Working capital falls under the heading of "operating capital" in business management theory. It is a way to measure finances, namely those immediately available to a business. It is thus an indication of operation liquidity, as simply derived by subtracting the amount of current liabilities from the amount of current assets. When current assets are less than current liabilities, a condition of working capital deficiency exists, also known as a working capital deficit.

It should be noted that your business can be chock full of assets and even be greatly profitable but still short on liquidity if those assets and all that profitability cannot for some reason be readily convertible to simple hard cash - and this is where positive working capital is important, for a company that can continue current operations with sufficient funds available to satisfy all upcoming debt and expenses. Managing working capital is thus an important aspect of any business, involving inventories, accounting (both billable and payable), and cash flow. Working capital is also important for the role it plays in any valuation of a company.

Oftentimes, banks are not the most suitable solutions for problematic situations concerning working capital. Alternatives include cash advance financing, merchant cash advances and commercial loans made out not by banks but by businesses that specialize in just such products for specific niche markets. Particularly in these economically challenging times, banks have drastically reduced or even outright eliminated whole lines of credit. One must "think outside the bank" these days, especially as a small business, even if not currently a struggling one.

This means, by implication, that working capital management might be improved. Due to the effects of the financial meltdown that are still reverberating throughout the banking sector, working capital options now assume a much greater importance. One possibility, under the right set of circumstances, can result in a reduction of credit card processing fees when obtaining merchant cash advances. And because there are so many different factors involved in so many different possible policies, a further suggestion would be for the use of working capital experts. Professional advice is generally welcome no matter what, but in these tough times it is often necessary. Dealing with new funding sources and working capital solutions is time-consuming even if it weren't so potentially confusing, but using finance experts to help evaluate the best options available today seems downright prudent, if not also wise.