In an ideal world, company finance and accounting organizations could tackle every function in-house. But that obviously isn’t realistic, so choosing between outsourced CFO services and in-house is a common challenge.
While there is no single benchmark that will provide an answer to the outsourced vs. in-house choice, identifying function-specific pain points can make the decision more straightforward, and that process begins by understanding your objectives, constraints, and strengths.
Between factors like costs, organizational size and maturity, complexity, and objectives, risk provides the context in which in-house vs. third-party CFO decisions are made.
CFOs, who typically manage multiple projects at once, can be one of the busiest corners of any organization. They are the ones juggling M&A, technology implementation, other crucial strategic financial and operational initiatives.
Ramping up an in-house finance team requires time and money, each posing a risk to the company. Outsourced CFO services provide CEOs and business owners with a cost-effective option, supplying as much direct access as needed to high-quality expertise, without the full-time cost of a CFO.
A finance organization should be a hub of decision-making for the entire company. However, between accounts receivable (AR), accounts payable (AP), inventory, payroll, and other responsibilities involved, it’s easy for companies to get bogged down in the day-to-day rather than keeping an eye on the long-term road ahead. This is when adding fractional CFO services, that have the necessary insights and tools to accurately see and help chart the course for this complex strategic picture, is an attractive option.
An expert, part-time CFO will contribute sound financial leadership as well as to help lead the daily business operations.
Many companies are too small to hire a director of financial reporting. In this case, until the company grows larger, and reporting becomes sufficiently complex for a full-time, in-house position, outsourced CFO services are an excellent way to bridge this gap.
If you are a business owner or CEO within the San Francisco Bay Area or Silicon Valley, in need of an experienced part-time CFO to help your company identify opportunity and navigate the economic landscape, improve cash flow, accounting and billing process management, as well as profit margins, our highly skilled outsourced CFO services provide direct access to high-quality expertise in a cost-effective manner.