Two Must-Know Strategies to Fund Innovation at Your Company

Innovation is critical for growth – but innovation comes with a price tag that most small and medium businesses can’t pay. How can you get the funds you need to push your business forward?

Option One: Control Your Costs

Let’s start with reviewing two segments of your business and how they could free up some cash.

Evaluate your transactions: By looking deeper at your transactions, you could find grant-eligible expenditures. The Canadian government offers nearly $3 billion for scientific research and experimental development annually, but few businesses are aware that grants like this exist.

Check your taxes: Some SMEs are costing themselves money without knowing it. Tax over-filings mean you’re paying more than what you need and missing out on opportunities to reinvest in your business. With a review of your financials, an advisor can help you determine if you’re grant-eligible and check if your taxes are correct.

Option Two: Go Beyond Your Business

If your transactions and taxes are on par and you still need more resources to fund business innovation, it’s worth considering external financing.

Equity financing: Selling stake in your business is a simple way to get cash for growth.

Employee stock option plan: Adopting an employee stock option plan (ESOP) gives your business a boost for a lower cost than typical loans. Plus it can be an effective employee recruitment and retention benefit.

Lines of credit: Lines of credit are an increasingly popular growth engines among innovative SMEs. By supplementing financing with data analytics that communicate the business case for investment, businesses can provide both understanding and reassurance of the security of the financing.

These funding resources are not a silver bullet. It’s the allocation of where you invest that helps drive change. MNP provides the advisory and stewardship services that you need to innovate, secure new funding and drive efficiencies.

To learn more about how MNP can help your business innovate, contact Dan Caringi, at [email protected] or 1.877.251.2922.