For many small, entrepreneurial businesses that want to focus on growth, hiring an experienced Finance Director (FD) can seem out of reach. The average cost of an FD is over £100k per year and it just isn’t feasible for most small businesses to support a six-figure salary.
The solution is to hire a part-time Finance Director.
An experienced part-time FD can help your business to overcome financial challenges and take the necessary strategic steps to ignite growth. Outsourcing an FD is an affordable way for a small businesses to access the expertise they need to fulfil their potential.
Finance Cornerstone was established to provide quality outsourced FD services in the digital sector. If you are experiencing a decline in productivity, motivation and client satisfaction, or your agency has simply stopped growing, we can help.
Get in touch or book your FREE discovery call.
What do part-time finance directors do?
A good FD’s skills range from strategic advice to developing and implementing day-to-day procedures for the finance team (and everything in between).
FDs are typically viewed as a scrooge-like figure, counting the coppers as they come and go. A typical perception is that they are there to control the money, stop spending and make savings.
Often sidelined and viewed as a function to literally count the money, the FD (and finance team) don’t always get the opportunity to live up to their potential as forward-thinking, future-planning visionaries!
In reality, a good FD will be someone who can objectively make an assessment of a business and identify opportunities to boost growth.
It may seem counterintuitive, but often you need to spend money intelligently and in the right places, to maximise efficiency, play to strengths, and ultimately increase profitability.
Typical services you can expect from a part-time FD:
- KPI setting – if you don’t have a roadmap, any old place will do!
- Budget setting – to ensure your profit and loss, cash flow and balance sheet remain healthy.
- Implementation of internal systems – the backbone of your operation and essential to successful financial management.
- Cost management – to minimise your outgoings and boost your bottom line.
- Cash flow management – to minimise the risk of cash flow problems that can bring a business to a standstill.
- Annual reports – as well as weekly, monthly and quarterly reports.
- Management reporting – telling a story with numbers to aid decision-making and strategic planning.
- Adhoc project management – project work specific to your needs, such as raising finance.
Why do I need a part-time finance director?
As a small business owner, you should of course challenge any new sources of expenditure, such as a part-time FD. After all, you may have a small finance team or an outsourced accountant who handles the day-to-day stuff well.
It’s worth remembering, however, that most financial figures produced by accountants are retrospective. They will give you the numbers for last week, last month, last quarter.
They can give you a really good picture of what has happened, but what they can’t give you, is an idea of what will happen next.
Future focussed
What I, or any good FD, will do, is translate your numbers to enable you to make smarter decisions.
Everything I do, in every position I hold, can be distilled down to the function of telling stories with numbers!
I believe in looking forward, planning for potential problems and projecting meaningful performance targets that are relevant to the business now – not as it was six months ago.
What are the benefits of a part-time finance director?
- Affordable expertise – all the benefits of a highly experienced professional at a fraction of the cost of a full-time Finance Director.
- Time – so many owner-managers don’t have the time to work on the business, rather than in it. An FD can help ease the daily accounting grind. They should also implement processes to eliminate the need for constant firefighting.
- Improved credibility with investors – it’s easier to raise finance when you have a firm grasp of your numbers.
- Motivation and direction – a good part-time FD should be a voice of change and inspiration.
- A sounding board – being able to tap the knowledge of an experienced FD, as part of your extended team, is very beneficial.
- Cut costs and maximise profit – if there are cost savings to be made and untapped opportunities, an FD will find them.
- Scale your business – with your finances in first-class condition you can start to make plans for business growth.
How does a part-time finance director fit in with the team?
I believe that people are what make or break a business. Investing in the right people at the right time can increase job satisfaction and loyalty.
You may wonder why an FD would take an interest in the people, in my view it’s simple; get the right people in the right jobs and give them the tools they need to do that job and productivity is likely to rise sharply. Right person, right seat.
There are few better feelings in business than when you have a team of people all working in unity to reach a goal they all believe in.
I believe that a part-time finance director should act as an inspirational, honest and impartial voice that brings the team together.
Why Finance Cornerstone?
If you have hit a roadblock when it comes to growth, then a part-time finance director could be a valuable investment to move your business forward. Finance Cornerstone offers part-time FD services to digital agencies that are going places.
If your digital agency has a turnover of £1m+ and has its sights set on the future, then let’s talk. Get in touch or book your FREE discovery call.
Conclusion
A part-time Financial Director can bring a high calibre of knowledge and experience to the table, at a minimal cost. As well as fine-tuning your accounts, they can use their insight and advice to set the future direction of your business and help it reach its potential.
