It’s one thing to decide that your business needs the help and support of a part-time finance director – and another to be able to confidently hire an individual who is an excellent fit for your organisation.
We know that choosing and appointing a new FD can be a daunting task for any business owner, which is why we have put together this short buyer’s guide to investing in part-time finance solutions.
Read on to find out:
- Whether you should hire an FD in the first place
- What you can expect to receive from your part-time FD, and what their work typically involves
- What your FD will need from you and your team in order to deliver maximum value from their services
Are you in the right position to hire a part-time FD?
Finance directors can be contracted into virtually any kind of company. But to really reap the rewards of working with an experienced finance professional, you should plan to collaborate with them in the longer term.
At Dartcell, our part-time FD services are best suited to businesses generating more than £1million in revenue per annum. It’s at this point that most companies will benefit from the insights and recommendations we can generate on their behalf. That said, profit-hungry companies with more modest balance sheets will also find our support to be invaluable as they gear up for a new chapter.
Generally, you may want to consider hiring a part-time FD when:
- Your responsibilities as a business owner have increased to the point where you are juggling too many plates, and can no longer keep a firm grip on your financial obligations
- You feel you are spending too much time ‘getting by’, rather than measuring your finances against clear KPIs and actively planning for your company’s financial future
- You are planning to pursue new opportunities (products/services, markets, or both) and need to gain a better understanding of your financial position
- You are planning to raise funds or investment for an acquisition or merger
How can a part-time finance director assist your business?
There are many facets to an FD’s services, but they will often add the most value in the following areas:
- Setting clear KPIs – and keeping you accountable for them
- Providing regular insights into your finances by way of meaningful insight into your management accounts
- Assisting with more strategic financial planning
- Managing and improving cash flow
- Allocating your resources more effectively and reducing wastage
- Producing budgets and forecasts to help you plan further ahead
- Providing up to date tax planning advice
- Supporting your communications with auditors, external advisors, banks, and other third parties
- Improving your internal systems to support smoother accounting processes
- Working with your internal bookkeeping/accounting team to ensure your financial data is accurate, reliable, and always up to date
- Liaising with stakeholders and/or investors
- Attending board meetings to help communicate their findings at executive level
- Compliance reporting
- Working with you to achieve pre-set financial goals
Your FD can act as a vital sounding board during periods of change – particularly if you find yourself in a cash crunch, or you are preparing for significant transformation internally.
With many years’ experience in their field, they will be able to provide objective advice on all kinds of business matters, from recruiting new staff to implementing more robust contracts and introducing you to specialist contacts.
Dartcell recently provided all the above for Learnmore, an independent training provider based in London – and consequently guided the company through a successful period of growth that certainly wasn’t without its challenges.
Read the case study to learn more.
5 ways you can help your FD
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Know that your FD will need time to truly understand your business and your industry.
More experienced part-time finance directors (like those here at Dartcell) will start work with a higher level of understanding than those who are just starting out in their profession. But even the most seasoned of FDs will need time to get to know your business (and your team), research your market, and understand what truly makes your offering unique.
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Embrace their input.
FDs work best when they are actively collaborating with key stakeholders, and that includes everyone from your bookkeeper through to your CEO. Make sure everyone understands why you have appointed an FD, and how they too are going to benefit from their involvement – this will improve engagement and lead to more positive outcomes at every tier.
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Be ready to implement their recommendations.
Be open to actioning your FD’s guidance, even if it means exploring new systems or technologies that take you out of your comfort zone or making short-term investments for longer-term gains.
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Appreciate that their appointment might ruffle a few feathers.
Change is difficult, particularly if your company has been using the same processes for some time, and you have a team of loyal, long-serving staff who are very used to the ‘old’ way of doing things. As mentioned above, the best way to combat any frustration or resentment from your employees is to educate them on the advantages of bringing a part-time FD into the fold, and explaining precisely how they are going to support them and the business as a whole.
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Consider them a long-term strategic partner.
Usually, you will want to find a finance director who can work with you to improve your financial positioning in the months and years to come. Over time, given the opportunity, they will become a trusted mentor to you and other stakeholders, and will be able to draw upon their first-hand experience of your business to provide even more meaningful insights that can shape your plan for growth.