Services in Pakistan
Fractional CFO
A Pi partner acts as your chief financial officer for an agreed number of days each month, giving you senior finance leadership without a full-time hire.
Senior judgement on a fixed number of days
Many owner-managed companies reach a size where finance decisions carry real weight, such as renegotiating a bank facility, judging whether cash will stretch to an expansion or answering an investor's questions on margins, well before they can justify a full-time chief financial officer. A fractional CFO fills that gap.
A Pi partner takes on the role for an agreed number of days each month. The partner works from your own numbers, whether Pi's bookkeeping team keeps them or your in-house accountants do, and reviews the close before the figures reach your board, your lenders or your investors.
Three retainers
Each retainer sets the number of partner days each month. The right one depends on who you report to and what is under way.
| Retainer | Partner days per month | Best suited to |
|---|---|---|
| CFO Advisory | 2 | Smaller companies that need a monthly steer |
| CFO Partner | 4 | Funded or fast-growing companies with lenders or investors to report to |
| CFO Embedded | 8 | Groups, transactions in progress, or a finance function being built from the ground up |
Additional partner days are available when an audit, a financing round or a transaction needs more time, and ad hoc partner advice is available for a single question. See advisory and one-off projects.
What a retainer covers
Seven responsibilities, weighted to suit the business and the year ahead.
Board or management pack
A monthly pack with written commentary on results, cash and the decisions ahead, presented to you in person or by video.
Cash and working capital
A 13-week rolling cash-flow forecast, with working capital managed against it: collections, supplier payments and stock.
Budget and reforecast
The annual budget, and a reforecast each quarter as the year's results come in.
Pricing, margin and cost structure
Analysis of your own products and services: what each earns, how your costs behave as volumes change, and where margins are under pressure.
Banks, lenders and investors
Your relationships with the people who fund the business, including facility negotiations and covenant reporting.
Oversight of the finance team
Direction and review of your in-house finance team, or of Pi's bookkeeping team if we keep your books.
Audits, financing and transactions
Preparation for the events that test a finance function: audits, financing rounds, grant applications and transactions.
How it runs month to month
A steady cycle, with the partner days placed where the month needs them.
The close
The books are closed, by Pi's bookkeeping team or your own, and the partner reviews the results before anything is reported.
Cash
The cash-flow forecast is rolled forward and working capital checked against it, so pressure points show early.
The pack
The board or management pack is written and presented, in person or by video, with commentary on what changed and why.
Follow-through
Agreed actions are taken forward: lender and covenant reporting, the quarterly reforecast, and preparation for audits or financing.
Working with your finance team
The retainer fits around whoever keeps your books.
With Pi's bookkeeping team. If we keep your books on one of our bookkeeping packages, the partner oversees our bookkeeping team directly. The close arrives on the package timetable, and the figures can be tested against the ledger before they go to the board.
With your in-house team. If you employ your own accountants, the partner directs and reviews their work: the close calendar, the reconciliations and the schedules behind the pack. Your team keeps ownership of the books, and the partner reviews the reporting built on them before it leaves the business.
Questions
Which retainer should we start with?
Look at the year ahead rather than the year behind. If you mainly need someone senior to interpret the numbers and steer decisions, CFO Advisory is usually enough. If lenders or investors expect regular reporting, CFO Partner gives that relationship the time it needs. If you run a group, are in the middle of a transaction or are building a finance function, CFO Embedded is the realistic commitment. We recommend one after a first conversation and a short review of your records.
Who acts as our CFO?
A named Pi partner who is a chartered accountant. The partner is supported by a dedicated accountant, and you deal with the same people every month rather than a rotating team.
We are on the Scale package. Do we also need a retainer?
Not necessarily. Scale already includes monthly review meetings and a quarterly CFO review. A retainer adds partner time every month, which matters when you need someone to lead lender or investor relationships, keep a 13-week cash forecast running or prepare for a financing round.
Can we ask a partner about a single decision?
Yes. Ad hoc partner advice is available without a retainer: a consultation with a partner, with any analysis prepared by a manager under partner supervision. See advisory and one-off projects.
Speak with a partner
Every enquiry is read by a partner and answered within one business day. Meetings are held at our offices, at yours, or by video.