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Accounting & Finance

Business owners: Hire a part-time CFO to grow your company

Posted by Celene Robert

October 29, 2021

Hire a part-time CFO
A business can scale faster with the guidance of an expert who understands its financial goals and has the experience to map out a plan to achieve them. By outsourcing CFO services, you leverage the expertise of a full-time CFO at a much lower cost than recruiting an in-house CFO. Most outsourced CFO services are available at hourly or subscription rates. So as your company grows, you can scale up CFO involvement with your business as needed. Here we’ve discussed all that a part-time CFO can do to help your business thrive.

Grow the business



An outsourced CFO can establish a financial infrastructure that is capable of supporting the expansion or growth of your business by:

  • Determining the most cost-efficient tax structure.
  • Applying for multi-state registrations when applicable.
  • Obtaining financing and applying for loans.
  • Performing financial forecasts and risk assessments.

Tackle financial challenges



Outsourcing CFO services can help you resolve these business challenges: 

  • High business overhead. 
  • Inability to raise capital.
  • Poor cash flow and profitability.
  • High client churn. 
  • Debt management and loan repayment.
  • Financial errors. 

Implement more efficient processes and systems



Since part-time CFOs usually work with several clients in their area of expertise, they can apply insights to your business that have been derived from a wide range of experience. Your part-time CFO can streamline and automate administrative and financial operations to improve process efficiency. They can also bring best practices to your business’s various functional areas and incorporate internal checks for current processes. 

Devise and implement company strategies



An outsourced CFO can analyze your financial records and consumers' behavior to create a viable strategy to achieve and measure your business goals. They can also devise a financially sound plan to help you compete with rivals and prepare for worst-case scenarios.

An outsourced CFO will prepare cash flow statements and regularly evaluate them to develop strategies that improve cash flow. The CFO can also analyze and update your marketing strategies to maximize the ROI of related expenses. 

Save time



A part-time CFO can help entrepreneurs save the time they’d otherwise use to handle internal operations like budgeting, paying bills, processing payroll, regular financial reporting and developing pricing strategies.

Financial reporting and analysis



Business financial reports are essential tools for making informed decisions. A part-time CFO can manage and facilitate all of your business’s accounting and financial reporting requirements. They can also mine your financial records, analyze the competition in your industry and assess market conditions to maximize profit. The CFO helps ensure that entrepreneurs use their limited financial resources wisely to meet strategic goals.

Long-term financial planning



An outsourced CFO can help you decide which markets to target when you’re ready to expand, acquire or invest in a new venture. The CFO can also advise how much to invest and what type of return you can expect by evaluating possible outcomes. When a startup intends to go public or merge with another company, the CFO can devise plans to deal with potentially tough financial times and rapid growth to ensure a seamless transition.

Risk assessment



When considering the deployment of new tech solutions, a part-time CFO can assist management in assessing whether there will be any operational and financial concerns, along with potential hazards. They evaluate and establish procedures to prevent operational risks, including late payments, lost goods and corporate asset misuse.

Fundraising



An outsourced CFO can also attend business meetings with investors and lenders as your financial spokesperson to raise capital for your business. The CFO can also establish investor and customer relationships and create accurate financial reports to attract investors.

By outsourcing CFO services, you can leverage well-established business networks of experienced professionals and organizations of your part-time CFO. They are also connected with investors, financiers, CEOs and influencers in multiple industries, facilitating your ability to raise funds.

Data-driven insights



A part-time CFO can analyze the accuracy of financial and operational data gathered from diverse sources to provide actionable insights that the firm needs to make informed decisions. The more data-driven your business is, the more likely you are to see opportunities and avoid mistakes ahead of time. 

Conclusion

: Below we list 21 concrete ways an outsourced CFO can help your business.

  • Pinpoint problem areas in your strategy and help redirect course if needed.
  • Offer strategic insights into product performance and customer demographics.
  • Review and analyze your business’ key performance indicators.
  • Identify products and services that can earn the most money.
  • Find successful marketing and distribution channels and strategies.
  • Keep you up to date with industry trends and compliant with regulatory changes.
  • Guide pricing decisions to improve sales and profits.
  • Predict risks and plan mitigating actions.
  • Implement tech to increase employees’ productivity.
  • Identify opportunities to invest, raise funds and minimize expenses.
  • Prepare accurate financial statements and reports to help you make informed decisions.
  • Analyze income and expenditures to improve cash flow.
  • Build and maintain new relationships with investors, lenders, vendors and customers.
  • Prepare action plans for times of financial crisis to speed up response time.
  • Avoid tax and banking errors by maintaining accurate records.
  • Assist in establishing short and long-term business goals
  • Strengthen the skills of internal accounting and finance team members.
  • Assist in planning and implementing the company’s next steps.
  • Plan the business’ future based on financial projections and adjust as needed.
  • Forecast business cash flow and strategize how to allocate resources to meet goals. Ensure the company complies with tax laws for every transaction and financing round.

Author

Celene Robert
Celene Robert

Celene heads up the marketing at Escalon. Passionate about helping companies grow their business, she spends her days finding new ways to bring essential business services to startups, SMBs, and growth-minded companies. Based in the PNW, she’s the proud owner of 8 pairs of Birkenstocks and a sassy, cuddly cat.

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