FAQs

Senior financial expertise is an investment in your business and it pays for itself. At teamCFO, we do not charge by the hour. Based on the work involved, we estimate a retainer fee and that’s all. You don’t have to worry about the fees going up. In addition, teamCFO offers a team approach so you have more than one professional working on your business.

Are you asking these questions? We can provide the answers.

• How is my business doing financially?
• How come I have revenues but no cash?
• What is the best direction to move my business forward?
• What critical financial data do I need to know about my business?

This is a common question we encounter. teamCFO has nothing against your family accountant or friend’s favorite CPA. They have provided you with good guidance in the past, but we know, as your business grows, the level of operational experience needed increases and at some point it is beyond the knowledge of your tax accountant CPA.

If you have a growing or declining business, you need senior level management skills to understand the critical elements of your business with practical solutions, focusing on current performance needs, long-term fiscal planning and guidance, and/or a more hands-on, ongoing operational approach. This is what our firm is designed to do as we have taken over and improved hundreds of businesses with the same challenges.

We have broken down sound financial management for any successful business into 4 major areas. If you are missing any of them, your business is not performing at the highest level:

• Are you receiving timely and accurate financial reports on a monthly basis?
• Are you monitoring your cash needs and spending? Do you know your cash breakeven point?
• Do you have a realistic budget in place to monitor expected performance as well as re-directing as new things or unexpected issues come up?
• Do you understand the risks you are taking on when making key financial decisions such as hiring key employees, adding a new warehouse or purchasing new equipment? Do you have a backup plan?

A true Controller (the title can be misleading) oversees the day to day operations and is primarily responsible for the accuracy of transactions recorded and producing timely financial reports based on those transactions. A Controller works with Past and Current data.

A CFO focus is Growth and works with Current and Future data. A CFO will evaluate current results and analyze what it means and how it impacts your future plans. In addition, a CFO will focus on getting the business ready, doing what is necessary to move the business forward.  A CFO is about forecasting, projecting, analyzing future plans and the bridge between now and tomorrow.

Our clients often tell us-“You are not like any accountants we know.” This is because we have a passion for business, not accounting. Accounting process is how one gathers, records and reports financial transactions and many firms can do a good job at that. What makes teamCFO unique is that we view the completion of the financial process as the beginning and not the end. The beginning to analyze, appreciate and grasp the essence of the financial picture to help CEOs understand the critical element, improve decision making and deploy resources to obtain better results.

For the past two decades, teamCFO has built a track record of partnering with CEOs and delivering results. We are often told by clients that we are not like any accountants they have worked with before, we are truly their business partner-we listen, anticipates and offer sound advice. See our client stories.

With teamCFO, you have a team behind your business, not just one individual. We have a team of highly skilled hands-on accountants that are trained to run operations. Our team can expand or contract with your business as your needs change.

• We have a passion for business, not accounting. We know that financial reporting and accounting are just a platform to help a business succeed. We help each business improve its performance and that is how we measure our success. Your success is the standard we set for ourselves.
• For over a decade we’ve had a track record of partnering with CEOs and delivering results. We bring a collective experience, gained across industries, to all of our clients. See our client stories.
• With teamCFO, you have a team behind your business, not just one individual. Our team can expand or contract with your business as your needs change.

This is not an easy question to answer as it depends on several key factors such your business cycle (start up, stable, growth or decline), your industry (services vs products), the complexity of your operations as well as your strategic direction.

One of the most important elements is hiring qualified financial professionals, which can be difficult to find. The choices are Bookkeeper, Accountant (various levels), Controller and CFO.

Typically, you will need someone to handle and the day to day activities. This can be a bookkeeper or a staff accountant. Then, there is the monthly close to produce reliable financials. Many smaller companies have their outside CPA to do this but it is important to make sure your CPA asks questions, actually reconciles bank, credit card and other large Balance Sheet accounts. If you have a larger business, this is where you will need a Senior Accountant or Controller. Also, you want the accounting records to be kept on accrual basis for getting bank loans, passing audits, soliciting investors or selling your business.

A CFO is most often hired by larger businesses. A CFO is a strategist to help CEO execute strategic initiatives, a translator to help the management team grasp the capacity and financial picture and a facilitator to work with other managers to accomplish financial goals.