It wasn’t that long ago that the idea of a virtual chief financial officer seemed scandalous to many people. However, hiring a virtual CFO can be so valuable that it is on the cusp of becoming a normal business practice. In fact, many experts in the industry believe that it may become more normal to have a virtual CFO than one who works in person.
But what is it about virtual CFO services that is making them so popular? Virtual CFO services seem almost like a technological upgrade in some respects. They provide more efficiency and often provide better results at the same time.
How are they able to provide all of these benefits and others? Read on to learn all about the most important ways that virtual CFO services might be able to help your business thrive!
What Is a Virtual CFO?
In short, a virtual CFO is someone who does the job of a Chief Financial Officer from a distance. On top of that, many virtual CFOs choose to work for multiple companies at the same time.
This allows them to take advantage of the 80/20 principle. In many cases, it is the first 20% of the work that someone does that provides 80% of the results that a business enjoys. If they do an extra 80% of work on top of that, they can provide only an extra 20% of value.
In theory, this means that a virtual CFO could provide 80% of the value of a CFO to five different companies at the same time, working for each of them only 20% of the time necessary for a full-time job.
Of course, in reality, things are not as neat as that. However, virtual CFOs are still able to offer much lower prices for many businesses. Because their entire salary does not have to come from any single business, they can afford to work for much lower rates.
Hiring a Virtual CFO Service Is Efficient
That comes in handy for small businesses. Some small businesses enjoy huge growth from having a virtual CFO help them out on a part-time basis.
This is especially good for them because their alternative is not a full-time CFO. Rather, their alternative is not to have an experienced CFO at all. Many small businesses cannot afford them.
At the same time, even many large businesses find that hiring a virtual CFO provides them with more bang for their buck. Even those who hire a virtual CFO on a full-time basis often find that they are more affordable.
After all, virtual CFOs get to work from a distance and at hours that are more suitable for their own preferences, so they often work at lower rates. On top of that, you will generally not have to provide a virtual CFO with benefits.
Enjoy the Experience of a Virtual CFO
Of course, most CFOs who do not have very much experience do not offer their services as virtual CFOs. Instead, the virtual CFO market is full of CFOs with plenty of experience.
In fact, a virtual CFO will often work for many more companies than even a traditional CFO. In many ways, that breadth of experience provides advantages that traditional CFOs never acquire.
Grow a Business With Flexible CFO Assistance
Many CFOs work with teams to provide services of many different kinds to many different businesses. As a result, they often have team members they can call on to help with specific problems. If you lose a valuable employee, they might be able to recommend someone who could help you as soon as later the same day.
If they need to take a break themselves, they may be able to provide a substitute virtual CFO to help you out in the meanwhile. The end result is that virtual CFO services are more reliable and solve more problems.
Enjoy Precise Financial Reports
The experience that virtual CFOs develop manifests in top notch financial reporting. They can also train your bookkeeping employees to create standard financial document practices that will provide a maximum of clarity for business decision-makers.
Although it is not the sexiest part of business, savvy executives appreciate how much organized and comprehensible financial reports can help a company to grow.
Grow Your Business With the Insights of a CFO
Their experience also means that virtual CFOs have a wide variety of insights. Once they come into your company, they will often detect some of the more common problems that a virtual CFO sees in the course of their work.
In many cases, they will already have ready-to-go solutions to help grow your company right away.
Depend on the Credibility of a Virtual CFO
Sometimes, it is the reputation of a virtual CFO that makes the difference in a specific business scenario. Having such an experienced CFO and team on your side can come in handy if you need to persuade a potential customer that you have what it takes to handle any problems that might come your way.
On top of that, experienced virtual CFOs develop a wide network of contacts. That allows them to create win-win scenarios between companies and their contacts.
Enjoy the Rapid Learning Curve of a CFO
You’re going to have to familiarize your virtual CFO with what is going on with your company. However, they are used to figuring out what is going on with a new company. You may never find someone who is as easy to get up to speed as a virtual CFO you hire.
That means that you can enjoy the results a virtual CFO provides with a minimum of delay.
Understand How Virtual CFO Services Can Help Grow Your Business
The more people see what virtual CFO services can do for themselves, the more they understand why so many people are excited about them. In most cases, a brief experiment with CFO services more than convinces businesses that they are worth using on a permanent basis. CFO services often show astounding results within just a few weeks or months of commencing.
To learn more about what virtual CFO services might be able to do for you, reach out and get in touch with us at any time!
