Strategic financial advice
CFOs are pivotal in steering companies towards growth and profitability through strategic financial advice and guidance. Collaborating closely with management teams, they contribute to setting and achieving the necessary targets to achieve growth.
iFD’s Fractional CFOs have extensive experience and diverse skill sets that go beyond traditional financial management. They are not just financial advisors but catalysts for business expansion and value creation.
A Fractional CFO leverages the knowledge and experience gained from other companies to provide strategic financial advice and guidance tailored to the specific needs of a client, for example:
- Leverage industry-specific insights to implement best practices and navigate challenges, ensuring optimal business performance.
- Provision of advice on planning and execution, tailoring successful approaches from other contexts to meet the specific needs of the current company.
- Apply their experience in financial management to enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and optimise operations, drawing on proven practices such as improved cash flow and investment strategies.
- Anticipate and mitigate potential issues, preparing for industry-specific risks, economic shifts, or operational challenges.
- Their knowledge of various financial technologies and systems allows them to identify and implement the most suitable tools for enhanced financial management, reporting and analysis.
- They understand the importance of compliance and can ensure that financial practices meet current standards and regulations.
- A Fractional CFO often comes with a network of contacts. This network can be invaluable for forming new partnerships, securing capital or sourcing top talent.
Every company has its unique challenges and goals. An iFD CFO uses their accumulated knowledge to develop financial strategies that align with the company’s specific objectives, market position, and growth potential.
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Industry: Building Materials
Industry-leading UK provider of building matetials. Family run with £80m annual turnover. Wanted to professionalise their small finance team to match the company’s exponential growth with a fit-for-purpose finance function. Part-time CFO introduced: cashflow forecasting and budgeting, product analysis and profitability, sales line profitability, variance analysis and management accounts. Resulted in improved cashflow management, product profitability analysis and a first-class finance function.
Industry: Cybersecurity Consultancy
The senior leadership team of this company are accidental entrepreneurs! They didn’t intend to set up a business, but changes in contracting rules took them in that direction. The acute shortage of cybersecurity professionals has created a successful, rapidly growing company, but it needed a Part-time FD to ensure it is a sustainable business with structure, a robust 5-year plan, and tangible value.
Industry: Intelligent Automation Platform
This is a spin-out and is an early-stage company experiencing rapid growth. They have already received $4M in Seed funding from an HNWI (high net worth individual) in the US. They are a forward-looking management team that wanted an FD to help them define their commercial offering and pricing strategy, establish a budgeting and forecasting process, and help them understand their exit strategy.
Industry: Logistics
European logistics company with €30bn annual revenues and 30,000 employees. Wanted to expand to the UK but finance function lacked knowledge of the UK financial landscape. A combination of CFO support and accounting services during the opening of its operation base providing all aspects of UK finance, governance, regulations, compliance and tax. Part-time CFO unblocked UK tax issue and established a cost-effecive and compliant finance function.
Industry: Software Developer
A UK-based organisation that helps companies make smarter, more informed decisions quicker. Whilst they were pivoting to a SaaS-based model, the founders required CFO support. CFO performed a strategic review, prepared shareholder agreements, developed the post-funding reforecast, and actively monitored the long-term financial plan, cash burn rate and customer renewals. The client has extended our services to include accounting support.
Industry: Creative film, TV and gaming studio
Our part-time FD is supporting their transition from a start-up to an established business. They’ve implemented the appropriate business structure and established a business planning process, as well as introduced tax planning. This client now has a foundation for growth with improved cash flow management and informed decision-making through better management information.
Industry: UK-based SaaS company
Optimised financial planning, funding, and controls for a high-growth business which required CFO support to direct budgeting and funding. Supported the company to become investment ready for a significant capital raise, allowing the business to accelerate growth.
Industry: ServiceNow Partner
Provided part-time CFO and prep for exit support to help the founders of a rapidly growing business achieve a premium valuation and ultimately increase shareholder value.
Industry: A large software development group with UK subsidiaries
Conducted work on post-acquisition earnout modelling, ensured the subsidiary was fully integrated with the parent company, provided strategic analysis and forecasting, and implemented business strategy at a local level.
Industry: Google Cloud Premier Partner
Developed the firm’s business model, presided over a debt-free balance sheet and added a new structure to the model. The successful completion of this work coincided with a very strong, profitable and cash-generative growth phase for the business.
Industry: Construction group
Provided clarity, strategic direction and support to drive growth and profitability and address weekly working capital issues. Contributed to the generation of a 400% increase in revenue within four years by implementing a structured finance function and expanding associated product lines.
Industry: Computer software
Provision of a full finance team, including a group finance director. Successfully set up subsidiaries in multiple jurisdictions and established benchmark processes, procedures and reporting for these subsidiaries in each country. Provided strategic direction by assisting the company with the development of their 3-year plan, ultimately leading to a 14-fold increase in revenue.
Industry: Construction and development
Provided a blend of fractional CFO support and elements of the ireport service so we could help the business revolutionise antiquated ways of working and assist in calculating stock accuracy, improving financial systems and controls, and empowering the team to set budgets.
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