Source: Bjoern Lasse Herrmann – co-founder of Blackbox, which runs a startup accelerator program and Startup Genome, a research and development project for uncovering the mechanics of startups. Months ago, my team at Blackbox set out on a mission to crack the innovation code of Silicon Valley and share it with the rest of the […]
The 7 Signs of Failure for Internet Startups Read More »
Source: David Worrell, CFO & Director, Scale Finance LLC I’ve accepted it: Retirement is dead. Anyone still working today might never be able to retire. So why are we all putting money into retirement savings accounts? Between IRAs, ROTHs, 401(k)s, SIMPLEs, SEPs and SOLOs, there’s no shortage of ways to save for a day that
Convert a 401k into Equity for Your Entrepreneurial Company Read More »
Source: Brian Zimmerman – due diligence, sales forecast Here are the three very important factors that venture capitalists look for when they perform due diligence on a potential investment’s sales organization: Avery clear understanding of its target market and buyers, A sales process that maps to those things A sales team that can be cloned
VC Due Diligence – Are Your Sales Pipeline & Forecasts Accurate & Honest? Read More »
Source: Jeff Wright, Senior Vice President, Hennessey Capital Managing cash is key to the success of any business. Without it, management cannot operate efficiently to address the needs of its customers and take advantage of new opportunities. Here are six ways to improve cash flow: 1 . Manage your receivables Before you sell to a
6 Ways to Improve Your Cash Flow Read More »
Source: Scott Maxwell, OpenView Partners Need capital to start or build your business? Ever try to figure out who the best fit VC is for you? In my view, the absolute best way for you to get the capital to build your business is to get your capital from your customers in the form of
The #1 VC in the World – Customers Read More »
Source: Swayne Hill, SVP Global Field Operations, Cloud9 Analytics Sales forecasts are critical to assessing performance, determining whether sales goals will be met, and anticipating resource utilization. Let’s face it, creating accurate sales forecasts isn’t easy. We can’t look into a crystal ball and see which deals in the pipeline are going to close in
Sales Forecasts – A Question of Method, Not Madness Read More »
Source: John Lauber, LauberCFOs Business ratios can be good tools to gauge the financial health of your company. They also can be misleading or meaningless figures if used without the proper context. That context primarily involves a standard or benchmark to compare to. The first set of ratios you develop for your business can be
Ratio Analysis – A Valuable Tool When Properly Used Read More »
Source: Merrette Moore, Lookout Capital As any of my business colleagues will tell you, I’m not a “see and be seen” guy. People who like to see and be seen go to networking events. People who like to produce concentrate on getting things done. I like to get things done. That being said, I understand
NC Startup Landscape is Changing Read More »
Source: Meghan Maher Employee perks and benefits are the second biggest thing employees should consider when thinking over your job offer (behind base salary). Of course there are the normal (and costly ones) like healthcare, dental, vacation days, and bonuses. However, not all benefits need to cost your company a ton of money, and these
6 Simple, Creative Benefits & Perks to Keep Employees Happy Read More »
CFO & Director, Scale Finance LLC (Director of Florida) South and Central Florida 919-349-3077 schell@scalefinance.com CFO, CEO and President of several technology companies in North Carolina and South Florida; responsibilities included raising capital, improving and building operations and reducing costs (2010 to 2012) CFO and SVP of Operations of CipherOptics, Inc. – Raleigh-based $10M technology
Graf Research™ unleashes innovation by developing ideas into disruptive technologies. The Graf mission aims to perform research, provide services, apply analytics, and create products that enable secure, high-performance, embedded, and adaptive computing solutions.
When the Director of Finance for Graf was leaving the company, Graf needed an experienced financial team to get them through the transition. Managing Director Gary Hayes was introduced to Graf and determined that CFO Rendy Richards and Controller John Schefke would be an ideal combination. These two were particularly important because Graf is a U.S. Government contractor, and both Richards and Schefke have strong backgrounds and deep skill sets in this industry.
The two Scale Finance professionals quickly responded to Graf’s time-sensitive need, logically split up the work, learned the DELTEK version used by Graf, introduced more efficient processes and techniques, and helped meet their financial reporting needs. Our professionals also determined that the Senior Staff Accountant was underutilized and helped her grow into a permanent, cost-effective Controller role.
