Your First 10-Minute CFO Setup Walkthrough
A complete end-to-end setup guide for the AskBiz CFO dashboard — from navigating to the feature to saving your first full cost configuration in under ten minutes.
Key Takeaways
- The full CFO dashboard setup — navigation, cash balance, fixed costs, and variable costs — takes under 10 minutes.
- Having your bank balance and a recent expense statement open before you start makes the process faster.
- Once configured, your four metric cards give you an accurate real-time financial snapshot you can trust.
Before You Start: What to Have Ready
This walkthrough takes you from zero to a fully configured CFO dashboard in under ten minutes. Before you begin, have two things ready: your most recent bank account balance and a recent bank statement or expense report showing your last month of costs. You do not need exact figures for every line item — a reasonable estimate is fine for variable costs. Having the numbers in front of you means you spend your time configuring rather than hunting for figures. Open AskBiz at askbiz.co in your browser and log in to your account.
Step 1: Navigate to the CFO Dashboard
Step 1: From the AskBiz home screen, click the Intelligence tab in the main navigation (left sidebar on desktop, bottom bar on mobile). Step 2: Click the Cash Flow sub-tab in the secondary navigation at the top of the Intelligence section. The CFO dashboard loads with four metric cards. They may show zero or empty states if this is your first visit. Step 3: Locate the configuration button — a gear or sliders icon near the top-right of the dashboard. You are now ready to begin entering your data.
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AskBiz tracks these metrics automatically — just connect your data and start asking questions.
Start for free →Step 2: Set Your Cash Balance
Step 4: Click the configuration button to open the Cost Configuration Drawer. It opens on the Cash Balance tab. Step 5: Click the Current Cash Balance field and type your current business bank balance (numbers only, no currency symbols). Step 6: If you have funds across multiple accounts, add them together and enter the combined total. Do not close or save yet — move to the next tab.
Step 3: Configure Fixed and Variable Costs
Step 7: Tap the Fixed Costs tab at the top of the drawer. Work through each default row — Rent/Lease, Salaries and Wages, Health Insurance, Business Insurance, Software Subscriptions, Equipment Leases, Loan/Debt Payments, Phone and Internet, and Accounting/Legal — entering the monthly amount for each that applies. Set unused rows to zero. Step 8: If you have fixed costs not in the default list, scroll to the bottom and tap "+ Add row" to create custom categories. Step 9: Tap the Variable Costs tab. Enter your typical monthly amounts for Sales Commissions, Shipping and Fulfillment, Paid Marketing/Ad Spend, Payment Processing Fees, Packaging, and Contract Labour. Add custom variable rows as needed. Step 10: Tap Save.
Step 4: Read Your First Metrics
After saving, the Cost Configuration Drawer closes and all four metric cards refresh immediately. Your Cash Balance card now shows your current balance. Your Monthly Fixed Costs card shows the total you entered. Your Daily Net Gain/Burn card shows your estimated daily financial position based on costs and any connected revenue data. Your Cash Runway card shows the number of months you can operate at this burn rate. Take a moment to read all four cards together. If any card shows red, click it to open the drill-down panel and understand what is driving the figure. Congratulations — your CFO dashboard is now live and giving you real financial intelligence about your business.