not have to absorb late payment. This guide sets out the statutory interest and fixed compensation you can claim, and a staged chase sequence that starts before the due date.

Becoming a prequalified supplier: what buyers check

Buyers want proof of insurance, accreditations, policies, references and financial strength before approving a supplier. Prepare just one ready pack in advance and each prequalification questionnaire becomes an afternoon's work. Here is what to gather.

PQQ in construction: what it asks and how to pass one

A PQQ is the screening form a buyer sends before inviting a contractor to tender. Most subcontractors fail it on missing evidence, not missing capability, so here is how to keep one file ready for every questionnaire.

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Shopfitting quote: what to include so it wins and holds margin

A section-by-section template for a shopfitting quote: joinery, M&E, preliminaries, provisional sums and programme assumptions, each priced separately so customers can compare fairly and scope changes never land on you.

Stock turn calculation: how fast is your stock really selling?

Stock turn is cost of goods sold divided by average stock value at cost. Learn which figures to use, how to convert turns into days of stock, and why a per-product-line view shows exactly where cash sits idle.

Reading your P&L: what to check every month

Most owners glance at the bottom line and move on. This guide gives a fixed monthly routine for reading a profit and loss statement: revenue, gross margin, overheads, then net profit, compared with last month and budget, ending in three clear decisions.

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Writing a quotation for facility management services

What a facility management quotation needs to include and how to price each part: planned maintenance, reactive call-out rates, consumables, response times and exclusions, with annual and monthly totals in pounds sterling.

CIS tax on subcontractor invoices: how to calculate deductions

CIS tax applies to the labour portion of a subcontractor invoice, not the materials. This guide works through a pound sterling example and shows how to split every invoice so deductions are right and month end stays quiet.

Supplier prequalification: how to pass a buyer's PQQ

Buyers use a prequalification questionnaire to screen suppliers before tender. Learn what a PQQ asks for and how to build a maintained pack of policies, insurances, accounts and case studies that answers any one in an afternoon.

How to calculate utilization for a team that bills its time

Utilization is billable hours divided by available hours, but the figure only means something once you define available time properly and record hours against jobs as the work happens. This guide walks through the formula, a worked example and a realistic target.

Three-way matching: how to check an invoice before you pay it

Paying a supplier invoice without checking it against what you ordered and what arrived is how overbilling, short deliveries and price creep slip through. This guide shows how to run a three-way match step by step and resolve mismatches.

Invoice finance facilities: how to decide if one fits your cash flow

An invoice finance facility can bridge a real cash gap, but only if you know your debtor days, invoice accuracy and dispute rate. This guide shows how to measure them, what a facility costs and how to decide.

Contractor payment applications that get paid on time

A payment application is paid in full and on time when it is built from measured progress against the contract sum, submitted before the contractual due date, and backed by evidence the quantity surveyor can check without asking questions.

How to quote electrical jobs without underpricing labor

A step-by-step method for pricing electrical work from site survey to sent quote, covering take-offs, a labor rate that recovers overheads, current material prices, exclusions, certification costs and the margin you keep.

Filing a DNO notification after a solar install

Most domestic solar and battery installs only need a G98 notification filed within 28 days of commissioning. Collect the right details at survey and you can file in minutes, and avoid a G99 application you never needed.

ABC inventory classification: how to sort your stock by value and count it less often

ABC inventory classification ranks every stock line by annual consumption value and splits the list into A, B and C bands, so counting, reordering and supplier time go to the lines that carry the money. Here is the afternoon procedure.

Onboard a new supplier without slowing the first order down

A new supplier is usually needed in a hurry, which is exactly when bank details, insurance and price files go unchecked. This guide gives you a six step checklist with an owner and a deadline, so the first purchase order goes out on time.

5 min read

Extension of time and loss and expense: how to calculate what you are owed

An extension of time removes your exposure to liquidated damages but does not recover your costs. This guide explains how to calculate prolongation, disruption, and extended preliminaries - and what dated records you need to substantiate each head of claim.

Cycle counting: how to count stock without shutting the warehouse

Cycle counting checks a small slice of your inventory every week, without stopping the warehouse. This guide explains how to classify stock by value, set a count schedule, investigate discrepancies, and track inventory accuracy year-round.

Aging debt: how to build a weekly chase routine that gets invoices paid

An aging debt report groups every unpaid invoice into time buckets. This guide walks through reading those buckets on Monday morning, setting trigger-based chase actions for each age band, and escalating before debt becomes uncollectable.

Dayworks sheets: what to record on site so the extra work gets paid

Dayworks sheets record work that falls outside the priced contract scope. What determines whether one gets paid is not the template but the completeness of the record: labour hours by operative, plant with rates, materials with references, an instruction reference and a site signature captured on the day.

Applying to the Microgeneration Certification Scheme: what installers need before the assessment

Applying to the Microgeneration Certification Scheme takes planning well before the assessment day. This guide covers the qualifications, insurance, quality management system, and job documentation - quotes, commissioning records and handover packs - that assessors check against each other on every certified installation.

