Top benefits for startups employing an interim Chief Financial Officer by Sam McQuade CFO of Panterra Finance: Optimize strategy: Businesses run on money, which means that CFOs, as the financial gatekeepers, are essential to strategy formulation and optimization. A fractional CFO can weigh in on the financial side of strategy by bringing in a perspective based on the numbers. In other words, your fractional CFO can test your strategy and tell you if it’s financially viable. And if not, what can be done to optimize it. Implement systems: As startups scale up, they need to put better systems in place to meet their changing requirements. This necessitates the supervision and guidance of someone who has implemented multiple systems in different scenarios. Someone who’s seen it all can predict the things that can go wrong and correct them before they do.
A fractional CFO is an experienced CFO who provides services for organizations in a part-time, retainer, or contract arrangement. This offers a company the experience and expertise of a high-end CFO without the in-house cost—salary, benefits, and bonuses—of a full-time CFO. Unlike a full-time CFO who oversees and maintains all general financial strategy or an interim CFO who performs CFO duties before or between CFO hires, a fractional CFO’s duties are typically on a project basis and specifically tuned to the company’s particular challenges or goals.
Smaller companies, incubators and startups could not match the salaries that the full time CFO commanded on the world financial stage. The seeds for the concept of an Interim or Fractional CFO were planted in the mind of Sam McQuade almost 3 decades ago when he first entered the world of International Finance as an Entrepreneur Consultant in Geneva Switzerland after achieving his MBA/MA at European University. During this tumultuous time at the turn of the century on the international financial scene, Mr. McQuade was ahead of his time. He offered as needed financial consultation services for international behemoths the Swiss based Nestle Corporation and the US based medical device corporation Stryker. The focus of his services, which would years later be foundational in the concepts of Panterra was a new model in product development, manufacturing and marketing. See more details at Sam McQuade.
Vision, Roadmaps and Business Plans are typically good collaboration processes, however alignment on meaningful strategy is driven by relationships and the CFO cannot over-communicate in this area. In an era of “greenwashing”, the CFO has a real opportunity to lead since success will ultimately be measured with scorecards and transparency. Sharing the Sustainable Story with financial support is the most credible way for stakeholders to see progress.
The chief financial officer (CFOs) holds the top financial position in an organization. They are responsible for tracking cash flow and financial planning and analyzing the company’s financial strengths and weaknesses and proposing strategic directions. CFOs are accountable to both the organization and various regulatory entities and authorities, including the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in publicly held companies. They are well-versed in both generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and state and federal regulations, such as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.
Return on investment (ROI): Part of a CFO’s strategic focus is on ensuring a strong return on investment (ROI) for their organizations. ROI is a measure of the likelihood of receiving a return on dollars invested and the precise amount of that return. As a ratio, it looks at the gain or loss of an investment as a percentage of the cost. Because ROI is a relatively basic KPI that does not account for all variables — net present value, for example — CFOs add context to evaluate whether a project will deliver sufficiently robust ROI to be worth the investment.
Now, suppose there is a problem with the website. Maybe the server goes down, or maybe there is a bug in the code. In such a case, the smart contract will still be functional, and the transactions will still take place. This is because the smart contract is running on the blockchain, which is a decentralized network. Even if one node in the network goes down, the other nodes will still be up and running, and the transactions will take place. This is just a very simple example to show you how a DAO works. In reality, DAOs can be much more complex, and they can do many more things. For instance, they can be used to create decentralized versions of traditional companies or organizations.
As independent internal auditors, we compile in-depth audit reports that convey insights on both known and unknown risks and vulnerabilities in order to protect your business. We hold a niche in capital project auditing and in assisting start-ups with outsourced Internal Audit services.
Understanding DAO: Now, suppose the same transaction happens on a decentralized network like the Bitcoin network. There is no central entity here. Both parties can interact with each other directly. The product is transferred from A to B, and $100 is transferred from B to A. This transaction is then recorded on a digital ledger which is available to everyone in the network. So there is complete transparency, and everyone knows that the transaction has taken place. This process of recording transactions on a digital ledger is what we call ‘blockchain technology.’ This is not limited to just financial transactions; it can be used to record any kind of transaction. Now that we know what blockchain is, let’s get back to DAO.
To summarize, a fractional CFO brings all the benefits of a full-time resource, but at a fraction the cost. They work an agreed upon amount of time, and on an ongoing basis. The benefits are myriad, and range from improved reporting and decision-making, clearer insight into the business for planning and forecasting, and stronger financial management and controls. Perhaps the biggest benefit however, is how the CEO can transfer the financial and administrative burden to the CFO, and thus free themselves to work on other critical aspects of the business.
Searching to hire your first CFO or need interim coverage? We provide CFOs for urgent short term objectives and longer term engagements. Customizable with clear pricing so you cover your business and don’t have to get into a potentially bad and expensive full time hire. Along with the core services of C-Suite Level Executives in Finance and a contingent of Fractional CFO talent and experienced Intermittent CFO innovators, Panterra Finance services include: international Business – Experts in Global Tax Liabilities and Cash Flow Strategies, investments and planning. Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) Advisory – Providing valuations as well as independent perspectives on offers and options. Internal Audits – Independent internal auditors with in-depth reports highlighting risks and vulnerabilities. Risk Management – A worldwide footprint enables Panterra Finance to identify risks and opportunities in the new world economy. Compliance Review – Actionable understanding when entering markets with new rules, regulations, laws and international asset allocation decisions. See more details at https://www.reddit.com/user/samueledwinmcquade.