02of 07The Model
All of the judgment.
None of the headcount.
A fractional CFO holds the same seat a full-time chief financial officer would hold — the forecast, the margin, the reporting, the capital decisions — at the cadence your company actually needs it.
- Full-time equivalent
- $225,000–$400,000+ fully loaded
- This arrangement
- Monthly retainer, scoped to the work
- Time to start
- Days, not a search process
- Commitment
- Reviewed as the company changes
The short answer
A fractional CFO is a finance principal you retain rather than employ. The work is the same work: building the forecast, holding the margin, running the close, and sitting across the table when a decision has real money attached to it. What changes is the structure around it — you buy the judgment by the month instead of the person by the year.
For a company between a few million and a few hundred million in revenue, that is usually the correct shape. The finance questions are already executive-grade. The volume of them is not yet a full-time job.
Side by side
The same seat,
on different terms.
| Consideration | Full-time hire | This practice |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | $225,000–$400,000+ fully loaded, before bonus or equity | A monthly retainer scoped to the work actually required |
| Time to start | Search, offer, notice period — commonly four to six months | First working session inside two weeks of the call |
| Commitment | Permanent headcount, with the exit cost that implies | Reviewed as the company changes; scope moves with it |
| Perspective | One career path, usually one industry | Pattern recognition across industries and stages |
| Attention | Full-time, whether or not there is full-time work | Matched to the decisions currently in front of you |
| Your existing team | Typically reorganises the finance function around the hire | Works with the bookkeeper and CPA you already trust |
Fit
When it earns its keep —
and when it does not.
Worth the seat
- Revenue is real and growing, and the reporting has not kept pace with it.
- A decision of consequence is coming: a raise, a facility, an acquisition, a step change in headcount.
- You have a competent bookkeeper and a good CPA, and still no one owns the forward view.
- The finance work needs a principal, but not forty hours of one.
Not the right answer
- The books themselves are the work — that is a bookkeeper, and a good one is cheaper.
- You need tax filing and compliance opinions. That is your CPA, and should stay there.
- You want a set of numbers assembled to support a decision already made.
- The company genuinely needs a full-time finance leader. In that case the honest advice is to hire one.
Asked often
- How is this different from my accountant?
- Your CPA looks backward and downward — accuracy, filings, compliance. A CFO looks forward and upward — cash, margin, capital, and what the numbers say you should do next. Both matter. They are not substitutes.
- Do you replace my bookkeeper?
- No. The bookkeeper keeps the records; the CFO seat interprets them and owns the forward view. In most engagements the existing bookkeeper stays exactly where they are, with clearer instructions.
- How much of your attention do I actually get?
- You work with Jordan directly — no account manager, no handoff to a junior. A retained engagement includes a standing monthly working session and access between them for decisions that will not wait.
Next step
Thirty minutes,
and a straight answer.
Bring one question you cannot currently answer from your own reporting. If a fractional CFO is not the right answer, you will hear that on the call — there is no proposal waiting at the end of it.
Request an introduction- Direct
- jordynsfinance@gmail.com
- Telephone
- 469-248-7336
- Reply
- Within one business day
- Elsewhere
- @jordynsfinance