The CFO'S Perspective

On to the cloud… Accounting and finance applications have been expanding into the cloud ever since the advent of the internet.  In Seattle, Amazon AWS and Microsoft Azure are betting their future on the cloud which has had a huge impact on the local community.  I see more and more cloud based  accounting and financial applications that perform critical business functions. Each makes the promise to bring cost savings and efficiencies to the business owner. 

To determine how cloud applications were impacting our clients, I surveyed our associates (contract CFOs, controllers, accountants and bookkeepers) to see how extensive cloud-based applications are being used.

Is there anyone flying this plane?

In too many cases, a nonprofit board’s approach to leadership turnover is hectic, not well thought out or planned, reactive instead of proactive. Most often, the board  is group of passionate, well-meaning volunteers who are now faced with the single most important role they will have: selecting a new leader. How the board navigates the transition will directly impact the future and potential viability of the organization.

PART I

Since my early days in corporate America working with Fortune 500 firms, I have been involved in the world of nonprofit organizations as a volunteer. I’ve been a member and served on numerous committees and boards. My career eventually led me to work for several nonprofit organizations. As an employee, I not only worked directly with executive directors and board members, I was also actively engaged in developing boards and recruiting board members.

I have seen it all.

The passionate, but misaligned. The resume filler. The perpetually too busy to meaningfully contribute. Just to name a few.

Along the way, I’ve also worked with and recruited highly intelligent, competent, committed and dedicated individuals who are in “the right seat on the bus”.

What’s to come.

I’m writing this to help you become one of the latter types of board members – ones who willingly give their time, talent, and treasure to the organizations they serve; and to help nonprofits get the right board members on their team – the ones who selflessly work on the governance and fundraising side of the organization, enabling the staff to focus on the mission.

Risk isn't just for actuaries! As a business owner, there are risks everywhere, and a financial assessment can help identify areas where your company might be vulnerable to risk, determine your company's attitudes towards risk, reinforce your strengths, and ensure that you are able to take advantage of valuable opportunities.

The key focus of a financial risk assessment is a deep dive into a company's financial preparedness and it includes pieces of other areas as they relate to financial stability. The assessment can point out areas that are working and those that are not, in time to make necessary course corrections.

Every business owner should think about performing a financial risk assessment of their company on a regular basis. The cadence is different for every industry, size, and type of company, but at a minimum once per year.

The results of a financial risk assessment will feed into the strategic planning process and budgeting. A consistently profitable company who is not worried about potential risks may still be missing something that could either blow up or cause them to miss opportunities.

After purchasing three homes in Portland in the past 15 years, I have come to a firm conclusion that houses choose us!  Not in some mysterious way or anything, but rather, just practically speaking.  As a home buyer, we don’t exactly drive around and pick a house off the street that meets our specifications and strike a deal.  Often, buyers must submit offers on several houses before a match is found.

Becoming a Chief Financial Officer (CFO) is often the ultimate executive goal for those who have made finance their career. The position offers challenges, variety, and opportunities for growth. A good income is frosting on the cake.

Large, established companies usually have a full-time Chief Financial Officer (CFO) as an integral member of their executive team. Your business might not be in a position yet to add a CFO to your executive suite. Or you might be ready but finding just the right person takes time. Perhaps you’re not quite sure what to expect from a CFO, and you need to learn more about what they do before hiring one.

All organizations, both for-profit and nonprofit, use accounting software. All have varying degrees of complexity and features. Regardless of the available features, most of us still rely on exporting data into a spreadsheet to improve adjustability. In fact, most of us over-rely on this process. There are better ways to improve your accounting software capabilities.