CFO To Go Thrives In No-Go Economy -- Company Gives Firms, Small- To Mid-Size, Access To Senior-Level Financial Services

KIRKLAND

The nationwide economic downturn may be a bust for some businesses, but Lynnwood-based CFO to Go Inc. thinks the weak economic climate is a boon.

The firm, which was organized last May and moved to Lynnwood this month, serves as part-time, surrogate chief financial officer for emerging or downsizing businesses. One of the partners, Thomas Broetje, lives in Kirkland and hopes to develop business there, as well.

Although the owners believe their services are valuable during both good and bad economic times, a cost-cutting environment does offer additional opportunities, they say.

For an hourly rate and/or a monthly retainer, CFO to Go provides a client with professional assistance in strategic planning, financial forecasting, financing and other senior-level financial services.

The service allows small-to mid-size companies access to senior-level financial advice without the expense of hiring a full-time CFO. "Most companies fail, because they mismanage their funds. They lose their financial focus . . . Many small businesses fail because, while they're needing to concentrate on selling and producing, their financial house gets out of order," says Broetje.

CFO to Go's three founding partners include Broetje, with 14 years of experience in the financial industry, James Birkenbuel, with 20 years experience and David Sparks, with 18 years of financial experience.

The firm hopes to open branch offices in such areas as Bellingham and Olympia. And the partners plan to develop business in the areas where they live; Broetje in Kirkland, Sparks in Bothell, and Birkenbuel in Lynnwood.

The three pooled their resources and formed CFO to Go to eliminate the marketing difficulties faced by CFO sole practitioners. "One-person shops are always on their own boom-and-bust cycle," Sparks says. A sole practitioner is too busy to market himself, when he is in the middle of a big project. When the project is complete, he can find himself out of work, Sparks says.

Mary Driscoll, senior editor at CFO Magazine in Boston, agrees. Some solve that problem by reserving one day a week for long-term marketing and business development, she says.

At CFO to Go, the partners are expected to fill about 70 percent of their time with billable work and spend the remaining 30 percent on marketing, Broetje says. Partners generating additional clients receive 10 percent of the fees generated from those clients, even though they are served by others in the firm.

CFO To Go's hourly rate is between $60 and $75 but can be discounted to as low as $50 an hour, if a retainer is paid, Birkenbuel says.

Despite the hefty hourly salaries, hiring CFO To Go is cost-effective because smaller, growing companies that are downsizing often do not need the full-time services of a chief financial officer. A full-time CFO can cost an average of $100,000 a year.

Still, gaining clients as a part-time CFO can be "a hard sell," Driscoll says. Typically, a growing company needing such a service is run by a driven entrepreneur who wants a CFO on hand at all times, she says.

But hiring a part-time CFO can have its advantages. "We don't get entrenched in the company the way an employee does," says Birkenbuel. "We can be totally objective."

CFO to Go plans to hire additional professionals (the firm has already hired two) whose industry expertise compliments the firm's mix.