Virtual finance director: Two-Page Guide

What a finance director does

• Business plans and strategy
• Budgets, forecasts and KPIs
• Cash management
• Pricing and margin improvement
• Board and investor reporting
• Bank and funding relationships
• Finance systems and controls
• Tax planning with the business
• Acquisitions and disposals
• Exit and succession planning

Signs you need one

• Turnover is growing, but cash is not
• You are talking to banks, lenders or investors
• Management accounts are late, or nobody uses them
• Pricing, hiring and investment decisions are made on gut feel
• Your bookkeeper or financial controller needs senior oversight
• You are planning a sale, acquisition or handover to the next generation

How it works

A virtual finance director works with you part time, for a set number of days a month or quarter. They attend board meetings, review the numbers and are available by phone in between. The time can be scaled up for a project, such as raising finance or preparing for a sale, and back down afterwards.

Typical engagements

A complete virtual finance team

The finance director can sit on top of the rest of your finance function. We can provide the bookkeeping and payroll, the management accounts and the finance director, so you have one joined-up team instead of three separate suppliers.

Your first 90 days

1. Days 1 to 30: review the numbers, systems and controls, and identify quick wins in cash and pricing.
2. Days 31 to 60: build the budget, 13-week cash forecast and KPI dashboard.
3. Days 61 to 90: present the first board pack, agree the plan for the year and review funding.
4. Ongoing: monthly or quarterly reviews, with time on call when decisions come up.