No matter how large or small your business may be, you’re never without the needs of a CFO. Even the largest corporations among us have CFOs, and for good reasons. However, these days, virtual CFOs are seen as the future of accounting.
Generally speaking, small business owners lack the necessary expertise of a CFO. As a result, they make themselves vulnerable to financial problems they wouldn’t experience with offsite bookkeeping services. Essentially, many entrepreneurs begin with a strong vision for their company but don’t really know how they’re doing financially. These issues can lead to stagnancy, lack of oversight, and ultimately failure.
So what is a virtual CFO, and what can they do for your company? Basically, there are several benefits that a virtual CFO can have for your business. Below, we’ll discuss the three primary benefits of hiring a virtual CFO.
First – what is a virtual CFO?
Basically, a virtual CFO is a financial expert who provides you with incomparable fiscal advice on a part-time, remote basis. They’re perfect for small businesses, or companies making a transition to larger sizes.
A virtual CFO performs all of the expected services of a CFO. This includes bookkeeping, financial planning and reporting, risk management, etc. Ultimately, this makes them an intelligent and risk-free investment in your company. With many companies, there are surefire signs a virtual CFO is desperately needed.
So what are the three primary benefits? Honestly, the perks of a virtual CFO are countless, but we’ve done our best to narrow them down.
1. Reports
When it comes to small businesses, or any business for that matter, you need someone to help you measure and define your key metrics. Essentially, your key metrics are a measurement of your company’s overall health or performance.
Your virtual CFO will not only report them, but use them to come up with valuable strategies. Basically, a virtual CFO will be able to assess, analyze, and examine your statistics in order to give your company a solid strategy to help you flourish. Many business owners find it difficult to do this crucial task on their own. In fact, many of them are simply unable to develop strategic techniques based on their company’s key metrics. Therefore, a virtual CFO is instrumental in performing this for you.
2. Strategies & Planning
When it comes to virtual CFOs, they’re not just able to analyze and report data. In addition to reporting, they’ll be able to map out clear, coherent plans for you and your business. Basically, these plans involve cash flow, budgeting, quarterly goals, eliminate procrastination, and much more.
Based on your company’s financial assets, a virtual CFO will ultimately try to guide you towards the ability to capitalize on any future opportunities. Essentially, this is the fine balance that’s difficult for companies to strike without a virtual CFO. Obviously, you don’t want to miss any sales because of limited inventory. However, you don’t want to invest too much in inventory that will take far too long to sell. Do you see what a balancing act this is? A virtual CFO can alleviate this burden from your shoulders, and give you a coherent guide to managing this task.
3. Implementing Growth
Obviously, every business owner dreams of expanding. However, most entrepreneurs can’t seem to develop the financial skills necessary to bring their companies to the next level. This is another incomparable benefit of a virtual CFO. In many ways, they take on the role of a business partner. They’ll help you build a stronger business model, develop strategies, build corporate finance and even fundraising.
When it comes to growth, your virtual CFO will help you to build data-driven insights in order to support decision-making. If you’re having troubles with stagnancy, a virtual CFO can easily identify the central challenges you’re experiencing. In addition, they can utilize their asset management skills to allocate your resources in the best (and most lucrative) way.
Conclusion
The truth of the matter is, there are countless benefits a virtual CFO can bring to your business. As business itself evolves, virtual CFOs are a futuristic and convenient solution to problems that have always plagued smaller companies. Even some of the most creative and visionary entrepreneurs can’t manage their finances alone.
