Financial Management Consulting: Control Your Cash, Multiply Your Profit
We provide financial management consulting and fractional CFO services to UK businesses generating revenue but lacking the financial visibility, control, and strategic guidance required for scaling. Our role is to build the systems that deliver real-time financial clarity, then provide the senior financial leadership with the tools to translate that clarity into better commercial decisions.
Cash flow problems kill profitable businesses. A business that does not know its three-month cash position, its true margins by product or customer, or its working capital cycle is making capital allocation decisions on incomplete information. The cost of that compounds quietly: decisions made on bank balance rather than profitability, pricing set by historical habit rather than current cost reality, and margin erosion that becomes visible only when accounts arrive several weeks after the period closes.
We have advised UK SMEs since 2014 across professional services, manufacturing, hospitality, construction, retail, and technology. Engagements range from a 2 to 3-week financial health check identifying the highest-priority gaps, through full systems implementation, to ongoing fractional CFO leadership for businesses scaling through funding rounds, M&A activity, or significant operational change.
Book a free 60-minute Financial Management Assessment. We will review your current financial systems, identify the top 3 financial risks threatening the business, highlight immediate opportunities for improving profitability or cash flow, and recommend the appropriate service tier for your situation. No obligation.
Who Delivers This Service
Your financial management consulting will be led by Kurt Graver — qualified Accountant, MBA, Founder of SGI Consultants — supported by a qualified team with expertise in cash flow management, financial planning, and capital structure. Kurt personally oversees every financial management engagement, providing fractional CFO-level expertise to UK SMEs.
Financial Management Consulting: Our Track Record
Working Capital Released (Cash Unlocked)
Average Net Margin Increase
Time to Cash Visibility
Forecasts Built
The Financial Management Gap That Costs UK SMEs More Than They Realise
Most UK business owners are better at running their businesses than at managing their finances. This is not a criticism -- it reflects the reality that the skills required to build a product, win customers, and manage a team are genuinely different from the skills required to build financial control systems, interpret management accounts, and forecast cash flow accurately.
The consequences of this gap are serious and often invisible until they become acute. A business can be growing and profitable on an accruals basis whilst simultaneously running out of cash. A business can be busy and fully utilised whilst its most time-consuming work turns out, on proper margin analysis, to be loss-making. A business can be making major investment decisions -- hiring, equipment, premises -- based on a bank balance figure that tells almost nothing about the actual financial position.
The brutal reality is that poor financial management is a factor in the overwhelming majority of UK business failures -- including businesses with strong products, loyal customers, and capable teams. Cash flow problems kill profitable businesses. Pricing decisions made without proper margin analysis destroy value. Capital allocation decisions made without financial modelling waste resources that cannot be replaced.
What most UK SMEs need -- and rarely have -- is the financial management infrastructure that larger businesses take for granted: real-time visibility, robust forecasting, strategic financial leadership, and the discipline to use financial data to drive decisions rather than react to crises.
Why Most UK SMEs Are Operating with Inadequate Financial Management
The majority of UK SMEs we assess are operating in one of three financial management states. All three are understandable. None is adequate for a business that wants to scale with confidence.
The Spreadsheet Sufferer. Financial management relies on complex Excel files that break frequently, take hours to maintain, and are already out of date by the time they are reviewed. Reporting is retrospective and labour-intensive. The business knows roughly what happened last month, but has limited visibility into what is happening now or what is coming.
The Accountant Dependent. Management accounts arrive quarterly, six weeks after the period end. By the time a problem is visible in the numbers, it has been developing for months. The accountant handles compliance and tax obligations well -- but is not set up to provide the forward-looking, strategic financial guidance the business actually needs to grow.
The Instinct Operator. Financial decisions are made based on the bank balance and the founder's accumulated intuition. There is no formal cash flow forecasting, no margin analysis by product or customer, and no budget-versus-actual reporting. The business moves fast but lacks the instruments to know whether it is moving in the right direction.
None of these approaches is adequate for a business that intends to grow, raise funding, or build lasting value.
What is needed is the financial management infrastructure that enterprise businesses have as standard -- real-time visibility, proactive cash management, strategic financial leadership -- made accessible and affordable for the UK SME market. That is what SGI provides.
SGI's Approach: Financial Management and the Business Success Formula
Our financial management consulting is anchored in the Profitability dimension of SGI's Business Success Formula—our proprietary framework for assessing the long-term viability of any business across three dimensions.
