If your CPA ensures the financial engine is running smoothly, your CFO is the one steering the car. Both roles are essential—and when they work together, businesses move further, faster, and with more confidence.
Yet many business owners feel caught in the middle. They rely on a CPA for accurate reporting, but don’t always have access to strategic financial guidance when big decisions loom. That’s where fractional CFOs come in—not to replace CPAs, but to partner with them.
What Is a Fractional CFO?
A fractional CFO is a highly experienced financial leader who works with your business on a part-time or project basis. They offer the strategic insight and leadership of a full-time CFO but with the flexibility and cost-efficiency that growing companies need.
Unlike consultants, fractional CFOs become embedded in your team. They join leadership meetings, engage with board members, and help shape financial strategy from the inside out.
Complementing—Not Competing With—CPA Firms
At Rankin McKenzie, our CFO Partners often work side by side with CPA firms. While your CPA ensures tax compliance and regulatory accuracy, our CFOs focus on what comes next: forecasting, cash flow planning, financial system implementation, investor readiness, and growth strategy.
The collaboration is seamless. In fact, we often serve as a valuable conduit between internal leadership and external accounting teams, translating goals into financial models and helping execute on key priorities.
Why This Matters for Growing Companies
You might not need a full-time CFO, but you probably need someone who understands your goals, can interpret financial trends, and make recommendations you can act on today.
Fractional CFOs bring a strategic layer that traditional accounting services don’t offer—yet they do so in a way that aligns with, rather than disrupts, your existing financial structure.
The Rankin McKenzie Approach
With over 30 experienced Partners and 600+ client engagements, we specialize in matching companies with CFOs who fit their industry, culture, and stage of growth. Our model is built around integration and partnership—with you and with your CPA firm.
Closing Thought
You don’t have to choose between a CPA and a CFO. With the right partnership, you can have both—each doing what they do best. And that’s where the real growth happens.
