What Kinds of Things Does A Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Help Small Business Owners With?
In this article we are going to find out about the things a CFO can get involved with to help you succeed with your Small Business.
To discover what a ‘small business friendly’ CFO actually is – and why they could be just the person to help you live your best business life, check out the first blog in this series all about that!
Now let’s take a look a practical look at the top 10 things a CFO brings to your table
1. Pricing for profit – so you don’t have to work all the time!
A CFO can help you develop pricing strategies that ensure you are fairly compensated for your time and effort, while also allowing you to invest in your business and importantly be able to take time out of your business!
This includes savvy pricing positioning, modelling your results and profits based on pricing and advice on pricing in contract negotiations.
2.Helping you raising funds to bring all your ideas to life!
They can provide guidance and build financial models to support you with raising funds through grants, loans, and investments. Supporting with creating rigorous and compelling applications and business plans.
3. A good night sleep because you know there is enough cash
Forecasting your cash removes the guesswork and fear from managing costs, funding essentials and wants, and investing in the next phase, without any nasty surprises. It’s about having foresight and reacting to any shortfalls smoothly.
4.Reviewing and Improving your Commercial Performance
Reviewing your performance effectively is important so that you can strategise, plan and respond in a savvy way to ‘what is actually happening’, rather than reacting to ‘what you think is happening’.
5.Business Planning, Budgeting, and Goal-setting
To help you align your business model and finances with your unique aspirations in a tangible action-orientated way and reach your destination more quickly and use your resources sustainably.
6. An advise for Guiding you through Key Milestones
Helping you make informed decisions that support your business goals – such as when to make an investment, pivot into a new market, hire or restructure, or take the risk.
7.Spend less time on the boring stuff with Fit for Purpose Finance Systems and Processes
Supporting you to set up scalable and insightful finance systems and processes that can handle an increase in customers without resulting in overloaded capabilities, reducing delays, overwork, and stress at minimal cost. So you don’t have to spend days on admin.
8.Acting as a Sounding Board and Business Partner
Bounce around new ideas and problem-solving, providing relevant expertise and proactive advice on the business finance implications and strategies for success.
9.Supporting you with Difficult Conversations
Helping you with hard decisions and conversations such as crisis management, negotiations, dealing with customers who pay late, or crafting price increase letters or committing to other changes that may feel intimidating to tackle alone.
10.Mentoring Your Team
If you already have employees in finance and ops roles, they can provide advice and mentoring to help them up-skill and develop.
And aside from the practical support …
With CFO support as a small business owner you no longer have to feel alone, frustrated and confused by your business numbers.
With a finance expert on hand you get to feel more financially confidence so you can experience more freedom, flow & impact in your business and life.
Hi, I’m Harriet, your trusted CFO, Business Growth Specialist, and Finance Educator.
I am the founder of Below The Line Finance and my mission is to financially empowering creative entrepreneurs to build aligned businesses – with profit, purpose and healthy cashflows! With my collaborative and supportive approach, I am dedicated to guiding you to greater confidence and success with your business finances. What could you accomplish with your very own Mini CFO?
Let’s stay in touch:
- I run a Facebook Group Money Mastery for Creative Business Owners which is all about feeling good about finance – you are most welcome to join!
- Want to grow confidence with the fundamental of finance? I run a monthly finance Master Class Series
- Are you on the email list? I send a weekly newsletter of finance tips for creative business owners.
Together we can say goodbye to fear and confusion, build solid finance foundations and step into a supportive environment where you can turn your dreams into a reality through bespoke finance strategy.