As executive financial recruiters we work with companies every day who have lost their CFO for a variety of reasons. The CFO may have left to pursue a better opportunity, retired, or made a career change. And in some instances, the CFO may have been shown the door due to subpar performance.

In all honesty, the latter scenario is the least common. Most organizations are hesitant to let their CFO go because of the inherent doubt in the process of doing so. First, there is the big question of how to determine whether your CFO is making the grade. (You certainly do not want to let your CFO go if you cannot be certain that someone else will be able to do the job better!) And, secondly, there is the daunting prospect of needing to find a replacement that is going to be better performer.

But just because it is not very common in practice does not mean it should be. Companies, especially those with owners and CEOs that do not have strong financial acumen themselves, do not typically evaluate their financial leadership as thoroughly as they should. Unfortunately, if your CFO is underperforming, not identifying this in a timely manner or not doing anything about it, can be extremely costly. When your financial leadership is falling short of expectations, strategic planning can fail, affecting revenue and profitability.

According to the 2024 Report to the Nations by the ACFE (Association of Certified Fraud Examiners), organizations lose 5% of their revenue to fraud annually. That equates to a more than $5 trillion loss to fraud globally every year. And while we tend to hope that this kind of thing is happening somewhere else instead of in our backyard, the bulk of this fraud isn’t occurring overseas. In fact, the US and Canada are responsible for 38% of all reported fraud cases worldwide, which gives them the unfortunate distinction of leading the world in fraud.

We’ve known for years now that business fraud is on the rise dramatically across most categories. According to the ACFE, asset misappropriation schemes are the most common but least costly, while financial statement fraud is the least common but most costly. Falling somewhere in the middle of both spectrums are other forms of business fraud like billing schemes, check and payment tampering, and theft of non-cash assets. But there are also far more sophisticated fraud schemes emerging these days as well. A Cybersecurity Dive article from last year revealed a new startling trend – the uptick in financial scams using deepfake technology. While this may sound more like Sci-Fi movie than a business news headline, consider the fact that a recent report by Deloitte speculated that fraud losses may hit $40 billion by 2027 due to generative AI magnifying the risk of banking fraud.

At this point, it isn’t a question of whether your organization will become a target of fraud anymore, but when. Of course, that begs the question: How are you protecting your organization from fraud?

Executive Summary: Tariffs, particularly those on imports from key trading partners like Canada and Mexico, can have a far-reaching impact on U.S. businesses and the economy. While they may provide some protection for domestic industries, they also introduce significant challenges including higher costs, disrupted supply chains, and the need to make difficult decisions on pricing and profit margins. The ripple effects of tariffs can stretch across the broader economy, influencing consumer behavior and currency strength. Navigating these challenges successfully often requires the expertise of a CFO who can help businesses adapt, manage risks, and maintain financial health in an ever-changing economic landscape.

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With tariffs being recently imposed on U.S. imports from Canada and Mexico, it is important for business owners to understand the risks to their business, both directly and on the economy at large, and how engaging with a skilled financial leader may help minimize the impact.

Executive Summary: In this article, we’ll explore why every startup should consider hiring a fractional CFO from day one and discuss how a fractional CFO can help prevent costly mistakes that could derail a business.

Launching a startup is an exhilarating journey, full of opportunity and innovation. However, the path to success is also fraught with financial complexities that can overwhelm even the most capable entrepreneurs. From managing cash flow to ensuring compliance with tax regulations, startups often find themselves navigating a maze of financial challenges. This is where a fractional CFO (Chief Financial Officer) can play a pivotal role, even from day one.

While it may seem like a luxury or an expense that can wait, having access to financial expertise from the outset is not only beneficial – it’s crucial.

Which characteristics do the best CFOs share? What should you look for when hiring a CFO or bringing fractional financial leadership on board? As a Director of Finance, which skills should you look to bolster if you want to keep progressing in your career?

Obviously, the exact skills that a CFO needs to succeed in a specific role will vary based on factors like industry, company size and growth stage, and makeup of the c-suite team, but one commonality is that they all think strategically and communicate well.

These days the same misconceptions around CFO and Controller roles that have lingered for decades appear to be just as sticky as always. Time and again we hear the misconceptions reiterated that “a CFO only handles finance” and a Controller is “really just an accounting CFO.”

So, we’ve created this resource to set the record straight for business leaders that are looking for financial direction and don’t understand which role their small or mid-market company needs or why it really matters one way or the other.

But before we can talk about how a CFO and Controller are different, we need to explain why it matters at all. It’s important to understand that clarifying the distinctions between CFO and Controller roles isn’t just a matter of semantics. CFOs and Controllers are two distinct roles that serve two distinct functions within a business. Both are important and, when executed well, they will complement each other to aid in strategic management and foster growth. Once you understand that these roles are meant to work together, defining each becomes a critical component organizational alignment.

There is no one better positioned to create sustainable financial success inside a business than the CFO. A CFO takes their financial expertise and channels it into a strategic leadership role to create financial success for the company and its stakeholders. As such, their responsibilities include: budgeting and forecasting, managing mergers or acquisitions, and handling compliance issues.

A CFO has a deep understanding of your business model and your banking relationships, works with your board of directors, prepares detailed financial and management reports, works with auditors, oversees tax planning, and sets policies around controls and payroll. The CFO role is forward-thinking as they consider economic, industry, tax, government regulation and social issues. As such, a CFO is especially valuable for a company that is growing quickly, employs a large number of employees, and/or has complex product lines. CFOs also bring tremendous value to a company when it is considering making an acquisition, preparing itself to be acquired, or has its sights set on obtaining funding.

However, knowing what kind of value a financial leader can provide doesn't answer the question, "Do I need a CFO yet?" So, how do you know when it is the right time in the evolution of your business to bring in a CFO?

The list of skills and experience necessary to be a successful nonprofit CFO is long and varied, which can make it seem like a Goldilocks type of situation at first glance. And yet, maybe that isn’t a bad thing! In our line of work, we typically call it something else: balance.

Let’s discuss some of the ways in which this kind of balance is not only helpful for a nonprofit CFO, but critical to their success.