“What’s the difference between a B2B CFO® and other temporary or interim consultants?” This question is often raised by prospective clients, bankers, CPAs, attorneys, and others.

Since there are significant differences, I am happy to talk with people about them.

First of all, the goal of a B2B CFO® partner is to be a long-term, part-time solution, whereas virtually all others approach this work at a short-term, full-time solution.

Our model has us spending time with our clients to work on issues we both agree need to be addressed first, and then our time tends to decrease as we assist the client’s staff to be more efficient and effective, and we work closely with the CEO as a long-term, trusted business advisor.

We also work on a handshake basis, whereas most others begin working after signing a contract with the client.

We have no hidden fees. We agree up-front with our clients on the amount that we will bill and we don’t exceed that without a clear understanding that the client wishes to increase the amount of time. Others have early termination fees or other charges.

Our focus is on small to mid-sized businesses; our competitors tend to prefer larger clients.

We are a partnership of senior financial executives, and provide advice in that capacity. We are not interested in becoming an employee of our clients.

Ultimately, each partner is essentially working toward building a long-term practice similar to that of a CPA or law firm, where we have a roster of satisfied clients. We are not looking to simply be a temporary solution or a project-based consultant.

Since our goal is to be a company’s long-term advisor, we genuinely care about the success our clients achieve. This, as much as anything, sets us apart from other providers.