• Guide To Finding A Part Time FD
• Part Time Finance Directors Register
• FD Register Terms
• South East - Jonathan Amponsah
• South East - Paul Suckling
• South East - Judith Astles
• South East - David Wicker
• South East - Nick McCleery
• South/South West - Sue Baker
• Midlands - Nigel Higgs
• North West - Sharon Hendleman
• Interim Finance
• Finance & Accounting Outsourcing
• Finance Coaching

 

 

Gain Control Of Your Finances and Manage for Improved Profit and Cash Flow

Are you the owner or director of a small business who:

• Finds it difficult to manage and control your business finance?
   
  
• Has sleepless nights, worrying that your business is not as profitable as it could or should be?
   
  
• Is frustrated because the business is always short of cash?
  

There is a simple solution!

Large companies have a Finance Director and  thanks to a new breed of part time Finance Directors who work with a portfolio of smaller clients, so can you.

This is a service I used to provide myself and I believe in it so much, I now help to promote other part time Finance Directors on my FD Register.

You may not be sure just what a Finance Director does so here are the benefits larger businesses take for granted.

The Benefits Of A Part Time Finance Director

The benefits you will receive from having a part time finance director include:

1. The accurate and timely reporting of performance so that you and your managers know how the business is performing and become aware of any problems early.
    
   
2. Financial planning and budgeting so targets are set and actions plans put into place to drive your business forward to where you want to take it.
    
   
3. Support for you and other senior managers to improve performance. When performance issues and opportunities are identified, it requires purposeful action. Your finance director will explain the financial consequences and will encourage you, other directors and managers to take corrective action.
    
   
4. Support for you when facing the big decisions through cost-benefit analysis and evaluating alternative solutions.
    
   
5. Managing the company's cash flow and banking arrangements. Regular forecasting allows any cash problems to be anticipated and action taken to change the business needs or to arrange extra facilities.
   

The cost of employing a suitable person as a full time Finance Director is usually prohibitive for a smaller company but that doesn't remove the need for someone to fill the role.

The solution is to find a virtual or part time Finance Director.

You can have the services of a highly experienced senior financial manager without compromising on quality. Because you only use the services when you need to, the cost of employing a part time FD is a fraction of what it would be for a full time employee.

What Is A Virtual Part-Time Finance Director?

A part-time Finance Director is a cost effective solution to the problem of properly controlling and managing the future finances of a small or medium sized business.

Don't worry.

You don't need to appoint someone formally as your finance director - it's filling the role that is important.

The Advantages of a Part-Time or Virtual Finance Director

The main advantages to part time FDs as an increasingly popular solution to the issues of financial control and management in smaller businesses are:

1. You gain access to the specialist skills you need but only when you need them.
    
   
2. Initially you will receive a new view of your business and the issues you face. Over time you gain a trusted friend who will give you an unbiased, independent but informed opinion about the financial health of your business.
    
   
3. You will learn proven ideas from other businesses that can improve your results quickly and easily.
    
   
4. You will open your business to a wider network of people who can have a beneficial effect on your business.
    
   
5. You will improve your credibility with your bank. Imagine the increased confidence your bank manager will have if they know that a highly experienced qualified accountant is working closely with you and providing you with the financial advice they believe you need.
    
   
6. Your finance director will free your time from having to give so much attention to finance issues and allow you to spend more time working on the sales, marketing and operational aspects of your business.
   

How Good Are Your Finance Skills?

Many business owners don't enjoy accounting and finance and resent spending time on it.

Don't feel guilty if you like the idea of delegating the responsibility to a suitably qualified part time FD who will make sure that you are told what you need to know without burdening you with the nitty-gritty details.

As a business coach, I recommend that you play to your strengths and find others to handle the areas you either don't like or are not as skilful as you would wish.

See the Register of Part-time Finance Directors in the UK

Finding the right FD can be a challenge as many part time FDs don't have their own websites.

To avoid having to rely on limited word of mouth contacts, I have set up a register of people who work as part-time Finance Director roles throughout the UK.

What's In A Name?

If you are not keen on the phrase "part-time Finance Director" please don't worry.

I don't like it either but it seems to have been generally adopted although some people use Virtual Finance Director, On-call Finance Director, Flexible Finance Director or Outsourced Finance Director.

I'm sure you get the core principle of the idea - the right person with the necessary financial skills available at the right time but only when you need it.

A better alternative may be the phrase used in the Beermat books by Mike Southan - the "finance cornerstone" is the rock that the financial aspects of your business are built on.

For more information see my Guide To Finding A Part Time Finance Director.