Most Founders Never Know This One Number (Rachael Marshall)

Rachael Marshall is the Director and Founder of Magic Digits. Rachael Marshall did not go to university. She left college early, went straight into work and put herself through her accountancy qualification at home while doing a bookkeeping job on the side. She then worked her way up in finance roles at agencies, first at an online marketing agency and then at a branding agency in London. When her first child arrived she went freelance as a management accountant, and the freelance work grew into Magic Digits, which now provides management accounts, bookkeeping and financial guidance to PR and marketing agencies. In this conversation, Rachael explains what founders get wrong when they handle their own numbers, why she does not believe accountants will be replaced by AI, and why every founder should know the one number they need to bring in each month. Expect to learn the mistakes founders make with receipts, VAT and revenue recognition, how Rachael uses AI to build management accounts reports, why a person chasing a receipt beats a thousand automated reminders, what it means to work on your business and not in it, how she got through a stretch of lost revenue after hiring too quickly, why she checks cash weekly and not monthly, and much more… \- 0:00 Cold open 0:31 Welcome 0:46 From Bookkeeper To Founder 3:30 The Problem Magic Digits Solves 5:19 Where Founders Get Their Numbers Wrong 7:21 Will AI Replace Accountants 13:29 Know Your Break-Even Number 16:14 Advice To Her Younger Self 19:02 The Hardest Stretch And Why Cash Is Queen 21:51 What Comes Next For Magic Digits 23:37 Where To Find Rachael Marshall \- 🔗 Guest & Resources Connect with Rachael Marshall: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachael-marshall-4b745a138 Website: https://magic-digits.co.uk \- Get in touch: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikulaszach/ Apply to be a guest: https://consultingrainmakers.com/ Email: [mikulas.zach@agenteedigital.com](mailto:mikulas.zach@agenteedigital.com)