Virtual CFO
FP&A
FP&A for a company operating across the EU turns closed books from several entities into one monthly pack: what moved against budget, where margin is strongest by market, and why, in plain language leadership can act on without reopening a spreadsheet per country.
13-week cash forecast
Illustrative client · August 2026
EUR
- Cash today
- €244,220
- Lowest week ahead
- 239,800
- Largest outflow
- Payroll, 46,300
Illustrative. An example of the document, not a client's figures.
Closing the gap between a close and a decision
A close, whether ours through bookkeeping or run by your own local teams, tells you what happened last month in each entity. FP&A sits on top of that and answers the harder question: what does it mean for the next decision, once every entity's numbers are pulled into one euro view.
The shape of a monthly pack
Most packs cover three things: a variance summary against budget with the larger swings explained by entity, margin broken out by market or product line, and a headcount or cost-driver view tied to the original assumptions. Ten minutes should be enough for leadership to read it and actually discuss it, which rules out a spreadsheet with a tab for every country.
Questions that come up between reports
A launch in a new member state, a VAT rate shift affecting margin in one country, a large customer moving to slower payment terms in another: these arrive without warning, and FP&A work answers them with a quick model grounded in the same data behind the monthly pack rather than a rough guess.
Sitting on top of whatever you already run
We do not need to own every entity's close to deliver this. Whether an entity reports under IFRS for SMEs or a national GAAP, FP&A work builds the consolidated view without forcing every jurisdiction onto one standard. It connects directly to KPI design for the metrics behind the numbers and to fractional CFO time for a standing advisory relationship.
Questions
Frequently asked questions: FP&A
Can the monthly pack cover entities on different accounting standards?
Yes. We build the consolidated view on top of each entity's own IFRS for SMEs or national GAAP close, without forcing every jurisdiction onto one framework.
Is a fractional CFO needed to also get FP&A reporting?
No. FP&A runs as its own deliverable. Many clients add fractional CFO time later once the reporting is already in place.
How is margin broken out for a business trading in several countries?
By market, product line or customer segment, whichever split your sales data actually supports and your leadership team uses to make decisions.
What if the original budget came from somewhere else?
That is fine. We track against a budget built internally or by a prior adviser without needing to have built it ourselves.
Can the monthly FP&A pack flag a metric before it becomes a real problem?
That is the point of it: trend lines and variance flags are built to surface a drifting metric while it is still small, rather than waiting for it to show up as a large miss later on.
Is FP&A only for larger companies?
No. Any business tracking a budget benefits from someone explaining the variances each month rather than just reporting the numbers.
What is included in the monthly pack?
Typically a budget-versus-actual summary, margin trends, key variances and a short written narrative, tailored to what your leadership actually reads.
Can FP&A work run alongside our own controller?
Yes. FP&A sits on top of the books your controller or bookkeeper closes each month; we do not need to own the close to deliver the analysis.
How do we get started with fP&A?
Getting started with fP&A begins with a short review of your current records and software access. Once that is done we confirm scope and timing in writing, and ongoing work begins on the schedule agreed with you.
Related services
- Virtual CFOBudgetingAn annual budget built from your real numbers, broken out by month and department, that becomes the baseline every later report is measured against.
- Virtual CFOKPI designA short list of the numbers that actually run your business, defined once and tracked consistently, instead of a dashboard nobody opens.
- Virtual CFOFractional CFOA senior finance lead who works your numbers on a part-time basis: monthly reviews, board and investor prep, and a second opinion before a big decision.
Industries
- SaaSBookkeeping and reporting for subscription software businesses tracking recurring revenue, deferred revenue and burn.
- ManufacturingBookkeeping for small and mid-size manufacturers tracking raw materials, work in process and finished goods inventory.
- Professional servicesBookkeeping for professional service firms such as engineering, architecture and IT consulting billing clients by project or retainer.
Next step
Talk to the team that would run your books
A short call covers your setup, your software and what a first month would look like. You get a written scope and price after it.