When small businesses expand and hit a certain level, their cash flow and financial issues become quite complicated and require much more financial work than before. With the help of a controller, the company's financial statements will be very accurate and detailed. Then again, the CFO will take charge of financial strategy development and will think of ways to achieve the company's long-term objectives.
But many business owners find it difficult to identify the dividing line between various roles. As different departments need specific skills, it can be confusing where one role leaves and another role starts. This kind of doubt or lack of clarity often results in employing the wrong candidate, the company hiring someone for a role they are not fully utilizing, or even worse, a role being expected to perform the duties of another role. Because of this, knowing the distinction between a fractional CFO, a controller and a bookkeeper is a key way to know the right personnel to assemble for your finance team as the company develops.
What Fractional CFO Services Cover That a Controller Doesn't
Controllers and CFOs are financial officers who handle different areas. A controller works to make sure that company accounting records are free of mistakes and that internal procedures operate effectively. A chief financial officer uses the data provided by a controller to make business decisions.
Frequently, a fractional CFO decides what those numbers mean and what the business should do next.
Without accurate accounting, a CFO cannot make informed decisions. Without strategic leadership, accurate accounting alone won't drive growth.
The Difference Between Bookkeeping, Controller, and CFO-Level Work
Understanding the finance team hierarchy makes hiring much easier.Bookkeeper Bookkeepers do the day-to-day financial bookworks.
Bookkeeping work they do: Keeping a record of all the finances involved.Match the financial records of the bank account against the books of the entity Miscellaneous financial documents handling
Record business expenses Computerized accounting system usage:
- Assisting in the payroll department Filing financial records
- The main aim of their work is to keep the company record correct all the time.
Controller
Controllers, in fact, are more of a financial report preparer than record keepers.
They, Then again, have more responsibility like:
- Quality of financial reports: Cross-check of budget against forecasted figures
- Policies of accounting: Control mechanisms for preventing fraud errors etc.
- Laws compliance: Hiring and managing the finance team
- Being ready for an audit: They are mainly responsible for ensuring that the company is in sound finances.
Major issues that he or she handles are:
- Is it profitable to expand? Recruitment of workforce
- Rational pricing Which sources of capital are best for our company?
- Cash flow issues Which product categories are the most lucrative?
Instead of preparing reports themselves, they rely on their reports for deciding business strategy. This contrast is the main aspect in the discussion on controller vs CFO vs bookkeeper.
When Fractional CFO Services Make More Sense Than a Full-Time Hire
Many business companies who are at a growth stage require a leader for financial operations but they are not prepared for hiring a Chief Financial Officer full-time. The salary of a Chief Financial Officer working full-time normally reaches a range of over $100,000 per year.
That figure excludes bonuses, other employee benefits, payroll taxes, and equity, which are normally additional expenses.
For many companies, making such an investment is not yet valid.That's why, the Fractional Chief Financial Officer (CFO) services come into play.
When the company needs these services they usually hire a fractional CFO:
They get expert financial advice without running the payroll of a top executive
Likely you will pay just the time you need, for example a few hours or days a week, instead of the 40 hrs weekly payment the full-time one.
Faster growth assistance
Faster development in most cases results in financial issues.
Purpose of hiring a fractional CFO is to solve issues including:
- Human resources strategy
- Estimating future profit and revenue
- How to expand the business - strategic planning
- Retail and wholesale pricing decisions
- Setting up new shops or offices
- Rollout of new products
- Cash flow management
Even those businesses which are well established with profitability can have problems with the money they have available for spending.
CFOs who are fractional create cash flow projections and so help business owners know their needs for capital funding and prevent the occurrence of problems.
Where the Roles Overlap in a Growing Business
While each role usually bears different duties, to some extent, these functions overlap when business operations become more complex and scaled. This is why in practice, there are cases of such roles working together, for instance, a controller might step in while preparing a budget.
A chief financial officer (CFO) then checks and gives a go ahead for budget allocation based on his/ her overall vision and strategy for the company.
- An accountant controller is responsible for financial reporting.
- A chief financial officer (CFO) shares this responsibility with stakeholders and the public.
- In other words, s/he is the one to present the reports to shareholders or creditors.
- The controller's job is to keep track of the company's cash positions.
- CFO, however, is responsible for developing strategies that ensure an ongoing positive cash flow.
- The CFO is the one to decide whether these costs are aligned with the company's long-term strategy.
- In small companies, only one capable finance professional should take over all these roles in a business.
Some examples would be fractional CFO services that often include restricted controller responsibilities where the team is small, Also, controllers might be assigned to forecast or budgeting tasks until the point a business hires an official CFO that leads the finance team.
All in all though, businesses should not expect one person to be able to replace all financial positions permanently.After all, when enterprises go for growth, it is better to specialize.
How to Tell Which Role Your Business Needs Right Now
Hiring early consumes funds without much return.Hiring late hampers scaling and development. By using these questions you can figure out what kind of financial role is suitable for your company at this stage.
You might need a bookkeeper if:
- Transactions are not processed on time.
- There're outdated bank reconciliations.
- Problems arise with payroll management.
- Financial records are scattered.
- Basic bookkeeping is taking up a major portion of your time.
Then again, you need a controller when:
- There are errors in the financial reports.
- The month-end closing takes up to weeks.
- Weak internal controls are evident.
- The accounting department needs supervision of an individual for smooth functioning.
- The audits have turned hard.
- Risks of non-compliance increase.q
- Investors require financial projections from you to make a decision to invest.
- Obtaining bank credit is in the plan.
The major part of the decision-making is based on the financial analysis done by the people.You need a regular CFO when there is an ongoing daily demand for strategic financial leadership.
Choosing the Right Financial Leadership for Your Business
Each finance role has unique strengths and a particular area where it will have the best impact. Choosing the right one is a matter of your company's size, its goals, and the level of complexity involved. Bookkeepers provide the base by keeping accurate and up-to-data book records. Controllers are responsible for generating consistent and reliable reports as well as for implementing better and tighter internal controls. Fractional CFOs offer executive insights and support in finances at a cost that is far from hiring your own executive. When companies are expanding or changing, it is natural for the need for a full-time CFO to arise.
Gaining an awareness of where one role starts and the other ends will help owners of the business to wisely allocate the resources that will suit their purposes and timing. Instead of getting someone with too many years of experience or expecting just one person to know everything about your finance, you can develop an expert team that will support the day-to-day business as well as the long-term business plan at every phase of your operations.
A Financial Officer is expected to involve a lot of planning and leadership to take the company towards financial growth while at the same time minimizing the cost and developing the company through wise planning and management decisions which a fractional CFO can do so without the headaches of a salary.
The Fino Partners will guide you to a sound financial direction and a conducive business environment. Contact us today to learn how an experienced financial professional can help you make confident decisions about your business direction.
