Cash Flow Intelligence: Liquidity Playbook for Mid-Market
Retail & Consumer • ~7–9 min read • Updated Aug 13, 2025
Liquidity isn’t just a finance KPI—it’s a growth enabler. Mid-market companies that build daily cash visibility and act on it can fund GTM, inventory, and talent without dilution.
Why this matters now
Rate volatility, supply variability, and tighter credit have made cash more expensive and less predictable. Leaders need a system that exposes cash drivers daily and turns that insight into concrete moves on payables, receivables, and inventory.
AI can unify bank feeds, ERP data, and invoicing to forecast short-term positions, detect anomalies, and recommend working-capital actions—without adding complexity to the close.
Our point of view
Liquidity resilience comes from visibility → options → action. Four patterns create the most impact:
- Daily cash view: Automated, multi-entity cash positioning with 13-week outlook.
- Customer & supplier term intelligence: Segment by behavior; reward reliability, enforce fences.
- Inventory-to-cash loop: Tie buys to demand signals; reduce safety stock where service levels allow.
- Embedded governance: A weekly “cash council” that commits owners and dates for actions.
Evidence & examples
Case: Terms optimization at scale
A retail distributor analyzed payment behaviors and introduced 2/10 net 30 selectively while enforcing net-45 with chronic late payers. DSO improved by 5.8 days in one quarter.
Case: Inventory signal alignment
A CPG company synced purchase orders to real demand signals, reducing dead stock by 14% and freeing $9.2M in cash while maintaining service levels.
Framework: The 13-Week Cash Stack
- Position: Bank + AR/AP + payroll + tax
- Forecast: Base, upside, downside (policy scenarios)
- Actions: Terms, collections plays, buys, expense gates
- Review: Weekly council—decide, document, and track
How to implement (30/60/90)
- Day 0–30: Connect data sources; publish daily position and a first 13-week base forecast. Stand up the cash council.
- Day 31–60: Segment customers/suppliers; design term fences; operationalize collections playbooks.
- Day 61–90: Add upside/downside scenarios; automate anomaly alerts; tie actions to KPI impact.
Operating plays
- Receivables: Dunning sequences by risk tier; dispute reduction sprints; cash app automation.
- Payables: Early-pay discounts where ROI > hurdle; negotiate net terms using reliability data.
- Inventory: Vendor-managed inventory pilots; order minimums rationalization; slow-mover liquidation.
Common pitfalls
- One-time “war rooms”: Wins fade; institutionalize the weekly cadence.
- Spreadsheet sprawl: Centralize definitions and lineage; automate refresh.
- Blunt-term policies: Segment by behavior; avoid punishing good payers.
Closing
Cash flow intelligence turns working capital into a strategic asset. With daily visibility, targeted term moves, and disciplined governance, mid-market firms can self-fund growth and reduce risk.