Profitability, in the Business Success Formula, means more than whether the business generates a surplus on its income statement. It addresses the structural question: Does the business model generate margins sufficient to fund growth, service debt, reward shareholders, and withstand competitive and market pressures over time? Many businesses generate revenue without genuine profitability at this structural level—and the gap is invisible without rigorous financial analysis.
Our financial management consulting work begins with precisely this question. Before building forecasting models or implementing management reporting systems, we assess whether the business's financial architecture -- its pricing, cost structure, cash conversion cycle, and capital allocation -- is capable of generating the returns the business needs. If it is not, the right intervention is structural rather than systemic.
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Financial Management Consulting Services
Our financial management consulting is structured in three progressive tiers, designed to meet businesses where they are. Some need a diagnosis and a clear plan. Some need the full implementation of the financial infrastructure. Some need ongoing strategic financial leadership. We offer all three -- and the tiers are designed to build on each other as the business grows.
Tier 1: Financial Health Check and Foundation Assessment
Best For: Businesses that suspect their financial management has significant gaps and need an honest, structured diagnosis before committing to a full implementation programme.
Investment: From £1,500 | Timeline: Two to Three Weeks
The Financial Health Check is a comprehensive audit of your current financial management position -- what you have, what is missing, and what the cost of those gaps is. It produces a prioritised action plan that gives you a clear picture of your most critical financial risks and the specific steps required to address them.
What the Assessment Covers:
- Current financial systems audit -- accounting software, processes, and reporting capability
- Cash flow analysis, identifying where cash is being lost or delayed
- Margin analysis by product, service, and customer segment to reveal true profitability
- Working capital assessment covering receivables, payables, and inventory efficiency
- Financial risk identification, highlighting immediate threats to cash position and solvency
What You Receive:
- Financial Health Report (30 to 40 pages) with executive summary and prioritised findings
- Financial Dashboard Template configured for your business (Excel or Google Sheets)
- 13-week rolling Cash Flow Forecasting Template
- Implementation checklist prioritising critical actions in sequence
- 60-minute presentation session walking through findings and recommendations
A Leeds professional services firm engaged us for a Financial Health Check after their bank raised concerns during a routine review. The assessment identified three separate receivables issues that were collectively tying up £85,000 in overdue invoices, a supplier payment schedule that was consistently creating a predictable monthly cash trough, and a margin calculation error that had caused the business to underprice its highest-demand service for two years. The subsequent implementations were funded entirely from the recovered margin.
Tier 2: Financial Systems Setup and Implementation
Best For: Businesses that have identified their financial management gaps and need full implementation of the systems, processes, and management reporting frameworks required to run the business with genuine financial discipline.
Investment: From £4,500 | Timeline: Six to Eight Weeks
Financial Systems Setup is a complete build of the financial management infrastructure your business needs -- from accounting system configuration and integration through to management reporting, cash flow systems, budgeting processes, and team training. At the end of the engagement, your business will have the systems and capability to manage its finances proactively.
Complete Financial Infrastructure:
- Accounting system optimisation or implementation from scratch
- Chart of accounts redesign aligned with management reporting requirements
- Integration of financial systems -- accounting, CRM, banking, payroll -- to eliminate manual data transfer
- Automated reporting dashboard providing real-time financial visibility
- Standard operating procedures for all core financial processes
Management Reporting Framework:
- Monthly management accounts template designed for decision-making, not just compliance
- KPI dashboard tracking 15 to 20 critical financial metrics relevant to your business model
- Variance analysis framework identifying issues requiring attention before they become problems
- Departmental and product-line P&L statements for granular profitability insight
- Board reporting pack for governance and strategic oversight
Cash Flow Management System:
- 13-week rolling cash flow forecasting model built to your business's specific cash cycle
- Cash flow driver identification and ongoing monitoring framework
- Payment terms optimisation across both receivables and payables
- Cash reserve target setting and monitoring protocol
- Scenario planning tools for financial stress-testing and what-if analysis
Financial Planning and Budgeting:
- Annual budget development process and templates that your team can operate independently
- Monthly budget versus actual reporting with variance analysis
- Quarterly reforecasting framework designed to adapt the plan to commercial reality
- Capital expenditure planning and approval framework
- Pricing model development, ensuring that growth is profitable growth
Team Training and Handover:
- Two to three training sessions covering new systems and processes
- Finance team capability development programme
- Director of financial literacy coaching for non-finance founders
- Full documentation of all systems and processes
- 30 days of post-implementation support
A Manchester construction business with £6M in annual revenue was consistently profitable on its management accounts but found itself in its overdraft facility for six to eight months each year. Financial Systems Setup identified that the business's payment terms with major clients were 60 days, whilst supplier payment obligations fell between 14 and 30 days -- creating a structural cash gap of approximately £180,000 at peak. We rebuilt the cash flow management system, renegotiated supplier terms to align with client payment cycles, and implemented a debtor management process. Within 90 days, the overdraft dependency was eliminated, and £220,000 of working capital was released.