FX HedgePool (FXHP)
FX HedgePool (FXHP) is a New York and London-based highly innovative fintech company. FXHP is an award-winning peer-to-peer matching platform that optimizes the FX swaps market. The Company eliminates market impact and minimizes the effects of volatility – significantly improving outcomes for all investors.
FXHP’s unique credit model separates liquidity from credit, creating a new source of safe and dependable liquidity for the swaps market. The Company exists for the community, guided by the community with a “win-win-win” commitment that helps members, underlying investors, and banks yield safer and better results.
Scale Finance began serving FXHP years ago, providing annual business valuations to support 409A compliance for the Company’s management incentive equity plan. During this period, Scale Finance Managing Director Dave Gilroy advised FXHP about potential strategic corporate transactions. In 2022, the Company decided to raise institutional venture capital. Scale Finance managed this process from end to end, resulting in a highly successful closing of an $8 million Series A equity financing led by Information Venture Partners with participation from Fidelity International Strategic Ventures and NAventures (National Bank of Canada’s corporate venture capital arm).
Scale Finance continues to provide periodic business valuation support.
Heritage Trust
As the first independent trust company in New Mexico, established in 1994, Heritage Trust (HT) uses innovation, experience, and flexibility to meet clients’ needs. HT provides a full range of trust services, e.g., acting as their client fiduciary for their Trust assets, being an executor or personal representative related to the distribution of estate assets, managing and growing financial assets, and preparing annual tax returns for trusted clients.
Co-Founder and Managing Director of Scale Finance Gary Hayes has been providing CFO and managing Controller support since February 2021. We have streamlined their monthly and year-end close process and established budget/forecast capability to support management. Their business has grown over 40% since Scale Finance has been involved with the company’s financial management. Gary has also participated in Board Meetings as and when needed.
Southland Transportation Company
Southland Transportation provides transport, supply chain, and campus management services on a local, regional, and nationwide basis. When Southland contacted Scale Finance, they had a strong accounting staff but no Controller or CFO. After an unsuccessful search for a full-time CFO, Southland engaged CFO and Partner Rendy Richards as their fractional CFO.
Over 18 months, Richards helped integrate a new acquisition, made improvements in accounting and finance processes, developed the company’s first-ever annual budget, helped with the onboarding of a new Controller, and provided business valuations in conjunction with Scale Finance’s Managing Director, Dave Gilroy.
For over six decades, Cooper Electrical has served a wide range of industrial, commercial, and municipal customers across the Southeast, providing best-in-class Electrical Design/Build, BIM, Prefabrication, Instrumentation & Controls, and Calibration services. Cooper’s expertise spans multiple major markets, including bio-pharmaceutical, chemical, water & wastewater, power generation, manufacturing, gas production & transmission, and food & beverage.
When Cooper’s CFO left the company for another opportunity, the owners engaged Rendy Richards as interim CFO while they searched for a full-time replacement. On a half-time basis over eight months, Richards kept the company’s financial organization humming, made improvements in several business processes, initiated a detailed financial forecast, and met with the owners to share his observations and recommendations on the most feasible way to staff their finance and accounting department cost-effectively.
SymmetryRX, LLC
SymmetryRX is a leading provider of eSampling services allowing Pharma Manufacturing companies to access physician practices for the ordering and distribution of drug samples across the US. The Company was acquired in November 2018 from Aptus Health, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Merck. Since then, the company has expanded its robust suite of services that provides pharma manufacturing executives, brand managers, sales managers, product managers, and launch managers the ability to help more patients have greater access to samples, improving medication adherence and healthcare outcomes.
Co-Founder and Managing Director of Scale Finance Gary Hayes has been providing CFO Services to the Company since 2018 and was integral in the acquisition process, facilitated initial financing to support the company with a 7A SBA loan package of $600 thousand and an SBA-backed $300 thousand LOC. Since then, Gary has been actively providing CFO support across financial reporting, budgeting, forecasting, cash planning, and strategic planning.
