What Is a Fractional CFO and What Do They Do?
A fractional CFO helps you gain expert financial strategy without the full-time cost. We help business owners drive growth, improve cash flow, and achieve long-term success.
- Monthly financial reviews in plain English — no jargon
- Expert cash flow guidance to help you sleep better at night
- Know exactly what’s working (and what’s not) in your business
Fractional CFO Services Built for the Small Business
Clarity Without
The Complexity
We translate financial data into simple, valuable insights so you can make better decisions, faster — no accounting degree required.
Plan with confidence, not guesswork.
From cash flow to growth planning, our financial expertise helps you build a roadmap that supports smart, sustainable growth.
Focus on the business,
not the books.
As your fractional CFO, we handle financial reviews, forecasting, and reporting so you can focus on running — and growing — your company.
Big-league financial strategy without the six-figure salary.
A financial expert and to give you leadership and strategic guidance, customized for your business — without the overhead.
Want to learn more? Let's talk....
Fractional CFO Services: Strategic Financial Leadership for Growing Businesses
Fractional CFO Services offer small and mid-sized businesses the high-level financial expertise of a Chief Financial Officer without the full-time cost or long-term commitment. At Krieger Analytics, our outsourced CFO solutions provide strategic planning, financial forecasting, budgeting, and cash flow management on a flexible, part-time basis. Whether you’re a startup or an established company facing new financial challenges, a fractional CFO can deliver the leadership you need to drive growth and stability.
In this guide, we’ll explore what a fractional CFO is, the benefits of fractional CFO services, how they compare to full-time CFOs, and how Krieger Analytics uses these services to help small businesses thrive.
What Is a Fractional CFO?
A fractional CFO is a senior financial executive who provides part-time CFO-level support. Instead of hiring a full-time in-house CFO, you engage a fractional CFO for high-level financial duties as needed—such as strategic planning, forecasting, and overseeing accounting processes.
At Krieger Analytics, we work with businesses between $1–$10 million in annual sales that need financial insights beyond what a bookkeeper can provide. Most clients require only 1–2 days of CFO service per month.
Fractional CFOs act as part of your leadership team, but without being on your full-time payroll. They often work remotely, integrating into your operations to guide decision-making and improve financial health. This model is also referred to as outsourced CFO or virtual CFO services.
Why Businesses Choose Fractional CFO Services
Engaging a fractional CFO brings significant advantages:
High-Level Financial Expertise: You gain access to a seasoned financial professional with the expertise to analyze your financial statements, identify trends, and advise on complex decisions. This strategic financial guidance helps you steer your business toward growth and profitability with confidence. You get CFO leadership and insights that might otherwise only be available to larger enterprises.
Cost Savings: A major advantage of a fractional CFO is cost-effectiveness. You receive expert CFO services without paying a full-time salary, benefits, bonuses, and equity that a full-time CFO would command. You essentially pay only for what you need – whether it’s a few hours a week or a dedicated project – making this an affordable solution for small and mid-sized companies. Many businesses find that fractional CFO fees are easily justified by the improvements in financial performance and cost savings identified. (For transparent pricing on our services, see our pricing page for details.)
Flexible, Scalable Engagement: Fractional CFO arrangements are highly flexible. Need more support during budgeting season or a major transaction? Your CFO’s time can scale up. Want to dial back in quieter periods? Scale down. This flexibility means you get the right level of support at the right times. You’re not locked into a long-term commitment and can adjust the engagement as your business evolves.
Improved Strategic Planning & Decision Making: With a fractional CFO, you have an on-demand strategic advisor at your table. They bring an outside perspective and analytical rigor to your planning. This leads to more robust business strategies, backed by solid financial modeling and risk analysis. Owners and CEOs often feel relief having a financial sounding-board to vet ideas and provide clarity on the company’s direction.
Better Financial Processes & Controls: Fractional CFOs don’t just plan; they also help implement improvements. They can streamline your budgeting process, introduce better financial controls, and ensure accurate bookkeeping and reporting. Over time, you’ll notice more timely financial statements, clearer performance metrics, and a stronger handle on cash flow – all of which drive better business outcomes. (Our team can even assist with day-to-day accounting through our controller and bookkeeping services, ensuring your financial data is always reliable.)
Focus for the Business Owner: By entrusting financial management to a capable fractional CFO, you free up time and mental energy. Business owners and management can focus on running the business, not wrestling with the books. You get peace of mind knowing an expert is watching over your financial health and proactively addressing issues before they become problems.
In short, a fractional CFO provides big-company financial savvy in an accessible package for smaller companies. You gain insights to grow revenue, control costs, and anticipate challenges, all on a small-business budget. It’s an investment that can pay for itself many times over in improved performance and avoided pitfalls.
Fractional CFO vs. Full-Time CFO: Key Differences
You might be wondering how a fractional CFO compares to a traditional full-time CFO. Both roles aim to provide financial leadership, but there are significant differences in commitment, cost, and use case. Here’s a comparison to help determine which is right for your business:
Commitment & Cost
A full-time CFO is a permanent C-suite executive, usually commanding a six-figure salary plus bonuses and benefits. This is a substantial investment, typically justified for companies with large scale or complex financial operations. A fractional CFO, on the other hand, works on a contract basis, so you only pay for the time and services you need. There’s no long-term payroll cost or overhead like healthcare or retirement plans. For businesses that can’t budget a full-time executive salary, fractional CFOs offer an affordable alternative without sacrificing expertise.
Depth of Involvement
A full-time CFO is deeply involved in day-to-day operations, management meetings, and often oversees departments like accounting or IT. They are immersed in the company full-time. A fractional CFO engages periodically – weekly, monthly, or during critical projects – rather than being present every single day. While they stay up-to-date and responsive, they are not managing in-house teams daily. This is usually sufficient for smaller companies that don’t have constant need for on-site financial management.