Tier 3: Fractional CFO Services
Best For: Growing businesses that need ongoing strategic financial leadership -- the kind that a full-time CFO would provide -- without the cost of a permanent executive appointment.
Investment: From £3,500 per month | Timeline: Six-Plus Months (Ongoing)
The Fractional CFO service provides full CFO-level financial leadership on a part-time basis, with complete strategic impact. Depending on the tier selected, you receive two to four days per month of senior financial expertise focused on your highest-value financial priorities -- from capital structure and funding strategy through to board-level financial leadership and M&A advisory support.
Strategic Financial Leadership:
- Board-level financial strategy and long-range planning
- Capital structure optimisation -- debt, equity, and reinvestment allocation
- Funding strategy development and investor relations management
- M&A financial evaluation, modelling, and due diligence coordination
- Exit planning and business valuation support
Operational Financial Management:
- Monthly financial review with strategic recommendations and forward guidance
- Cash flow forecasting and working capital management
- Budgeting, forecasting, and financial planning cycle management
- Financial risk assessment and mitigation planning
- Cost optimisation and margin improvement initiatives
Growth-Focused Financial Planning:
- Pricing strategy development and ongoing optimisation
- New market entry financial analysis and investment modelling
- Product and service profitability assessment at the individual SKU or engagement level
- Customer lifetime value and acquisition cost analysis
- Scenario modelling for major strategic decisions
Investor and Stakeholder Management:
- Investor reporting and relationship management
- Lender communication and loan covenant compliance monitoring
- Board meeting preparation and financial presentation
- Due diligence coordination for funding rounds
- Financial documentation for strategic transactions
Team Development and Governance:
- Finance team coaching and capability development
- Financial control framework design and implementation
- Audit preparation and statutory compliance coordination
- VAT, Corporation Tax, and regulatory compliance oversight
- Financial systems selection and implementation leadership
Fractional CFO Tier Structure:
Tier | Standard | Growth | Scale |
|---|---|---|---|
Monthly Investment | £3,500 | £5,000 | £6,500 |
Days Per Month | 2 days | 3 days | 4 days |
Strategic Sessions | Monthly review | Bi-weekly | Weekly |
Board Attendance | Quarterly presentation | Monthly | Monthly + ongoing access |
Funding Support | Advisory | Active management | Full transaction management |
Finance Team Management | Coaching | Coaching + oversight | Direct management |
Urgent Access | Unlimited email and phone | Unlimited email and phone | Real-time guidance |
Why Fractional CFO Rather Than a Full-Time Appointment?
A full-time experienced CFO costs £120,000 to £180,000 annually, plus employer National Insurance, pension contributions, and benefits. The Fractional CFO model delivers the same calibre of strategic financial leadership at 25 to 40% of that cost -- with the additional advantage of scaling up during intensive periods (funding rounds, M&A activity, rapid growth phases) and scaling back during stable periods when that level of support is not required.
There is also a breadth-of-experience advantage. A Fractional CFO working across multiple businesses brings cross-sector pattern recognition and exposure to best practices that a single-company CFO rarely accumulates. Your business benefits from financial leadership informed by what has worked across many comparable situations.
A Bristol SaaS business needed Series A funding but had a disorganised financial history, inconsistent revenue recognition, and no SaaS-standard metrics in its reporting. We rebuilt the financial model to Series A standards—Monthly Recurring Revenue, churn rate, Customer Acquisition Cost, and Lifetime Value—and implemented a rigorous revenue recognition policy. The clean, investor-grade financial presentation gave lead investors the confidence to proceed and negotiate on terms. The business secured £4.2M at a valuation 40% above the initial term sheet offers.
