Fractional Controller
There is a stage where the numbers start arriving on time and nothing happens to them. The statements are correct, the close lands when it should, and nobody senior is reading them and deciding anything. That is not a bookkeeping problem and more bookkeeping does not fix it. It is the job of a controller, and it is a job rather than a report.
Who it's for
- Businesses past the point where bookkeeping alone is enough, and short of the point where a full-time controller at a six-figure salary makes sense
- Owners whose numbers arrive on time and then sit there, because nobody senior is deciding what to do about them
- Companies whose day-to-day bookkeeping is already handled, in-house or elsewhere, and who need the layer above it rather than a replacement
How it runs
The actual sequence, start to finish.
- 01
Look at how money actually moves
Not the org chart version. Who raises a bill, who approves it, what gets paid on whose card, where the month stalls, and which numbers somebody rebuilds by hand every time they are needed.
- 02
Fix the thing that is costing the most
There is always one, and it is rarely the one that gets complained about. Usually it is a chart of accounts built for somebody else's business, or a manual step sitting between the close and the decision it was meant to inform.
- 03
Put the cycle on rails
A budget that exists, a close that runs against it, and whoever does the day-to-day working to a structure somebody senior set rather than to habit.
- 04
Read it back to you
Every period, in plain terms: what the variance says, what is worth acting on, and what is noise. This is the part that is difficult to buy any other way.
What it costs
Recurring senior attention rather than a project with an end date, so it is scoped in a conversation rather than quoted off a list. What it costs depends on the size of the finance function it is running and how much of it already exists.
Questions about fractional controller
How is this different from bookkeeping?
Bookkeeping records what happened, accurately and on time, and a good set of books is the thing everything else stands on. A controller builds the system that produces those records, runs the cycle they come out of, and tells you what they mean. One is the record. The other is the finance function around it.
Do we have to use you for bookkeeping too?
No, and this is the one service on this site that is genuinely independent of the rest. If your bookkeeping is already handled, in-house or by somebody else, that is a normal arrangement rather than an obstacle. The work is the layer above it, and part of the job is making whoever does the day-to-day more effective rather than replacing them.
Is a controller a CPA?
Controller is a job title rather than a regulated designation, and plenty of controllers are not CPAs. One of the partners here does the job today at a multi-property real estate operation. Newhouse & Associates is not a CPA firm and does not provide audit, review or compilation services, and this service does not change that: those are licensed engagements that belong with a CPA firm.
Is this a fractional CFO service?
No. A CFO owns capital structure, financing and board reporting, which is a different scope with a different buyer, and we do not offer it. Controller is the job of running the finance function: the budget, the close, the analysis, the systems and the process underneath them.
Why not just hire one?
Because a full-time controller is a six-figure salary plus the employer cost on top of it, and a business in this band needs the judgement monthly rather than daily. Hiring is the right answer once there is enough finance work to keep somebody senior occupied full time. Below that, the choice is usually between paying for a full-time seat you cannot fill or going without the judgement entirely, and this is the third option.
What if we already have a bookkeeper we are happy with?
Good, and keep them. Part of the work is giving whoever does the day-to-day a structure to work to, which usually makes their job easier rather than harder. Nobody is being audited and nobody is being replaced.
More questions answered on the FAQ page.
Often paired with
Budgeting & High-Level Analysis
A budget built off your real numbers, and the analysis that shows you exactly what is driving your results.
Budget vs. Actuals
Monthly variance reporting that flags drift from plan before it becomes a year-end surprise.
Financial Reporting
Custom KPI dashboards and reporting beyond the standard monthly statements.
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