Checking which DNO covers a site before you quote a solar job

Before pricing any solar or electrical job, confirm which electricity distribution network operator covers the site. The DNO determines your application route, G98 or G99 timeline, and whether a pre-approval window needs to go into your project schedule before your quote goes out.

MCS requirements for installers: what you need before funded work pays out

A guide to the business-level requirements, design records, commissioning documentation, and certificate registration steps that MCS-certified installers must complete before Boiler Upgrade Scheme and Smart Export Guarantee funding is released.

Registering your utilization rate: how to measure and improve installer and fitter time

Utilization rate shows what percentage of each installer's day produces revenue. This guide explains how to calculate it correctly, set realistic targets by season and role, and improve a low rate through scheduling and job data rather than working your team harder.

MCS registration for solar installers: what the scheme requires and how to get registered

MCS registration opens the door to every grant-funded and export-tariff solar installation in the UK. This guide explains what the scheme actually asks an installer to produce, and how to pass the certification audit and keep your registration year on year.

EV charging installers: how to quote, schedule, and certify a charge point job

From first enquiry to final invoice, an EV charge point job involves survey, DNO notification, quoting, equipment ordering, installation, certification, and grant administration. Here is how to run all eight stages as one tracked job rather than a chain of disconnected paperwork.

MCS compliance documentation: the paperwork checklist for every install

An MCS-certified installer must hold four categories of documentation for every installation: pre-sale and design records, commissioning records, handover pack documents, and the MCS certificate registered in the Installations Database. Every category has a fixed deadline, and audit non-conformities come from missing paperwork far more often than from poor workmanship.

MCS approved products: how to check the database before you specify a panel or inverter

The MCS Product Directory lists every panel, inverter, and heat pump that carries active certification. Specifying a product that is not on the register invalidates your customer's grant eligibility and puts your own MCS certification at risk. This guide shows you how to search the directory and make the check a standard step in your quoting process.

PlaybookIntermediate

Procure-to-pay in a small distributor: the steps from requisition to supplier payment

The procure-to-pay process runs through seven linked steps, from purchase requisition to supplier payment. Most small distributors lose money not inside any single step, but at two specific joins - where a requisition becomes a purchase order, and where a goods received note is compared against a supplier invoice.

12 min read

DNO connection applications: who your network operator is and what to submit

Every solar or electrical install connects to one regional distribution network operator's area. This guide explains what a DNO is, how to identify the right one by postcode, and what documents to submit under G98 or G99 before installation can legally begin.

MCS register: how to check an installer or company is genuinely certified

The MCS register is the public directory of certified renewables installers in the UK. Checking it properly requires three distinct lookups: confirming active certification status, verifying the technology scope matches what is being sold, and confirming the installation record in the MCS Installations Database after the work is done.

Adding an eSignature to a quote so customers can accept it the same day

A commercial quote can be accepted electronically in the UK under existing legislation, and the signing experience takes the customer under two minutes. This guide covers the setup sequence: signature fields, audit trail configuration, and the post-acceptance trigger that moves the job into your pipeline the moment a customer confirms.

Taking card payments on invoices through Stripe: what to set up and what it costs

How to add a Stripe pay-now link to B2B invoices: covering how the payment flows from customer click to reconciled ledger entry, what Stripe costs per GBP transaction, which customers to offer it to, and how to reconcile net settlements back to Xero or QuickBooks.

Importing a supplier price list from a spreadsheet without breaking your product data

Supplier price lists arrive as inconsistent spreadsheets. This guide covers the complete import routine - column mapping, currency standardization, a test batch, and full load validation - that keeps pricing current without corrupting the catalog your team quotes from.

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Consignment stock: what to agree before it arrives

Consignment stock puts a supplier's goods at your premises while ownership stays with them. Four clauses decide how the arrangement works: title transfer, insurance, usage reporting, and what happens to surplus stock at the end.

Setting discount approval limits on quotes

Discount approval limits work when they are expressed as a floor price or a minimum gross margin percentage, not a percentage off list price. This guide explains how to choose the right metric, set the floor by customer tier, assign approval authority to the right roles, and configure your quoting system to enforce the limit automatically.

How to run a cost value reconciliation on a live job

A cost value reconciliation compares value earned from the client against total cost incurred on a live construction job. This guide covers why CVRs only work on a monthly cycle, why accruals are not optional, and how to run the process step by step.

What to charge for an AV service and maintenance contract

AV service and maintenance contracts are priced on five variables: response time window, site count, system complexity, parts coverage scope, and the split between remote and on-site resolution. Here is how to build a fee from those cost drivers up, not down from installed value.

CIS invoicing and the VAT reverse charge, in order

A CIS invoice carries three things a normal invoice does not: the labour and materials split, the CIS deduction, and the domestic reverse-charge wording. This guide walks through the correct sequence, explains what each element depends on, and shows where invoices get rejected most often.