Financial Management Consulting: Service Comparison
Feature | Financial Health Check | Financial Systems Setup | Fractional CFO |
|---|---|---|---|
Investment | From £1,500 | From £4,500 | From £3,500 per month |
Duration | Two to Three Weeks | Six to Eight Weeks | Six-Plus Months |
Financial Assessment | Comprehensive audit | Deep-dive analysis | Continuous monitoring |
Cash Flow Forecasting | Template provided | System built and integrated | Active management |
Management Reporting | Framework designed | Systems implemented | Ongoing strategic analysis |
KPI Dashboard | Template provided | Automated system built | Real-time monitoring |
Budget Development | Guidance and templates | Process built | Active leadership |
Pricing Optimisation | Analysis and recommendations | Recommendations with support | Strategic implementation |
Funding Strategy | Not included | High-level only | Full service |
Board Presentation | Findings review | Not included | Monthly or quarterly |
Ongoing Support | Not included | 30 days post-implementation | Continuous |
Team Training | Not included | Comprehensive | Ongoing development |
Strategic Financial Decisions | Not included | Not included | Direct leadership |
See our full pricing structure and competitive comparison --
Real Financial Management Outcomes
SaaS Scale-Up -- Series A Funding Preparation (Bristol)
A Bristol B2B software business needed Series A investment but presented to us with disorganised financial records, inconsistent revenue recognition across its client base, and no SaaS-standard reporting metrics. Investors had shown interest but were unable to commit based on the financial presentation provided. We rebuilt the financial model to Series A standards, implemented rigorous revenue recognition, and created the investor reporting pack the business needed. The result was £4.2M secured at a valuation 40% above initial term sheet offers.
Construction Firm -- Cash Flow Control (Manchester)
A Manchester construction business generating £6M in annual revenue was consistently profitable on paper but relied on its overdraft facility for six to eight months each year. The root cause was a structural mismatch between the client's payment terms (60 days) and the supplier's obligations (14-30 days). We rebuilt the cash flow management system, renegotiated supplier payment terms to align with client cycles, and implemented a formal debtor management process. Within 90 days, the overdraft dependency was eliminated, and £220,000 in working capital was released.
Manufacturer -- Product Profitability and Portfolio Rationalisation (Midlands)
A Midlands manufacturer was selling approximately 400 product lines but had never conducted a rigorous SKU-level profitability analysis with accurate overhead allocation. When we completed the analysis, the bottom 20% of the product portfolio -- representing 18% of total revenue -- was actually loss-making after true cost allocation. We developed a strategic plan to exit those lines and redirect resources to the top-performing 20%, which carried margins three times higher than the portfolio average. Net profit increased by 33% on modestly lower overall revenue.
Explore detailed examples of how our business consulting services have enabled clients to secure funding and achieve growth:
How SGI's Financial Management Consulting Differs from the Alternatives
Versus Your Accountant
Your accountant's primary function is compliance -- producing accurate financial statements, managing tax obligations, and ensuring regulatory requirements are met. This is essential, and we always recommend maintaining the accountant relationship. What most accountants are not structured to provide is forward-looking, strategic financial management: cash flow forecasting, margin analysis by product or customer, capital allocation advisory, funding strategy, and the kind of financial leadership that connects financial data to business decisions. Our financial management consulting fills that gap without replacing the compliance function.
Versus a Full-Time Finance Director or CFO
A full-time FD or CFO is the right solution for businesses at a certain scale. For most UK SMEs -- particularly those between £1M and £15M revenue -- the cost of a permanent senior finance appointment (£120,000 to £180,000 fully loaded) is disproportionate to the financial leadership hours actually required. The Fractional CFO model delivers the same calibre of strategic thinking at a fraction of the cost, with the flexibility to scale the intensity of engagement up or down as the business situation demands.
Versus Finance Software Alone
Xero, QuickBooks, and Sage are excellent tools. They are not, by themselves, a financial management system. The most common finding in our Financial Health Checks is a business using good accounting software to produce backwards-looking compliance reports, with no management reporting layer, no forecasting capability, and no analytical framework for using the data to drive decisions. Software provides the data. We build the systems, disciplines, and strategic interpretation that make that data actionable.
Explore Further
Related reading:
- UK Management Accounts: Why Your Business Needs Them — The financial reporting foundation every SME needs
- Financial Reporting Essentials: Master the Basics — Understanding your numbers before the consulting engagement begins
- The Power of Working Capital — Managing cash flow as a strategic asset
Free resource:
- The Complete Funding & Investor Toolkit → — Financial modelling templates and investor-ready financial frameworks
Content hub:
- Business Funding & Finance Hub → — Complete financial management resources for UK SMEs
Related services:
- Business Growth Consulting — Growth strategy built on sound financial foundations
- Operational Efficiency Consulting — Operational improvement that directly improves profitability
- Business Funding Service — Access growth capital once financial management is optimised
Transform Financial Chaos into Strategic Control
Every day you operate without robust financial management is a day of hidden losses, missed opportunities, and unnecessary risk.
