Monthly Archives: September 2022

Business Challenges Signaling the Need for a CFO

Business Challenges Signaling the Need for a CFO 

Businesses will inevitably face various challenges, particularly as they grow. At times, the owner or CEO struggles with even identifying the root cause of the challenge, let alone understanding what solutions are available. And more often than not, the causes of those challenges can be found in the financials, and the solutions, in the expertise of a CFO. In an effort to shed some light, here are three common challenges a business faces that signal it’s time to onboard or outsource a CFO. 

Challenge 1: Slow progress because the founder wears all the hats. 

When first starting a business, especially a small one, it’s typical to see the owner/founder(s) acting in every role and performing every task in an attempt to save money. They will try not only to do their own job, but every other job, including those relating to finances. Soon, they become overwhelmed and lose sight of what they should be doing – strategically guiding the company forward to meet its goals. While the mentality behind it is understandable, this is not a sustainable business practice. 

CFO Solution 

Generally speaking, the person who is charged with running the company does not also possess the background and knowledge needed to financially steer it toward success. It’s no wonder this person gets frustrated and overwhelmed—not only are they trying to do everything, but they simply cannot make data-driven decisions without the actual data. A CFO can help clear the way with real numbers and explanations of where those numbers come from and how they can be used to benefit the company overall. By utilizing financial forecasting and modeling, the CFO can help ensure that the CEO is making the best decisions for the future of the company. 

Challenge 2: No clear understanding of company goals. 

This isn’t to say that the owner or executive board does not understand the company’s direction. They likely know exactly where they want to go. However, what they often lack is an understanding of what must happen (and when) in order to get there. Guiding a business requires milestones and goals that must be met in succession along the way. It’s imperative that the leader of a company understand how to prioritize these goals to make a long-lasting positive impact.  

CFO Solution 

A CFO is responsible for knowing the company’s target revenue, industry trends, and projecting the short- and long-term revenue and expenses through viable milestones and goals. And these will likely be different from the owner’s short-term goals. For example, an owner may think that simply getting more clients to generate more revenue is the answer to every problem. However, this isn’t necessarily the first step. While gaining more clients and, by default, more sales, is an important factor in company growth, a business needs to take a few starting steps before reaching that point. Namely, understanding the target market and increased demands of the business. Gaining clients is only truly beneficial if those clients are the correct ones and if the business is equipped with the knowledge, resources, technology, and manpower to handle the increase in operations. Otherwise, any increase in revenue will be short lived.  

Challenge 3: A lack of financial organization. 

Founders become founders because they saw a need, had an idea, and came up with a solution. But having an idea (even a great idea) and having a profitable business are two entirely different things. So much attention is focused on perfecting a product or fine-tuning a service that the intricacies of the finances often get lost in the shuffle. This lack of organization results in missed opportunities and unfounded business decisions.

CFO Solution 

Keeping finances organized to help develop appropriate strategies is simply what a CFO does. Their primary objective is to help grow a company grow financially. With a steadfast eye on critical financial detail, a CFO will consistently work with projections and help increase the bottom line. But this can only be done when the finances are organized enough to tell the story they need to tell.  

Ultimately, a CFO, whether a full-time hire or outsourced, takes the guess work and frustration out of all of these challenges (and many more) for the CEO. With financial stability and accurate future outlooks, the CEO can focus on strategy and lead the company forward. 

Barker Associates provides strategic guidance and outsourced CFO services to companies of all sizes. We can provide the higher level of strategy your company needs to grow. If you need assistance, or have any other questions, please click here to schedule a 30-minute consultation at a rate of $100. 

The Quiet Quitting Trend

The Quiet Quitting Trend 
How to Turn a Potential Financial Loss into a Potential Gain 

Whether you’re on Twitter or TikTok or have simply turned on the news lately, you’ve likely heard of the phrase “quiet quitting.” For those unfamiliar, “quiet quitting” is a re-branding of sorts of the prior “coasting” mentality. This reboot seems to have its roots in both the Covid-19 pandemic and the Great Resignation of 2021. But what does it really mean for companies and their employees? What does it really mean for the bottom line? 

This current “movement” (and I shudder to even call it that) has employees doing the bare minimum to continue to get a paycheck. They show up for work, do as little as possible, and refuse to put in any extra effort whatsoever. This lack of effort not only negatively impacts fellow coworkers who are forced to pick up the slack, but also the company’s productivity overall. This, at a time when companies have already seen a slide in productivity from remote work, followed quickly by mass resignations. According to Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace report, globally, companies have lost $7.8 trillion as a result of decreased productivity over the past several years. 

As always, there are two sides of the argument as to why this is happening (with the truth generally found somewhere in between). Opponents argue that this type of behavior is the result of laziness, disloyalty, and an overall downward spiral of the workforce today. They may ask, “In what world are we now looking up to people who don’t want to go the extra mile (and then proudly post about it on social media)?” Yet, proponents of quiet quitting claim that this is in direct response to the unreasonable demands placed on them by employers over the past couple of years and that it is necessary to ensure a healthy work-life balance and decrease the likelihood of burning out. Whatever the impetus, the end result is the same—decreased productivity and profitability for the company. 

Knowing that this is the current popular employee mentality, how can a company turn a potential financial loss into a potential financial gain?  

The answer to this ever-important question is found at the intersection of communication and employee engagement. These are not new concepts, but many leaders seem to forget that communication is the key to employee engagement and that employee engagement can change nearly everything about workplace culture. If an employee is feeling stressed, overworked, disengaged, and ignored by management, then there has been a breakdown in communication somewhere along the chain of command. Leaders may want to consider taking a step back and looking at the entire picture holistically.  

This is the time to check in with your managers to see how various departments are functioning and if there are any areas where managers and supervisors can benefit from retraining. Managers, in turn, should be checking in with each employee on a one-on-one basis to ask how the employee feels about their current role within the company. Maybe the underlying issue is that the employee is not feeling challenged in their role. If so, speak to them about a shift in position or responsibilities. If the problem is the employee does not feel like they are a value to the company, then work with them to address those concerns accordingly. And if the issue is that they just don’t want to work, it may be time to reevaluate the relationship. 

Whether your company is experiencing quiet quitting or not, take this newest challenge as a valued opportunity to re-engage with your employees. Communicating effectively creates a clear understanding of the roles and responsibilities expected of all employees at every level within the company. Employees who feel cared about will likely want to be more invested within the company and, in turn, willingly put in the work needed to see success. The end result will be a stronger and more financially viable company with dedicated employees who will be happy to go the extra mile.  

Barker Associates provides strategic guidance and outsourced CFO services to companies of all sizes. We can provide the higher level of strategy your company needs to grow. If you need assistance, or have any other questions, please click here to schedule a 30-minute consultation at a rate of $100.