fractional cfo · growth-stage startups

the model holds
when the term sheet gets real.

Part-time CFO work for founders between the seed check and the Series A: 13-week cash-flow, a board deck that pre-empts the follow-up email, and a fundraising model built to survive line-by-line diligence.

Isometric illustration of a startup financial dashboard with a 13-week cash-flow curve and runway indicator
13 weeks of direct cash-flow visibility in every engagement — modeled, not guessed.
the build-vs-borrow math

a full-time cfo, or the exact hours you need

Most growth-stage teams need CFO-grade rigor for a handful of decisions a quarter — not a full-time salary line. Here is the honest trade-off.

full-time hire

the salaried seat

  • $240k+ base, plus equity, bonus, and benefits load
  • a 60–90 day search before day one
  • fixed cost through the quarters you don't raise
  • one person's playbook, hired for the next stage you haven't reached
zellweger advisory

the scoped engagement

  • from $6,800/mo, billed against defined deliverables
  • kickoff within a week — no search, no ramp
  • scale the hours up for a raise, down between milestones
  • a decade of Series-A model-building applied to your line items
see engagements
what a scope includes

three engagements, priced to the deliverable

Each is a fixed scope with a named output you can hand to a board or a lead investor. Pick one, or run them in sequence.

Isometric illustration of a 13-week cash-flow forecast bridging a ledger
01 — cash + budget

runway diagnostic

A 13-week direct cash-flow model plus an annual operating budget wired to your actuals, so you know the exact week the runway math changes — and the two levers that move it.

  • 13-week direct model
  • annual operating budget
  • burn & runway thresholds
  • monthly variance review

from $3,400 / one-time build

Isometric illustration of board-deck slides with KPI charts on a presentation stand
02 — reporting

board-ready reporting

A monthly close narrative and a board deck that answers the questions before they're asked — KPIs, cohort trends, and a cash bridge presented the way investors read them.

  • monthly board deck
  • KPI + cohort dashboard
  • cash & burn bridge
  • pre-read Q&A prep

from $6,800 / month

Isometric illustration of a fundraising model with cap table, valuation stairs and term sheet
03 — the raise

raise-ready model

A three-statement operating model with driver-based scenarios, a data-room-grade cap table, and dilution math — the file the lead's associate will stress-test line by line.

  • three-statement model
  • scenario + sensitivity toggles
  • cap table & dilution
  • diligence data-room support

from $11,500 / per round

defensible numbers · stamford ct · defensible numbers · za

we don't dress the numbers. we make them survive the questions.

the working principle behind every model we ship
before you scope

the questions founders actually ask

what's a fractional cfo?

A CFO's judgment and output, engaged part-time. You get the model and the board narrative without the full-time salary line or the search.

how is it billed?

Per engagement, against a defined scope and deliverable — a one-time build, a monthly retainer, or a per-round fee. No open-ended hourly meter.

what stage fits?

Post-seed through Series A, roughly $500k–$8M ARR or a live raise. Earlier teams get the runway diagnostic; that's usually enough.

do you replace our bookkeeper?

No. We build on top of clean books. We'll flag what needs tightening, but day-to-day bookkeeping stays with your team or vendor.

who does the work?

The same advisor scopes, builds, and presents your model — the person in the kickoff is the person in the board room, every engagement.

how fast to start?

Kickoff within a week of a signed scope. A runway diagnostic typically ships in 10 business days; a full raise model in three to four weeks.

which tools do you use?

Live Excel or Google Sheets you own outright — driver-based and audit-ready. We hand over the file and walk your team through it.

can you sit in on the raise?

Yes. The raise-ready scope includes diligence data-room support and prep for the lead's finance questions through close.

Isometric illustration of two people reviewing a financial model on a screen

book a scoping call

Bring your cap table and last three months of actuals. In 30 minutes we'll name the right engagement and a fixed price — no obligation to proceed.

start a scope
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