The businesses that scale successfully don't leave financial management to chance. They invest in systems, expertise, and discipline that provide the clarity needed for confident decision-making.
Take the first step: Book your complimentary Financial Management Assessment (valued at £500). In this 60-minute session, we'll:
- Review your current financial management systems and processes
- Identify the top 3 financial risks threatening your business
- Highlight immediate opportunities for improved profitability or cash flow
- Recommend which service tier makes the most sense for your situation
- Outline specific next steps for transforming your financial management
No obligation. No sales pressure. Just honest insights from financial management consultants who've helped hundreds of UK businesses build financial foundations for scalable growth.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Your accountant's primary obligation is compliance -- producing accurate financial statements, managing tax obligations, and ensuring you meet regulatory requirements. This is essential, and we strongly recommend maintaining a good relationship with an accountant alongside our services. What most accountants are not designed to provide is strategic, forward-looking financial management: real-time cash-flow visibility, margin analysis by product or customer, capital-allocation advisory, pricing-strategy support, and the financial leadership that connects data to decisions. The two functions are complementary, not competing. The majority of our clients continue working with their existing accountants for compliance, whilst SGI provides the strategic financial management layer.
Not necessarily, and we do not recommend change for its own sake. We work with all major accounting platforms -- Xero, QuickBooks, Sage, and others. In our experience, the accounting software is rarely the problem. The gap is almost always in what sits above the accounting software: the management reporting layer, the forecasting system, the analytical framework for interpreting the data. We optimise what you have before recommending any system change. If your existing software genuinely cannot support what you need, we will recommend appropriate alternatives and manage the transition to minimise disruption.
Yes, and this is the normal working arrangement for Fractional CFO engagements. We provide senior strategic financial leadership whilst your existing finance team or bookkeeper handles the day-to-day transactional work. The combination is more effective than either alone -- your team focuses on execution accuracy, we focus on strategic direction and financial analysis. For businesses without a dedicated finance function, we can advise on whether to hire internally or use an outsourced bookkeeping service to complement our strategic work.
Clients typically see 5-15x ROI within the first 12 months through:
- Cost savings (8-15% average reduction)
- Margin improvements (3-8% typical increase)
- Cash flow optimisation (10-25% of revenue freed up)
- Better capital allocation and strategic decisions
One client invested £40K in Fractional CFO services over 12 months. During that period, we identified £180K in cost savings, improved pricing, adding £120K to gross profit, and secured £800K in funding on better terms than they would have achieved on their own. Total value created: £1.1M+.
How quickly will we see results?
- Financial Health Check: Immediate insights with 90-day action plan
- Financial Systems: 60-90 days to full implementation, quick wins often within 30 days
- Fractional CFO: Strategic impact within first 30 days, measurable financial improvements typically within 90-120 days
Perfect. That's why we offer progressive tiers. Start with the Financial Health Check (£1,500) to identify priorities. If you need systems before strategy, move to Financial Systems Setup (£4,500). Graduate to Fractional CFO services when you're scaling rapidly, seeking funding, or facing complex financial decisions.
Many clients start with Health Check, implement systems, then engage Fractional CFO services 6-12 months later when their business has grown to need that level of support.
Yes—this is one of our core value-adds. We:
- Develop investor-grade financial models and projections
- Prepare financial documentation for due diligence
- Support pitch deck development (financial sections)
- Participate in investor meetings,explainingthe financial strategy
- Negotiate term sheets protecting your interests
- Manage the entire financial due diligence process
Many clients engage a Fractional CFO specifically for funding rounds, knowing professional financial leadership dramatically improves funding success rates and valuation.
For the Financial Health Check, you implement the recommendations independently, or engage us for Systems Setup if you want implementation support.
For Financial Systems Setup, we provide 30 days of post-implementation support, then you operate independently with the systems we've built. Many clients return quarterly for financial reviews or upgrade to a Fractional CFO as they scale.
For a Fractional CFO: This is typically ongoing, scaling up or down as needed. Some clients maintain Fractional CFO services indefinitely. Others use it intensively during growth phases or funding rounds, then scale back during stable periods.