We’ve helped a lot of Kansas City companies achieve their goals and sidestep big challenges along the way. Working with these companies, we’ve discovered some common issues most of them seem to experience.

These aren’t the only challenges companies face – and they’re not the only ways we can help. But if any of these ring a bell, you can rest easy that you’re not alone – we’ve seen it all and a lot more.

These are the challenges businesses look for help with most often.

1. Growth: You’re ready to expand, but you need the right strategy.

2. Lack of experience: You have a de facto CFO, but they’re out of bandwidth or expertise.

3. Reporting: You’re not sure if you’re getting the most you can out of your financial statements.

Companies often struggle with pinpointing the best path to grow their business without a financial leader by their side. You might also find yourself drowning in reports, and neither you nor your accounting team have the time to really dig into them.

Needing more context from financial reports is the most common reason business owners come to us for guidance – they don’t typically have much experience in managing a balance sheet or income statement correctly. They come to us when they feel they could be getting more information and guidance from their reports but aren’t sure how.

The most overlooked challenges.

4. Planning: You want to look forward and be strategic, but your reports are focused on the past.

5. Capital: You need more funds or want to refinance your existing structure.

6. Guidance: You need a financial expert to help your leadership team evaluate decisions and increase the probability of success.

While these aren’t usually the primary reasons companies reach out to us, they’re underlying problems that create some of the more visible issues a business faces. These are all strategic challenges that have the best outcomes when they’re guided by a financial expert with deep, varied experience.

The one for down the road.

7. Internal coaching: You have a finance leader who’s almost ready to be your CFO – if they get the right mentoring. 

This is a different situation from #2. Instead of an overwhelmed team member, you might have a finance employee who’s got the background to become a CFO, but they need some help from a seasoned leader to get there. In that case, a Fractional CFO can help prepare them over time and be there as an advisor after they assume the role.

The biggest surprise. (with the biggest impact)

8. M&A: You’re ready to sell – or buy – and you want to make sure you have someone experienced on your side.

People don’t realize just how much value a CFO can create and help capture in an M&A situation. From due diligence to deal structure to capital concerns, there are dozens of factors to consider in a merger or acquisition. A Fractional CFO can help you steer clear of the hurdles and make the best deal possible. 

Turn to the experts for the financial guidance you need.

This list is the culmination of many meetings – they’re the challenges we see over and over again. Sometimes businesses schedule a meeting with us because of just one issue – and through our discussion, they realize they’re actually experiencing four or five of these.

Crown CFO has the experience to guide you on the right path as you grow. Our Fractional CFOs can help you avoid or address common issues and set you up for success.

Contact Mike DeMaio at mike@crowncfo.com to set up a time to talk – or read more about these eight challenges in our white paper, 8 Ways a Fractional CFO Can Improve Your Business.