What Is a Fractional CFO, and Do I Need One?

How can a Fractional CFO Help your business?

To answer this question, you need to know what a CFO is and what they can do for your business.

First, a chief financial officer (CFO) as the name implies, is the head of an organization's finance/accounting departments and is responsible for the fiscal health of the business. The CFO is responsible for building the finance and accounting team, financial planning and analysis, risk management, budgeting, timeliness and accuracy of financial reporting, government compliance and often the human resources among other duties based on corporate resources and needs.

A Fractional CFO is a fully qualified CFO who is available on a part-time basis or retainer. You get the benefits of a CFO but only pay for the time you need them for.

Who is this service for and why or when would I need one?

1. When your business is growing quickly but you do not have a budget to hire a full-time CFO, hiring a fractional CFO is a cost-effective way to get the services that you need, and you can create a tailored plan to your specific business needs.

What are the three most common challenges that our customers experience?

1. Overworked – having to take care of all the details of the work to ensure everything is being done properly. 2. Overwhelmed– by the myriad of decisions that need to be made, are they making the right one? What problems are looming that they aren’t aware of? 3. Underpaid - (in relation to effort) Cash flow.

What are the top three questions people ask before engaging your services?

1. How much is it going to cost? Answer: We’ll tailor an affordable plan specific to your company’s needs and budget. 2. What does this solution look like? I’m too busy - do I have time to tackle this now? Answer: I’m here to help reduce your business stress. 3. Rarely said out loud but always on their minds: “Is he going to think that I have no idea what I’m doing?” Answer: No, I think you’re brilliant for going this far.

What are your top three tips for working with a Fractional CFO?

1. Prepare to get out of the weeds. To achieve your goals, you need to step away from the day-to-day and work on driving your company forward. This is easier said, than done and requires discipline and accountability. We work on the premise of marginal gains; not tackling overwhelming tasks simultaneously. 2. Understand that you might take you out of your comfort zone and will forward you in taking actions that are more in alignment with your overarching goals. 3. Hone your leadership skills. Your team looks to you for direction and guidance, you need to give it to them with absolute confidence and clarity.

Contact Arbutus Management Consulting to help you find how a Fractional CFO can help your business – patrickh@arbutusmc.com or +1-403-404-6791.

References: Oracle Netsuite, What is a Chief Financial Officer (CFO)? https://www.netsuite.com/portal/resource/articles/accounting/chief-financial-officercfo.shtml#:~:text=Chief%20financial%20officers%20hold%20the,and%20board%20on% 20strategic%20direction