Financial Services

Comprehensive Financial Services for Business Growth and Success

Many businesses have a person heading up the accounting function who has limited expertise in managing an accounting and finance function, or needs guidance, or help in fulfilling the needs of the business, particularly for business growth. A narrow view of the role often results in a Controller (or equivalent) who does not even attempt to fulfill the broader requirements, even where they have the technical skills to do so. This can be remedied by coaching, support and guidance, or by Mastermind Solutions supplying the resources to complete an assignment.

We provide the support that a business needs to upgrade the quality of the existing accounting/finance function to meet your business growth strategy.

What We Do

Financial Coaching

Financial Management

Financial Interim CFO/Controller

Financial Controller Coaching

Financial Coaching

Empowering Finance Leaders: Expert Financial Coaching for Success

Coaching Controllers, CFOs, VPs Finance, Accountants

The person that heads up the Accounting and Finance function in a business needs managing by someone that understands what that role can achieve in order to facilitate the growth of the business. Accounting is more than balancing the books and the accounting/finance function should play a key role in contributing to the success of a business.

We assist the function head to develop their skills and to meet the needs of the business by providing what executive management needs for business growth. Often the skills are there and all the situation needs is guidance and direction from a more experienced Controller Coach. This is always a welcome improvement and focuses on both hard and soft skills.

Turning the Accounting Dept. into a contributor to the bottom line

Regular meetings with a Controller Coach will help you manage the incumbent with very little effort. We can help your people by training them to think about growth and profitability and how they can contribute.

Face to Face
Online
Telephone

Financial Management

Financial management, cash flow, strategic budgeting, accounting procedures

The role of a Controller or Chief Financial Officer (CFO) for medium sized companies
Manage and coach the existing accounting department – a Controller Coach
Financial coaching of owner/CEO and executive management
CFO consulting and financial consulting services and management
Cash flow management, banking relationships and facilities
Enhance the financial and management reporting
Implement budgeting and cash flow forecasts
Prepare a Business Plan
Upgrade of procedures and internal controls
Implementing a business growth strategy

Project assignments

When your staff does not have the expertise or the resources to complete a project call on Mastermind Solutions to do the complete project for you:

Implement strategic budgeting or prepare a business plan
Prepare cash flow forecasts
Liaise with external investors, monitors, bankers, factors
Secure financing
Interim CFO/Controller
Recruit a CFO/Controller
Financial consulting services

Financial Interim CFO/Controller

Interim CFO/Controller

Mastermind Solutions assists clients where there is a need to temporarily fulfill the role of the head of the accounting/finance function, in the absence of the incumbent:

After termination of the incumbent;
Maternity leaves;
Long-term or short-term disability;
Extended vacation.

Fulfill the role of the Controller/CFO:

Manage the staff
Bank relationship management
Cash flow forecasting & management
Speed up collection of receivables
Maintain financial reporting
Maintain progress on projects
Improve the processes in the Accounting Department
Management accounting
Break even and capacity analysis
Coach the staff
Monitor capital spending
Grow your business
Real estate accounting

Financial Controller Coaching

We assist the function head (Controller, CFO or equivalent) to develop their skills to meet the needs of the business. The guidance and direction of a Controller Coach is invariably welcomed by the incumbent when their hard and soft skills improve.

Where the Controller reports to an executive that does not have extensive experience in managing a finance function, both parties are not aware of the opportunities and skill set available that can transform the Controller from a “bean counter” into a strategic contributor to the executive team, who facilitates the success and growth of the business.

Some of the areas that a Controller should be focusing on are:

Financial analysis, cost analysis and budget variance reporting and analysis
Cost reduction
Providing financial insight to management
Risk management
Effective management of the accounting staff, process improvement and how to improve the Accounting Department
Project management
Break even and capacity utilization
Speed up collection of receivables and credit granting policies
Alternative sources of financing
Maintenance and monitoring of internal controls
Improving the service to the business by the Accounting staff with limited resources
Implementing business growth strategies

Financial Services FAQs

Some examples are:

Where the Controller (head of the accounting department) is technically competent and a “keeper,” but cannot meet all the needs of the business.
Where the President/CEO does not know how to guide and coach the Controller in how to run their department. E.g: technical accounting questions, how to manage the staff, how to be productive in assisting management to run the business, how to make changes that will make the department more efficient and productive, etc.
Where the Controller is not producing the reports analyses and information that the management team needs to run the business.
Where there is a mess in the accounting records that needs to be cleaned up but the staff cannot manage the challenge.
Where a technically competent Controller does not have the management skills to fulfil their function e.g. communication, peer relationships, staff management, etc.
When the Controller cannot manage their and their staffs’ workload satisfactorily. This is often evident where they work excessive hours and do not have time to work on improvements required to their function.

Financial statements alone very rarely provide everything management needs to make effective decisions. Business leaders should have timely information on profitability, cash flow, margins, budgets versus actual results, receivables, expenses, working capital and key financial and performance indicators. We help businesses improve management reporting, so executives receive meaningful and timely financial insight—not simply historical accounting data, that enable them to better manage growth.