January 2019
Premium
Associate
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MiMfg Magazine
To CFO or Not to CFO?
The Manufacturer’s Dilemma
By Tom Shemanski, CPA • Rehmann
Whether or not to hire someone to fill a CFO
role is a question that many manufacturers face.
Maybe to help answer this question, we need to ask
another. What does a CFO provide beyond what your
controller, accounting manager or bookkeeper are
providing? Here’s a brief listing of what you could
expect from a seasoned CFO:
• Strategic thinker – What’s our value proposition
in the market place? Are we focused on the right
customer and product lines? Where do we want
to be in five years and how do we get there?
These are all questions that a CFO is driving to
answer though a collaborative strategic planning
process.
• Predictive not reactive – CFOs are forward-
thinking and ensure the company has the right
tools (forecasting, financial modeling, cash
projections) in place to navigate the outlook in
front of them.
• Decision making – Small businesses need to be
nimble and dynamic in their decision-making
ability. CFOs provide leadership, experience and
the financial tools to streamline decisions as they
support key negotiation areas such as banking,
legal, customer and suppliers.
• Driving financial results – CFOs are focused on
key financial metrics such as inventory turns,
maximizing working capital, product and
customer profitability, ERP software utilization
and proper banking structure and rates.
budget limitations greatly impact the ability for
some manufacturers to actually have a CFO. When
small to mid-size manufacturers figure out how
many senior management positions they can afford
in their budget, the dollars usually run out before
they get to a CFO.
What other options do these manufacturers
have? Maybe they can hire someone who’s recently
retired and would like to work part-time? Maybe
they can form an advisory committee and ask a
couple financial folks to help in this capacity? Maybe
they can outsource the CFO position until they can
afford a full-time role?
In the end, all manufacturers need to find a way
to get CFO-level capabilities into their business to
ensure they are well positioned for the future. As
manufacturing is a capital-intensive industry, an
experienced CFO is essential to drive superior
returns on investment for businesses.
These CFO abilities make a compelling argu-
ment that all manufacturers should have a CFO no
matter the size of their business. Unfortunately,
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Tom Shemanski, CPA, is a principal with Rehmann.
He may be reached at [email protected]
or 517-841-4266.
Rehmann is an MMA Premium Associate Member
and has been a member company since July 2006.
Visit online: www.rehmann.com.
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