All businesses share a single goal: to increase profitability. Without the help of a finance expert, an organisation may be unable to conduct the analysis required for a thorough understanding of what influences the bottom line. We will explain in detail about CFO services and how they increase your company's profitability.

Learn Why You Should Have CFO Services

Hiring a CFO full-time can be intimidating because they are costly and have a greater authority in your company. Carrying on CFO services, on the other hand, provides you the responsibility of hiring a qualified Accounting and Finance expert for your company without giving up too much money or power in the process. CFO services are primarily in charge of managing the company's financial risks and financial record-keeping and reporting to upper management. They can also aid with book-keeping clean-up, payroll management, and cash flow forecasting.

Companies in the UAE deal with a complex and competitive operating environment, with compliance and regulatory legislation imposing much higher demands. The implementation of VAT demonstrates this. Combined with the growing technical characteristic of accounting standards, many businesses require high-level financial governance but lack the critical mass to validate hiring a CFO or incurring the fees of the 'Big Four' financial firms to endorse them. Companies expand at various stages, and their development and growth will necessitate CFO services to correlate to those stages. Here are some instances of similar scenarios:

1. Start-ups and growing businesses - SMEs and start-ups reach a stage in their development where their preliminary accounting processes, systems, and strategies are no longer adequate. At that point, they require the assistance of a knowledgeable and experienced CFO to help them determine a path forward.
2. Mature smaller firms facing difficult circumstances - Mature medium-sized and smaller businesses may discover that their finance team requires the assistance of a skilled CFO to address a particular set of difficult circumstances like cash flow issues, inadequate reporting, and business underperformance. CFO services can help with strategic and options assessment, fundraising, business planning, financial refinancing/rescheduling, project management re-engineering, and the development and implementation of corrective action plans.
3. Businesses looking to sell the company - The acquisition of a similar business makes logical sense when an owner desires to sell a part or all of a business. CFO services can achieve this goal by identifying targets, strategic planning, developing synergistic plans, preparing financial assessments, assisting purchase/sale negotiations, and coordinating the purchase and sale agreement process. They can save the company money by reducing professional fee overruns.

A Detailed Explanation of What CFO Services Can Make You Achieve

Many UAE small businesses start with a junior accountant or bookkeeper, whose job is to elevate input purchases, pay suppliers and increase sales invoices. Their knowledge and skills are typically limited, preventing them from assisting with approaches in more complex areas of finance. A company owner might not be the best person to oversee the employees and make them work more efficiently. CFO services will assist your business by carrying out the following tasks:

1. Developing strategy: The CFO collaborates with the CEO to manage and develop financial goals that guarantee to meet the company's financial objectives. The assessment of numerous risks is reduced through improved management innovation and decision-making processes. Profit growth to maximise shareholders' value is a component of this strategy.
2. Procedures: The CFO comprehends the full scope of the company's financial operations. The CFO must understand the entire business cycle and make sure that desired outcome is delivered.
3. Promoter: The CFO must make sure that precise financial documents are provided to the appropriate person for the business to run smoothly. The numerous control procedures must be adhered to guarantee that the financial findings accurately reflect the situation. Internal processes and operations should be examined as well.
4. Risk Assessment and Adherence: The CFO develops new company procedures and policies to keep the company in compliance with local regulatory requirements. For example, with the implementation of VAT, businesses are now subject to increased scrutiny while documenting tax filings to the FTA. CFO services can relieve business owners of the burden of ensuring compliance with regulations and rules.

Other places where CFO services could benefit your company include: decreasing fixed overheads, providing management for decision-making with up-to-date reports, optimising working capital planning, decreasing time spent on financial and management report preparation, reorganising the core capabilities to improve efficiency, and working with professionals such as bankers, lawyers, auditors, and other regulatory bodies. CFO services can also manage everyday activities like taking care of cash flow and supervising key performance indicators.

Also Read:Everything You Need To Know About Virtual CFO Services

Risks Involved in Not Outsourcing CFO Services

Many companies in the UAE assign a bookkeeper to handle accounting payments and transactions. Appointing a junior person may result in non-profits when they are designated to be the primary point of reference for all accounting and financial aspects. In a business, a lack of a CFO can result in the following:

• Ineffective cash flow
• Inefficient processes
• Wasted effort
• Purposeless staff
• Loss of client and investor confidence
• Unavailability of critical resources when needed
• Missed business opportunities
• Misguided decisions
• Revenue loss
• Unnecessary exposure to tax and legal risks

Most small businesses use CFO as the greatest way to concentrate on their strengths. Working in collaboration with CFO services will give you a wide range of experience and knowledge critical to your success and survival. Outsourcing your CFO function also provides you with the advantage of a third-party perspective, which is very useful. Although many business owners have to keep control of the finance sector, the outcome is the delegation of everyday operations with the opportunity to outsource key performance indicators, tax planning, etc.

The Takeaway

With increased profit, business efficiency, and cash flow, you can expect your company to grow, become more competitive, and be more financially beneficial for owners and shareholders. Once you're familiar with the new procedures, you can continue to outsource your CFO services or do it yourself. Get in touch with Fortius, one of the premium business consulting services in UAE, if you want to outsource your CFO service to them.