In recent years, the issue of business crisis has taken on an increasingly central role, both from a regulatory and operational standpoint. It is no longer a matter concerning only the entrepreneur, but involves a complex ecosystem of stakeholders: employees, suppliers, creditors, institutions.
The legislator has acknowledged this reality, introducing measures that require entrepreneurs to pay greater attention to crisis signals and to react more quickly. In this context, Article 2086 of the Civil Code plays a fundamental role, requiring entrepreneurs to adopt organizational, administrative and accounting structures appropriate to the nature and size of the company.
Notifications from qualified public creditors
Not only the entrepreneur, but also the so-called qualified public creditors (INPS, INAIL, Agenzia delle Entrate and Agenzia delle Entrate-Riscossione) are called to act when certain risk thresholds are exceeded, as provided by Article 25-novies of the Business Crisis and Insolvency Code. When such thresholds are exceeded, these entities must send a notification to both the administrative body and the supervisory body (if present).
Upon receiving the notification, it is the entrepreneur's responsibility to promptly verify the causes and assess whether there are actual difficulties affecting business continuity, taking appropriate action accordingly.
What is meant by adequate structures?
Adopting adequate structures means structuring the organization in such a way as to constantly monitor the company's performance and identify even weak signals of potential issues. For example: the loss of a key and hard-to-replace resource, liquidity tensions, or the accumulation of receivables not collected on time.
The National Council of Chartered Accountants and Accounting Experts (CNDCEC) has clarified that such structures must allow for continuous monitoring of the company's ability to meet its obligations, with a minimum time horizon of twelve months.
An essential tool in this sense is the preparation of a treasury budget (or cash plan), which should include:
- a realistic estimate of costs and revenues;
- the inclusion of receivables collection times;
- a detailed plan of incoming and outgoing cash flows.
Finally, the EBA Guidelines GL/2020/06, in force since 2021, suggest that banks assess the creditworthiness of companies based on this cash plan.
In addition to financial indicators, the entrepreneur must also pay attention to non-financial signals that may anticipate difficulties. Sometimes, these signals appear well before the crisis turns into a liquidity or solvency problem.
This is even more significant for small businesses, which by their nature operate with business volumes and human resources that make it more difficult to absorb adverse events. In these contexts, the ability to promptly intercept crisis signals can significantly impact the possibility of ensuring business continuity.
Conclusion
The adoption of adequate organizational, administrative, and accounting structures is not only a legal obligation, but also a fundamental prerequisite for ensuring the sustainability and continuity of business activity. In an increasingly unstable and interconnected economic context, the ability to promptly prevent crisis situations becomes a strategic factor.
In this perspective, the use of cloud solutions capable of monitoring financial indicators and cash flows in real time can be a valuable support for the entrepreneur, facilitating data analysis, the prediction of critical issues, and the adoption of timely and informed decisions.
Investing in advanced technological tools is no longer an option, but a strategic choice to strengthen the resilience and competitiveness of the business.