Not-in-control. Every company has dealt with this at least once. Steps are needed to ensure that the company regains financial control within a short amount of time(3-6 months). This is where the interim finance manager comes in. The question is: how do you handle this?

1. Talk to the client about the starting situation and to map out expectations. A pitfall is to dive straight into the details. Make sure you first get an overview of the most important challenges.

2. During the 1st inventorisation you also identify the most important internal and external stakeholders. Who are they and what is expected?

3. Another important aspect is to organize the occupation of the Finance team. Based off a fixed discussion structure and clear communication within the team. This can be achieved by weekly stand-ups to distribute tasks and responsibilities.

4. At the same time you can start working on the most important challenges and priorities. In a lot of cases we see that the basic processes within an organization are not up to standard and that there is a lack of managementinformation. Another important aspect is to regain grip on the liquidity of the organisation. Which financial resources does the organisation have access and what are the forecasts. For medium-long lenght we often work with a liquidityforecast and for the upcoming 6-8 a cash flow projection.

5. After the first inventarisation of the most important challenges has taken place and the biggest issues have been solved, is it important to look ahead togheter with the team. Togheter with the team you will work on the finance agenda for the upcoming months. From our experience we suggest a simple agenda with the most important tasks and priorities per quarter.

6. Know when to stop as interim finance manager. When the biggest challenges are solved and the basics of the financial organisation is solid, it’s time for a structural replacement solution. We usually help with the search and implementation for a permanent addition to the team so that a ‘soft’ transition can take place.

The biggest benefit of an interim manager is that they can work on a specified task. The necessary transition that needs to take place can be lead to succes by the interim finance manager.

Are you or is your organisation in need of an interim finance manager? Finstream has the right knowledge and experience in house and we’d glady assist you!