Breadth of Experience
Fractional CFOs often come with broad experience across multiple industries and business models, since they tend to have worked with various clients. This can bring a rich perspective and best practices from other companies. A full-time CFO will have deep knowledge of your particular company and industry if they’ve been in the role long-term, and can dedicate all their energy to one business. Some companies eventually transition from a fractional CFO to a full-time CFO as they grow; in fact, a fractional CFO can help prepare the business for that step by building strong financial foundations.
Fractional CFO Flexibility
If your needs are project-based (e.g. implementing a new financial system, raising capital, or navigating an audit), a fractional CFO is ideal. You might only need high-level financial leadership during these pivotal events. A full-time CFO makes sense if your business complexity demands constant oversight, or if you’ve reached a scale (often tens of millions in revenue) where continuous CFO attention is warranted. Many small businesses start with fractional CFO support and then evaluate down the road if/when a full-time role is justified.
Integration of your Team and a Fractional CFO
Both fractional and full-time CFOs can integrate with your team, but a full-time CFO is an internal team member and company culture leader. A fractional CFO acts as a trusted external partner. Firms like K-Analytics ensure our fractional CFOs function as an extension of your team – we participate in management meetings, collaborate with your staff, and align with your goals, even if we’re not in the office every day. This provides much of the benefit of a full-timer, without the cost and formality of adding a permanent executive role.
Which do you need?
If you are a small to mid-sized business (for instance, under $50M revenue) or a growing company not yet ready to commit to a six-figure CFO salary, a fractional CFO is likely the best choice. You’ll get strategic financial leadership in a cost-effective, flexible manner. On the other hand, if your company’s scale or investor requirements demand a dedicated full-time CFO, then plan for that hire – and consider using a fractional CFO in the interim to bridge the gap. K-Analytics can support you either way: our Fractional CFO Services can cover your needs now, and even help you define when a full-time CFO might be needed in the future. It’s all about matching the level of financial expertise to your company’s specific situation.
Strategic Planning to Power Business Growth
One of the most valuable contributions a fractional CFO makes is in strategic planning. Small businesses often lack formal, long-term financial strategies—a fractional CFO bridges that gap.
Our strategic financial planning process starts with your business goals: expansion, new product launches, or profit improvement. From there, we create a financial roadmap with milestones, budgets, forecasts, and KPIs.
Through detailed scenario planning and financial modeling, we help you prioritize initiatives, allocate resources, and avoid costly missteps. This isn’t a one-time event—our CFOs regularly revisit and adjust plans to keep you on track.
Krieger Analytics’ strategic planning services turn your goals into actionable, measurable financial plans.
Budgeting and Expense Management
Without a structured budgeting process, businesses risk uncontrolled spending and missed opportunities. A fractional CFO builds a detailed budget tied to your strategic plan, using real data—not guesses.
Our budgeting services include:
Zero-based budgeting to justify every expense
Revenue forecasting by product line or division
Budget vs. actual tracking each month to spot variances early
We also streamline expense management by identifying unnecessary costs and reallocating resources toward higher-return investments. Our process ensures stronger profit margins and financial stability.
Financial Forecasting and Analysis
Forecasting is essential for business success. A financial forecast answers critical questions:
What will our cash position be in six months?
Can we afford new hires or capital investments?
How do different revenue scenarios impact profitability?
At Krieger Analytics, we create rolling forecasts that model various outcomes: best case, expected case, and worst case. Our forecasts typically cover 12 months for budgeting and 3–5 years for strategic planning.
Financial analysis complements forecasting by providing insights into profitability, margins, cash flow, and expense trends. With robust forecasting and analysis in place, you make proactive, confident decisions instead of reacting to surprises.
How Krieger Analytics Solves Your Financial Challenges
At Krieger Analytics, we don’t offer cookie-cutter solutions. We tailor our fractional CFO services to your unique situation. Common challenges we solve include:
Stabilizing Cash Flow
Slow-paying customers? Seasonal revenue dips? We put systems in place to stabilize cash inflows and secure working capital.
Scaling Operations During Growth
Booming sales are great, but growth strains cash, staffing, and systems. Our fractional CFOs ensure your financial infrastructure grows with you.
Improving Profit Margins
We analyze margins by product, customer, and channel, helping you adjust pricing, cut costs, and boost profitability.
Clarifying Financial Visibility
If you’re asking, “Where is the money going?”, our fractional CFO services delivers a clear financial reports and dashboards so you always know your numbers.
Reducing Owner Stress
Business owners often carry financial worries alone. With Krieger Analytics, you have a trusted advisor to guide decision-making and lift the financial burden.
Why Choose Krieger Analytics for Fractional CFO Services?
Our fractional CFO approach is built around:
Experience: Our team includes CPAs and seasoned CFOs with real-world business expertise.
Personalization: We craft custom roadmaps aligned with your goals.
Clarity: We avoid jargon and explain financials in plain English.
Partnership: We act as a true extension of your leadership team.
Whether you need financial forecasting, budgeting, cash flow management, or help setting your strategic course, Krieger Analytics has the fractional CFO expertise to help.
We are passionate about empowering small businesses with financial leadership, clarity, and peace of mind.
About the Author
Matt Krieger is the Founder and CFO of Krieger Analytics, where he specializes in providing fractional CFO services for small businesses and franchisors. With over 20 years of experience in finance, entrepreneurship, and franchising, Matt helps business owners gain financial clarity, improve cash flow, and drive sustainable growth. His hands-on approach combines real-world business ownership experience with deep financial expertise to deliver actionable strategies for success.
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