A fractional CFO for businesses that already make money
Built for owners doing $1M to $20M a year, not startups still finding their footing.
You get monthly financials, a plan for your next big decision, and tax strategy built before year end, not after.
- Tax planned year-round.
- Based in Bellefontaine, Ohio.
You’re not a startup
Most fractional CFOs sell to venture-backed startups burning someone else’s cash. You run a profitable company and need someone who understands what growth costs when it’s your own money at stake.
| Ascend | A freelance CFO | |
|---|---|---|
| Fits your industry | Yes Works with trades, construction, and professional services | No Any industry |
| Connects to your taxes | Yes Same team runs your tax strategy | No Refers you out for taxes |
| Sees your whole picture | Yes Business and personal finances considered together | No Business only |
| Commitment | Yes Cancel any time | No Terms vary |
| Credentials | Yes Led by a CPA | No No license required |
| Cadence | Yes Meets with you every month | No Hours vary |
Both sides
Business and personal, in one plan
The business plan
- Cash, financials, and the forecast
- Business tax, planned before year end
- Hiring, equipment, pricing, and borrowing
- What the business is worth and what raises it
Your personal plan
- Salary, draws, and what you take out
- Personal tax, planned across your lifetime
- Retirement and when you step back
- Family, estate, and who takes over
Every dollar you take out of the business shows up on your personal return. One team plans both.
In practice
What a fractional CFO does here
-
01
Financials and cash, every month
You get real financials each month. You always know your cash position and what’s coming next quarter.
-
02
The decision in front of you
Hiring, buying equipment, opening a second location: we run the numbers before you commit. You decide with a real answer.
-
03
Tax strategy before year end
We plan your taxes months before December, not after. The moves that save money need time you don’t have in January.
Past this year, we plan your tax across your lifetime. Personal tax planning
-
04
What the business is worth
We track what drives your company’s value. You’ll know the number before a buyer ever asks.
What Ascend doesn’t do
Ascend doesn’t do bookkeeping. We don’t file your tax returns. We don’t work as a part-time controller inside your office.
Keep your bookkeeper. We work alongside them.
How it works
Every fractional CFO engagement starts the same way.
The first
90 days
-
We start with your goals.
We ask where you want the business in five years, what it should pay you, and whether you'll sell it, pass it on, or keep it. We also bring in every key stakeholder, on your side and ours, so nobody is missing when the plan takes shape.
-
We diagnose the business.
We score eight areas and compare sixteen key numbers with your industry, then show what the business is worth, what it could be, and what's in the way.
-
We prioritize.
The diagnosis usually finds more problems than you can fix at once. We pick the highest-impact priorities and start there. The rest come in as the business is ready.
-
We build the plan.
We put the first priorities on a twelve-month calendar, one step at a time, and add the next ones as fast as the business can take them. The full plan is written up by the end of the first 90 days.
-
We get to work.
Monthly meetings start in month one, so the first priority is already moving while the rest of the plan is being written.
What onboarding looks like
Every month after
Ongoing
-
We meet every month.
Most accountants hear from you when something goes wrong. We meet every month to go through the numbers, check the plan, and handle what's come up.
What a monthly meeting covers -
We review and reset.
We project your taxes each quarter, so April brings no surprises. Once a year we rescore all eight areas, update the valuation, and plan the next year.
What it costs
A full-time CFO costs a six-figure salary plus benefits. You get the same judgment for one monthly number.
The retainer covers your fractional CFO work along with the rest of the engagement: tax, cash, strategy, risk, people, and systems. It’s one number, billed monthly, no hourly surprises.
The calculator
How much cash should your business be holding?
Too little and one slow month turns into a problem. Too much and money that could be working just goes idle. Answer a few questions and you’ll get a number, plus the reasoning behind it. Free.
FAQ
What is a fractional CFO?
A fractional CFO is a chief financial officer who works with your company part time instead of full time. You get financial strategy, cash oversight, and long-range planning without a full-time salary. At Ascend, a CPA leads that work.
What does a fractional CFO do?
A fractional CFO builds your monthly financials, tracks cash, and models the numbers behind big decisions like hiring or buying equipment. They also plan taxes ahead of year end. The work is ongoing.
How is a fractional CFO different from an outsourced CFO?
The terms mean the same thing. Both describe a CFO who works with your company without being on payroll. Ascend uses both.
How much does a fractional CFO cost?
Ascend charges one flat monthly retainer. The number depends on your business and which bundle you choose. A full-time CFO salary runs well past that, before benefits.
How do I know if I need one?
If you’re making decisions like hiring, expanding, or buying without real numbers behind them, you need one. If your accountant only calls back after tax season, you need one. Complexity is the signal more than revenue, though most owners who call us are past $1M.
Show 7 more questions Show fewer questions
What’s the difference between a fractional CFO and a business coach?
A coach talks strategy and accountability. A fractional CFO builds the financials, models the numbers, and plans the tax moves behind that strategy. At Ascend the plan and the numbers come from the same team, in the same monthly meeting.
Do you still do bookkeeping or tax returns?
No. Ascend stopped bookkeeping and tax filing in 2024 to focus on financial strategy. We work alongside your existing bookkeeper or tax preparer instead of replacing them.
Am I locked in?
No. Engagements run month to month. Cancel any time.
What does onboarding look like?
You're up and running in a few days, with a whole team rather than one person. We start with discovery meetings: your story, what success looks like, and how you'd eventually like to step back, whether that means family, a sale, or something else. During onboarding we set up your plan in our project system, so every task is tracked in one place from the start.
How is an advisor different from an accountant?
With an accountant, you usually call when something comes up, and most of the work happens after the year closes. With us the questions run both ways: we bring the ones you haven't thought to ask, every month, and tax is worked out during the year instead of tallied at the end. Your accountant still files the return.
How does the relationship work over time?
Plan on 12 to 24 months in all. Monthly meetings start in the first month, while the plan is still being built, and carry on once it is in place: a meeting every month on the business, tax projections every quarter, a quarterly check of progress against the plan, and a longer review once a year to reset it as the business changes.
What happens in a monthly meeting?
Before it, you get your monthly report: profitability, your key numbers, cash flow, what you're owed and what you owe, working capital, and the forecast against what actually happened. In the meeting we go through what changed, check the handful of numbers that show whether the plan is working, and work on the decision in front of you, whether that's pricing, a hire, a piece of equipment, or a new bank. You leave with next steps, and we follow up on them, ours included.