→ Do you – as a business owner – dream BIG about your business?
→ Does your business need financial insights and strategies that can only be given by a CFO?
→ But, will hiring a CFO overwhelm your business with too many processes?
If you answered ‘yes’ to all these three questions, then your business needs a Fractional CFO. A Fractional CFO offers financial guidance and roadmap to multiple companies either on an hourly basis or on a project basis.
A Fractional CFO provides a cost-effective alternative to the value provided by a full-time CFO. The person acts as the brain of your accounting department. They would provide a detailed roadmap, plan, and strategy for your business. The ‘hands’ or the accountants and other financial executives would execute these strategies. However, the fractional CFO will be responsible for delivering the final result of the process.
Why and When Do You Need a Fractional CFO?
If you own a startup or a small or medium scale enterprise (MSME), you must have felt that your business would do better if you had a C-level Head of Finance. However, most full-fledged CFOs can be an overkill for your venture. Yet, it is only a person with the experience of working at a chief executive level to establish a thorough financial planning and analysis roadmap.
Minimalist Way of Financial Management
Less is more when it comes to growing businesses. A fractional CFO offers the same level of financial insights but they won’t make your business drown in the deluge of processes and unnecessary analysis.
What Do Fractional CFOs Actually Do: Their Responsibilities
The responsibilities of a fractional CFO are the same as those of a full-time CFO. It’s just that the person won’t be working full-time. Instead, they will be sharing their time and expertise with multiple companies. Here are the primary responsibilities of a fractional CFO:
- High-Level FP&A
A fractional CFO builds a long term financial roadmap for the company. The person is responsible for aligning the goals of the business with this long term financial vision. They face the future and try to gauge both the potential pitfalls and potential benefits of the financial strategies adopted by the company.
- Close Collaboration With Senior Management
The fractional CFO works closely with senior management and understands their ‘why’ of doing business. The person usually reports directly to the senior management, recommends the ideal course of action, and provides data-driven financial reports.
- Fixing The Financial Mess
Let’s face it. There are many companies that can’t hire a full-time CFO because they are in a bad financial situation. But at the same time, they need the expertise of a C-level finance expert. For these companies, the primary responsibilities of a CFO are to provide them with the necessary guidance and pull them out of the financial mess.
- Guiding the Company During Special Situations:
A small or medium company can run successfully without a CFO. However, some special situations, like navigating through mergers and acquisitions, financial audits, etc, might be challenging for such organisations. In these situations, a fractional CFO can temporarily come on board and ensure the proper completion of these special projects.
Services Offered by a Fractional CFO
A fractional CFO offers more than just consultation and analysis. The person is responsible for bringing the financial health of a company up to speed.
Improving The Financial Health of The Company:
The core service of a fractional CFO is to improve the financial health of the company by providing special guidance based on years of experience.
Strategy and Planning
The fractional CFO provides FP&A services. The person builds a financial blueprint for the company and formulates a detailed strategy aligned with that blueprint.
Overseeing The Financial Operations
A person with such a designation is responsible for overseeing the entire accounting and financial operations of the company. Of course, they won’t be doing hands-on financial operations.
Reporting & Analysis
One of the most important services offered by a fractional CFO is to generate data-driven financial reports and provide deep insights by analysing the business’s financial data. Separating the usable information from noise is a big part of this person’s job.
Get Tangible Benefits by Hiring a Fractional CFO
A fractional CFO can and will reduce a lot of financial headaches. Think of the person as the brain of your accounting department. Here are the benefits that you get out of hiring a fractional CFO:
- Stand on the shoulder of a C-level financial officer. Leverage his or her expertise without hiring the person on a full-time basis.
- Take control of the finances of your company. No more ‘figuring outs’, no more wrong financial decisions.
- Leap confidently with the insights of the fractional CFO. This is not a leap of faith – this is a leap taken after data driven analysis. Companies don’t need to depend on gut feeling.
- Navigate through financial uncertainties and establish a solid FP&A backbone for your business.
How to Select a Perfect Fractional CFO for Your Business
A fractional CFO works wonders for your business. But everything depends on your selection of fractions CFO. So how do you select one who is a perfect fit for your company?
1. Person-Organisation Fit: Check If His Vision Aligns With That of Yours
A CFO – fractional or not – brings cultural changes to your organisation in terms of financial processes. If these changes are too drastic or not in line with the ‘why’ of your business, your business will suffer heavily. But when you get a fractional CFO who has a perfect synergy with your business value-wise, ethics-wise, you get impressive value out of his or her services.
2. Person-Role Fit: Gauge Whether the Person Has the Necessary Expertise
CFOs come with varying levels and kinds of expertise. Some CFOs are more capable of handling the financial affairs of manufacturing companies, while others are more adept at managing the accounts of an IT company. Thus, while selecting a fractional CFO, always see if the person has the necessary expertise to address the unique challenges faced by your business.
COHIRE – The Trusted Platform to Hire Fractional CFO
Hiring a fractional CFO comes with a lot of pitfalls. With COHIRE, you can avoid these pitfalls and have peace of mind. On COHIRE, you get a 3-step fractional CFO selection process that rules out any bad hiring.
List Down Your Needs and Challenges
The COHIRE platform allows you to list down the needs and challenges of your business. This enables the platform to find the most suitable fractional CFOs for you. (P.S. COHIRE has a total of ____ CFOs available to be selected).
Handpicked Virtual CFOs for You
Based on your requirements, you get a list of fractional CFOs hand-picked exclusively for you!
Select the One Who Is the Perfect Fit
Explore the expertise and vision of these hand-picked CFOs and choose the one who is aligned with the mission and vision of your business.
Your business deserves the same level of guidance that full-time CFOs offer to big businesses. Why should big businesses have all the fun? Hire a fractional CFO today and be on the path of explosive growth!
FAQs
1. What is the difference between a fractional CFO and a part-time CFO?
Ans. A fractional CFO works for more than one company. You essentially co-hire a CFO. Such a CFO works in a more flexible way. They usually work for set hours of time per week. Sometimes, the person works on a project-by-project basis. In the case of a part-time CFO, the schedule is more rigid, and a detailed contract is in place. A part-time CFO usually gets into the nitty-gritty of the operational aspects in terms of financial management. Of course, they won’t do manual work. A fractional CFO usually charts out the strategy and roadmap, while a part-time CFO also focuses on the day-to-day financial activities.
2. What are the differences in roles and responsibilities between a fractional CFO and a full-time CFO?
Ans. There is no difference in roles and responsibilities between a fractional CFO and a full-time CFO. The only difference is in terms of how they work. A fractional CFO shares his or her time and expertise with more than one company, while a full-time CFO works exclusively for a particular company.
3. What is the average salary of a fractional CFO?
Ans. A fractional CFO is more affordable than a full-time CFO. As such, you will be paying a fraction of what you’d have paid a full-timer in the same role. Contact us to know how much you need to pay a fractional CFO depending on your needs.
4. What does the job description for a fractional CFO look like?
Ans. A fractional CFO job description looks like this:
XYZ is looking for a talented fractional CFO to lead its financial activities. The ideal candidate –
- Should be able to provide strategic financial decisions.
- Guide the finance team to work in a more systematic and process-based way.
- Should be an MBA or have a Bachelor’s degree in finance, accounting or a related field.
- Should be able to decipher complex financial data and make data-driven decision
Sometimes the job description might talk about some specific projects like mergers or acquisitions if the company is hiring a fractional CFO for a specific purpose.