As Chartered Accountants we believe the role of Chief Financial Officer needn’t be reserved for large corporations. Small businesses and sole traders undoubtedly have to carry out the many duties associated with this position.
Generally speaking a CFO has four main areas of operation.
- They have a custodial role to play in protecting a company’s assets, and communicating value and risk issues to key stakeholders.
- They have a compliance role, as they’re responsible for ensuring financial regulations are met.
- Their main operational role focuses around the provision of services in terms of financial planning and analysis.
- They also need to demonstrate leadership in their role; they have a vital part to play in terms of business growth and strategy.
If you’re a small business owner, these roles and responsibilities are already likely to be just a few of the many aspects of your job description… Feeling overwhelmed? We can help… Our Business Consulting Division, offers you the services of a Virtual Chief Financial Officer on a part-time basis. We’d love to chat about it, so contact us.
In the meantime we thought we’d share the three Cs you should look for in your CFO…
- Credibility – Credibility doesn’t just mean honesty, it means total transparency too. A CFO must volunteer all the information they can to help a business make sound decisions.
- Competence – Your CFO can be truthful and credible, but they also need to know what they’re talking about. They need competence in business, finance and accounting to be able to offer you sound advice and help you make important decisions.
- Communication Skills – Can anybody really be successful in business without demonstrating this character trait? We’ve renamed the job title “CEO” to Chief Engagement Officer, and the importance of being a great communicator extends to the CFO too, it’s so much more than crunching numbers. It’s about delivering information in such a way that key stakeholders understand it, allowing them to make decisions from material that has been communicated effectively.
We’re confident in saying we meet the grade! Give us a call!