By Rosemary Lamaestra, CPA, CFE | RLB Accountants & Consultants

It’s Monday morning and the CFO comes into your office and announces he is leaving in two weeks. You, as CEO, scratch your head and think, “What am I going to do now? The quarterly filing is due in a few weeks, the payroll department needs to be supervised to get payroll processed on time and correctly, and external auditors will be knocking at the door in a matter of months.” Then you remember: your CPA firm has expanded its services to include temporary CFO assistance.

Many businesses and not-for-profits can find themselves in this, or a similar, situation. Employees, including CFOs, leave for a variety of reasons – perhaps a spouse’s job is relocating to another city, or maybe the CFO has decided to enter into another type of work altogether. Employers don’t want to have to hire the first person that comes along, but they do need someone with experience and expertise to fill this spot almost immediately. Many CPA firms have employees they can provide to serve in the CFO capacity until a company finds the right fit for its organization. In August 2016, PICPA member Mark Zinman wrote the CPA Now blog “CFO Services (and More) for Companies That Can’t Afford One.” Zinman points out, “smaller companies can benefit from the entire CPA knowledge base encompassed in that firm. So, a business would not only be hiring a “CFO,” but it would also be tapping into the firm’s collective knowledge.”

The example scenario I led off with did transpire for one of our clients. Our firm was ready to step in and assist with CFO duties so the business could continue its daily operations. This particular business is a not-for-profit, and as such it is required to file monthly, quarterly, and annual compliance reports. It is small, so the CFO wears many hats, including human resources. In speaking with the person we sent out as a “temporary CFO,” she stated that in the beginning she first had to become familiar with the accounting system and the reports that were due. She sat with employees to understand how they contribute to the company, and she reviewed checks and balances, prepared grant requests, and provided feedback to the CEO and COO. After some time, she found that a commitment of one or two days per week was sufficient time to handle the requested duties. The CEO decided that the temporary position would continue until the organization was able to find the right person for the job.

CEOs find that temporary CFO assistance can take the burden off remaining executive staff and bring a fresh look to the operational side of the business. For the temporary CFO, the time spent in an outside organization can be both challenging and a great learning experience. No two companies are identical. A temporary CFO from a CPA firm is an additional benefit because the knowledge and experience provided can be invaluable to the business. For instance, the CPA can assist with preparing financial statements for the outside auditors, preparing tax returns, conducting management presentations, interviewing full-time replacement candidates, and making recommendations for changes.

Temporary CFO services from a CPA firm can be a win-win for all involved.

Rosemary Lamaestra, CPA, CFE, is a manager in the Allentown, Pa., office of RLB Accountants & Consultants. She has more than a decade of experience in public accounting, and specializes in small businesses, not-for-profit organizations, and individual clients.