Profitable growth is not the end of the story.
The real question is: how much of that growth ultimately converts into cash?
A business can deliver strong revenue growth and improving EBITDA — and still face increasing cash pressure.
Why?
Because growth needs to be funded.
More sales may require more inventory.
Growth may come with longer customer payment terms.
Supplier terms may not develop at the same pace.
Expansion requires investment.
And every additional day tied up in working capital consumes cash.
This is why I believe cash flow should not be treated simply as a Finance KPI. It should be managed as a business outcome.
Finance has an important role: creating transparency, connecting P&L decisions with their cash consequences, challenging assumptions and identifying risks early.
But cash is ultimately shaped by decisions made across the business — from pricing and customer terms to inventory, procurement, capex and investment priorities.
Finance can provide the visibility.
But sustainable cash generation requires ownership across the business.
And perhaps this is the more important performance question:
Not only “Are we growing profitably?”
but “How effectively are we converting that profitable growth into cash?”
