Is a CFO Different from a Controller or CPA?
How a CFO is Different from a Controller
- A CFO is responsible for ALL financial results of a company. In contrast, a controller is responsible for the accounting compliance and generating financial statements.
- A controller reports the numbers; but a CFO drives the numbers!
- To learn more about what does a CFO does...
How a CFO is Different from a CPA
- CPAs focus on taxes and numbers. CFO’s focus on PROFIT. This requires more time and direct contact with your business than most CPAs have time for.
- Your CPA has hundreds of clients – your part-time CFO has a few and can devote more time to you.
- Your CPA has an ethical requirement to remain independent from certain functions in your business. (think Enron and Arthur Anderson)
- CPAs focus on income taxes – CFO focus on ways to generate more income.
- CPAs focus on GAAP reporting formats – CFOs focus on creating a business reporting format that highlights the information you need to know about for your business.
- CPAs focus on gathering and presenting the numbers – CFO focus on the story behind the numbers on how you can impact future performance.
- CPAs tell you where you’ve been – CFO’s provide pro-formas, forecasts and a forward-looking perspective on where your company should be going.