3 Advantages a CFO Brings to Your Business

Whether your business is a large corporation or just starting, having a chief financial officer(CFO) to guide your business in the right financial direction can set your business apart from the competition. In other words, your business doesn't need to be a certain size to benefit from the numerous advantages that a CFO can bring to a company. Every business, from SMEs to International multi-million-dollar companies, can find advantages in hiring a CFO.

CFO is more than just a financial expert. Rather, a CFO holds the second-highest position within a company and interacts directly with the CEO to establish a clear financial agenda for long-term success. Despite their status, CFOs have a running list of additional responsibilities that are just as important as communicating with their high-ranking peers. CFOs are exceptional multitaskers that can keep up with their growing tasks while also ensuring the financial well-being and growth of their company.

CFOs can bring a business to the next level. Their strategic approaches, sharp accuracy, negotiation skills, and risk management abilities make their position valuable in your company. Rather than guessing or observing how certain events impact a business financially, a CFO can provide valuable feedback that can take the guesswork out of important financial decisions.

If you still aren't convinced, here are three advantages a CFO brings to your business.

#1. Reduce Risk

The biggest risks companies take typically revolve around financial decisions, whether it is voluntary or out of necessity. Between bankruptcy, reduced profits, market downturns, and the unpredictability of life events, it can be hard to reduce financial risks if you are unsure of how to tackle each scenario. One small misstep or miscalculation can send your profitable business into a downward spiral that can be hard to come back from. When it comes to making financial decisions for your business, you wouldn't want someone who isn't sure about what they're talking about. The best way to reduce financial risks is to hire a trustworthy CFO that can lead your business in the right financial direction.

CFOs are experts in their field that are capable of negating financial risks by looking at the bigger picture. With their insightful knowledge and ability to look into the foreseeable future, they can make financial predictions that can reduce risks all while growing your business. CFOs are also responsible for creating strategies to put in place in the instance of the unpredictable events described above.

Covid-19, for instance, was an unpredictable life event that forced individuals out of the office and into a remote setting. Though a CFO is unable to predict the spread of a worldwide virus, they are capable of creating protocols that outline the steps a business should take if such an event were to happen. This ensures that a business does not lose revenue and can continue producing its goods or services without a drastic disruption.

CFOs, along with their financial team, can greatly reduce risks within a company. Ensuring your company is prepared for the unpredictable while also reducing day-to-day financial risk is not an easy feat but it's only a fraction of a CFO’s responsibilities. That being said, a CFO's ability to reduce overall risks within a company is only one of many advantages they can bring to your business.

#2. Manage Costs

When it comes to CFOs, costs are seen as investments rather than losses. These costs, if managed correctly, can contribute to a business's overall earnings resulting in the growth of a company. However, managing costs correctly doesn't just mean budget cuts or reallocation of funds within departments. Rather, CFOs are often able to bring a new insight when it comes to managing costs within a business that goes beyond simple relocations and budget cuts.

For example, CFOs consider making counterintuitive decisions to give employee bonuses when earnings are low or using the power of relationships to minimize long-term costs. These strategies may seem helpful in managing funds but bonuses can boost overall morale, retain critical employees, and even encourage employees to work harder for your company. Building relationships with vendors and business partners rather than simply conducting business can also result in long-term savings that vendors are more likely to give out if the relationship is friendly and not all business. These strategies are simple ways that CFOs can encourage the management of money in a new and positive way, giving your business an advantage that otherwise would not have been possible.

#3. Gain Financial Transparency and Accountability

As a business owner, chances are you will need to look over data to interpret the well-being of your company. Financial data can give you a detailed description of how well your business is doing, what changes should be made based on performance, and a slew of other important information. However, without the right set of eyes on this valuable information, the numbers on the page may start to come together into a jumbled mess that is hard to understand. This can quickly become a problem, especially if your company relies on investors to make ends meet. Investors will likely want to know just how well your business is doing, considering your profits are also their profits and your losses are also their losses. This data can also be useful in executing financial strategies, reducing risks, or managing costs effectively.

Without a financial expert, such as a CFO, your business's data is practically useless. However, taking the time to find the right CFO for your company can provide a level of finical transparency and accountability that is hard to achieve without them. Most importantly, your CFO must be treated like a business partner inside and outside of the company as they will become the face of all issues related to your business's financial performance. In other words, your CFO should be able to communicate their ideas to the C-level executives of the company as well as all other stakeholders involved.

As mentioned previously, CFOs aren't just financial experts in charge of a team. They are considered C-level executives that interact closely with the CEO. Ensuring that your company's CFO is seen as a business partner can bring great advantages when it comes to the financial transparency and accountability of your business.

There are countless advantages when it comes to hiring a CFO for your business. Their ability to effectively manage an ever-growing list of responsibilities while managing risks, reducing costs, and proving financial transparency can bring many advantages to your business. A CFOs job does not come easy, so partnering with companies such as Fyorin can greatly reduce CFOs responsibilities.

Fyorin payments and financial operations platform provide tools to CFOs, such as the ability to send, receive and exchange money in 40+ different currencies, the ability to segregate their receivables using sub-accounts that can mirror the accounting ledger to speed up reconciliation, and the ability to better control and manage all online spending through our flexible virtual cards. All these tools take away the financial operations burden for a CFO so that they can focus more on strategic operations.