Business Finance: Should You Outsource Your CFO?

If you are a business owner, following the money trails of numerous transactions is an arduous task. You have to track down simple transactions like purchasing a copier or paying for the services of an orthodontist to huge contracts with suppliers. This is one of the tasks that a chief financial officer or CFO can handle. The role asks for financial wisdom, where the person would know how to strategize and steer a company in the right direction when it comes to a cash position. You need to have high-level analytical skills, advanced accounting know-how, and impeccable market insight if you aspire to be on

For a crucial role, you might think that a CFO needs to be someone who has grown internally. It is not always the case, and in fact, there have been cases where this is outsourced. There are valid reasons why some companies go that route.

Cost

A CFO is someone who is highly-skilled and knowledgeable. As such, they command high salaries. Not all people who start their own businesses are lucky enough to know someone who is the right fit for this financial role. Some of them have to scope the market for qualified individuals.

Smaller companies can be tight on cash. Sometimes, they would just take the CFO position out of the equation and just rely on someone less qualified to watch over their cash position. They have the option to outsource the role. The person can be someone who can help them check their finances, and this will be more of a consultative role. This means they do not have to be part of the monthly payroll and will allow the organization to have them work on an as-needed basis. As the company grows and creates a lot of financial activity, they can then decide if they need to hire a CFO full time.

There Is Talent Out There

Talent can be grown from inside the organization. But if you find that you are still lacking in that department, you can seek external resources. A high-level position like the CFO can also be subject to this type of selection. This is a role that is challenging to scope out whether you do a search internally or externally since it requires someone who has years of experience and sublime analytical skills. You definitely should look out for any options you may have to fill this role especially if you are pressured for time.

Unbiased Eye

The job of the CFO mostly requires them to look at financial data including receivables, payable items, taxes, and many others. That is a lot of information that they have to crunch on analysis. Having someone who works for you externally will give you an unbiased view of what is happening with your company’s finances. This is because they are just focused on the data, figuring out how that is trending and presenting you just that. You can truly have someone looking at the finances independently, which works well if you already have another leader overlooking operations.

A chief financial officer is an important person for your business. You establish a company or an organization to make money, and you need someone wise and knowledgeable to tell you the ideal course of action. There would be no problem if it is someone you have to hire externally. All that is important is that they have the skill set and right attitude to do the job for you.