CFO Houston questions owners ask before they call
Looking for plain answers before you pick up the phone? Steven Palmieri, a Tax CFO, hears the same handful of questions from Houston owners, so we answered them here.
Do you ever meet in Houston?
We work by video. The practice is in Dallas, and we do not keep an office or a visiting schedule in Houston. Owners tell us the monthly call is easier to keep than a drive across town, and every document, number and decision lives in a shared file that both of us can open. If a particular meeting really needs a room, we will talk about it honestly.
How do you plan for a bad month nobody can predict?
We do not try to predict it. We study your own closed months to see how large a bad one has been, then size a reserve and set rules for using it. When the real dip arrives, the plan already has an answer. See cash planning for a year that swings for the method.
Do you help with insurance claims?
We keep the books and records that a claim needs, so you can show what the business looked like before a loss. The claim itself is between you, the adjuster and the insurer, and we make no promises about how one comes out. We can help you plan the cash for the weeks while it is open.
Can the books be behind and we still talk?
Then the first step is a closed month, and we can start there with you. We catch up the bank and card activity, tie it out and tell you where things stand. A tidy file is not a requirement for the first call. An honest look at where things stand is enough.
Do you prepare my return?
Yes. We prepare it from the same closed books that feed your cash plan, so the figures agree and nothing gets rebuilt in April. Estimated payments during the year are set from the months that have actually closed.
Who runs payday?
No. We do not run payroll. It gets set up with a provider you run yourself. We pick it with you, handle the registrations, set your pay, connect the feed to the books and then watch the quarterly and annual filings. Payday belongs to the provider.
Can you talk to my bank?
Yes, if you want us to. Many owners ask us to join a call or prepare the package a lender asks for, and we bring closed statements and a clear picture of cash. The decision to borrow stays with you.
Do you work with my bookkeeper?
Gladly. A good bookkeeper keeps the daily entries moving, and we read the finished month with the owner and build the plan on top. Many owners keep both, and the two jobs fit together.
What does a fractional CFO cost?
The fee is set before any work starts, in writing, based on what you need. We do not list a price on this site, because the right scope depends on your books and how your year moves. The call is free, and the quote follows it.
Will you sign off on statements for a Houston lender?
We prepare them and we do not sign a report on them. If a lender needs that, a licensed firm does it and we get your books ready. The line is drawn on its own page.
What goes on during the free Second Look call?
We look at how your year moves and what the next six months need, and you leave with a clear first step. There is nothing to sign and nothing to pay.
What is the question you were hoping we would answer?
You will be talking to the Steven Palmieri practice.