What is a Fractional CFO?
A Fractional CFO is a flexible, part-time solution, someone who brings the strategic finance expertise of a CFO, without the full-time salary. This could be through a one-off session, a short-term project (like building your 12-month budget) or ongoing advisory support tailored to your business.
In other words - it’s scalable. It grows with you.
How Much Does a Fractional CFO Cost?
Costs can vary depending on the scope and the stage of your business, but here are some examples to give you a feel:
- One-off advisory session: A single session can identify blind spots, answer high-impact questions or flag risks before they become expensive problems.
- Half-day Financial Roadmap: In just a few hours, we can create a tailored, strategic roadmap that gives you clarity on your goals, your priorities, and what numbers actually matter.
- Ongoing support: Monthly advisory packages are available and can be scaled up or down depending on your business needs and capacity.
- Project-based work: If you need a one-off budget build, forecasting model, or investor-ready report - these can be quoted as standalone projects.
The Real Question: What’s the Value?
Often, we focus so much on cost that we forget to consider the benefit.
Here’s what a Fractional CFO can bring to your business:
- Clarity on your numbers: So you’re not guessing if it’s profitable or when to hire.
- Confidence in decision-making: Say yes to growth opportunities (or no to the wrong ones) with real data.
- Systems and structure: Build foundations that reduce chaos and scale with ease.
- Commercial insight: See where you’re leaking cash, missing margin or overspending without results.
- Support: You're not alone in the numbers. A good CFO becomes a strategic partner in your growth.
Ask Yourself:
Before jumping in, here are a few things to consider when exploring fractional CFO support:
- Is it flexible and specific to my business? Look for someone who understands your model, especially if you're a product-based or creative founder.
- Am I ready to invest in finance? This doesn’t mean hiring a finance team - but you do need to be open to advice, feedback and understanding your numbers.
- Can I work with this person? Your CFO should feel like a partner - someone you trust to guide, challenge and support you.
Final Thoughts
If you've ever found yourself saying “I wish someone could just tell me what to do with the money side of things” — that's what a Fractional CFO is for!
And yes, you can afford one - especially when it's tailored to where you're at.
