There is an awkward middle stage for a growing business. The bookkeeping is being done, the year-end gets filed, and yet nobody is actually reading the numbers and saying what they mean. The owner is making six-figure decisions on instinct and a bank balance. A full-time finance director costs more than the problem, so the gap just stays open.
That gap is what this service fills.
What you get each month
- Management accounts with commentary. Not just a P&L — a written read on what moved, why, and what it means for next month.
- Cash flow forecasting. A rolling forecast so you see a squeeze coming with weeks of warning instead of days.
- Budgets, and tracking against them. A number to aim at, and an honest monthly variance against it.
- Oversight of the bookkeeping. Whether it is your bookkeeper or ours, someone senior checks the numbers are right before decisions get made on them.
- Decision support. Can we afford this hire, this van, this unit? Modelled properly, before you commit.
What the first quarter usually looks like
| Stage | What happens |
|---|---|
| Month 1 | Review of where the numbers actually come from. Chart of accounts rebuilt if it is not telling you anything useful. |
| Month 2 | First proper management pack, with commentary. Usually the first time the owner sees true product or service margin. |
| Month 3 | Rolling cash flow forecast in place, and a budget to measure against. |
| Ongoing | Monthly pack, monthly conversation, and someone to call before a decision rather than after it. |
Why part-time works out
The argument is mostly arithmetic. A full-time finance director in Jersey is a senior salary plus employer Social Security on top — currently around 6.5% of earnings up to the monthly ceiling, and worth checking the current rate on gov.je. For a business turning over a few hundred thousand, that is a cost the numbers cannot carry.
Buying one or two days a month gets you the part of the role that actually changes decisions, and leaves the rest. When you outgrow it, you will know — and you will have the reporting in place to hire well.
Who this is for
- Owner-managed Jersey businesses past the point where the bank balance is a good enough guide.
- Businesses with a bookkeeper but nobody senior reviewing or interpreting the output.
- Owners heading into something significant — a lending application, a big hire, a second site — who want the numbers to hold up to scrutiny.
- Anyone who has been surprised by their own year-end figures.
Where we stop
We are a bookkeeping and finance practice, not a regulated tax advisory or investment firm. Complex tax planning, audit and regulated financial advice sit with a qualified Jersey accountant or adviser, and we will tell you plainly when you have reached that line. What we do is make sure the numbers they work from are right, which usually makes their bill smaller.
Common questions
What is a virtual finance director?
A finance director engaged for an agreed amount of time each month rather than employed full time. Same reporting, budgeting, forecasting and oversight, at a fraction of a salaried hire.
How is it different from bookkeeping?
Bookkeeping records what happened. A finance director interprets it and tells you what to do next.
Do we need an existing bookkeeper?
No. We supervise yours if you have one, or run the bookkeeping underneath if you do not.
How many days a month?
Agreed at the start and reviewed as things change. Most owner-managed Jersey businesses begin at one to two days a month.
Working with businesses across all twelve Jersey parishes. Tell us where the business is now and we will set out what the first three months would cover, with a fixed monthly fee.
General information, not regulated financial or tax advice. Figures quoted are illustrative and Jersey rates change annually — verify current rates on gov.je.