CFO an important second set of eyes

with NEW Year’s resolutions: Have you made one for your business? Resolutions are about changing what we are not happy with. Our fitness, our weight. What is it that you are not happy with in your business? Do you know the cause of the issue? Most business owners know something is not right. Finding the cause is much more difficult.

At a recent award ceremony for CFOs (chief financial officers) the value of a good CFO was highlighted. A good CFO is able to find what is not right in you business. Just as a mechanic can with your car, the CFO can put their finger on the cause of the problem.

While the winning CFO at the

One of the big changes from the global financial crisis is that customers want more for less. This is placing pressure on businesses to reduce costs, but more importantly to improve productivity by smart use of technology. Failure to address this will see your profits evaporate.

ceremony was from the CBA you do not have to be a big business to get value from a CFO. Small business receives value from CFO services and thanks to technology can receive CFO services economically.

A CFO approach is to look at the past, present and future. The traditional view of accountants is that they are number crunchers. Recording the past with accuracy. While this is important it is only the starting point from which the CFO works. From monitoring the past numbers they look at trends and discrepancies from acceptable levels. Pinpointing weaknesses and assisting the business so that it can move forward profitably and with cash.

The CFO accountant participates in the present decisions the business needs to make. Determining the return on investment on a new capital expenditure and how to fund it. The CFO is aware of the tension of managing the balance between debt and cash flow

The CFO is also looking at the businesses’ future cash needs. Future capital expenditure is also considered as well as debt reduction. The cash flow projections produced are strategic, not just operational and not just based on the previous year’s figures.

The CFO is not only looking for problems, but also the good. They are looking for the profitable parts of a business that could be further built upon. The parts that generate good cash flow.

A CFO accountant is proactively bringing the important to the CEO’s attention. As one CEO put it to me they are acting as a second set of eyes.

One of the big changes from the global financial crisis is that customers want more for less. This is placing pressure on businesses to reduce costs, but more importantly to improve productivity by smart use of technology. Failure to address this will see your profits evaporate.

In the same way, CFO services for small business now make good use of cloud technology to deliver the services with reduced labour costs. Good technology enables improved reporting and analysis at lower prices. As a result CFO services do not have to be employed in house, but can be engaged externally.

Consider making a New Year’s resolution for your business where you work smarter rather than just harder. Engaging good CFO accounting services is an invaluable way to do this.