Do you consider cost estimating and it’s twin sister job costing vital operational components of your business?

If your answer is no, then it is safe to say that you don’t have an accurate picture of your costs and run the risk of serious financial problems sooner and not later. Economics 101 teaches us that neglecting or ineffectively dealing with cost control is a sure way to achieve unwanted debt, which puts a company’s survival on the line. (As an aside, but on the subject of cost control, the Bush Administration should be ashamed of the huge deficits and massive long-term debt they have given us. Government, like private business, must control costs and operate in the black or bad things will inevitably happen. For our government to commit us to extremely high deficits is irresponsible and places our country in a troubling and dangerous position that threatens America’s standard of living and long-term stability at home and abroad. And it sets a very bad example for businesses struggling to make ends meet just to survive. What ever happened to the Balanced Budget Amendment, a key part of the fiscally conservative agenda in the late 1990s?)

If your answer is yes, then you acknowledge the importance of identifying and controlling the costs that drive your business, and thus have a reasonable chance of survival in these tough times.