Things I've learned along the way
Opinions I've formed, lessons from the field, and the occasional rant about why good finance functions matter more than people think.
The Fractional CFO Model: An Honest Assessment of When It Works and When It Doesn't
I've been doing fractional CFO work for over a decade. This isn't a sales pitch for the model. It's an honest look at where it creates real value, where it falls short, and how to structure an engagement so it actually works.
Read moreEU AI Act: What Finance Leaders Need to Know Before August 2026
The compliance deadline is five months away. Here's a practical guide to what the EU AI Act means for finance teams, which AI use cases are high-risk, and three things to do this quarter.
Read moreWhy 80% of AI Projects in Finance Fail (And What to Fix First)
The technology works fine. The data doesn't. Here's what 25 years of building finance functions has taught me about why AI initiatives actually stall.
Read more20 Days to 5: What a 75% Month-End Close Reduction Actually Looks Like
Most close optimisation advice is generic. This is the specific, step-by-step process I used to cut a PE-backed company's month-end close from 20 days to 5 — and what I'd do differently now.
Read moreThe First 100 Days After Acquisition: Why Finance Integration Fails (And How to Get It Right)
Finance integration after acquisition is not a systems problem. It's a people and process problem. Here's the practical sequence I've used to integrate finance functions across PE-backed buy-and-build portfolios.
Read more5 Finance Red Flags That Cost Sellers 10-15% of Enterprise Value
I've been on both sides of due diligence. These are the red flags that kill deals or cut valuations, and a checklist for what 'due-diligence ready' actually looks like.
Read moreWhat Your PE Sponsor Actually Wants From the Board Pack (And What They're Too Polite to Say)
I've presented to PE boards dozens of times. Here's what sponsors actually read, what they skip, and how to build a board pack that earns trust instead of testing patience.
Read moreBuilding a Finance Function From Nothing: A Practical Guide for Founders Who'd Rather Not Think About Finance
Most founders don't want to think about finance. That's understandable. But 'no finance function' has a cost — in lost funding, bad decisions, and eventual chaos. Here's exactly how to build one from scratch, in the right order.
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