When we start a diagnostic review of a business we always look at what is being done, and if there is a more efficient way to do it.

We usually find a better way to manage the accounting and finance tasks and very often existing staff can feel challenged or resist the changes we end up recommending.

This usually ends up one of two ways. Either the staff rise to the occasion and embrace an opportunity to educate themselves and advocate change – or they resist, sometimes to their own disadvantage.

The critical thing is that your staff feel ownership around what they’ve done and that they are given every opportunity to participate in the changes.

Often they have been running the system for years and feel ownership over your processes. It’s our job to embrace that passion to get a better outcome, rather than challenge them in a negative way.

how to streamline the transition

It’s about people’s attitudes. Employees inherently come to work out of self-interest, but good ones have an alignment with your business and your vision.

If you can’t demonstrate and articulate how introducing better systems and change into their role will be better for them, and better for the organisation, people will start to disengage and resist change. Your role as the business leader becomes important when putting these changes in.

Looking in from the outside, we can often see things that are difficult, or impossible for people within the organisation to be aware of.

So, when we come in from the outside, we offer an opportunity to introduce new ideas and change without any perceived personal bias. And in a small business, this is important because it’s the relationships with owners that drive much of the culture and performance. You have to sell the benefits of change to the organisation as a whole.

A VCFO CAN ASSIST THE CHANGE OVER

Having an outsider coming in is an advantage when you’re dealing with change. There’s a fresh set of ears and eyes. A lot of things get assessed for their merits, not because of any history or critical bias that might have been within an organisation for some time.

This supports where the virtual model works really well. The job of a Virtual CFO is to look after the health of the business, not to get distracted with the things that happen just by running an organisation like internal politics and legacy relationships.

Our job is just to deal with what needs to be done in order to give you control and visibility. When our Melbourne VCFO’s manage the changes within your organisation, you’ll also benefit from a stronger and more productive company culture.

Would you like to learn more about how our Virtual CFO services can help your business? If so, explore how we help you here.