Cambridge, Ontario · Est. 1984
Fractional CFO & Controller Services
Senior financial leadership for growing businesses — the oversight and judgement of a CFO or controller, without the cost of a full-time hire.
1984
Serving Waterloo Region since
25
Engagement types listed
7
Industries served
Monthly
Quarterly, or by project
01 / The problem
Bookkeeping tells you what happened.It won't tell you what to do next.
Most privately owned businesses reach a point where basic bookkeeping and year-end accounting stop being enough. Management needs accurate figures, real analysis and experienced judgement throughout the year — not a file delivered months after the fact.
But the business may not need, or be able to justify, a full-time CFO or controller on payroll.
That gap — between the bookkeeper you have and the executive you can’t yet hire — is exactly what we fill.
02 / Two different jobs
The Controller
Makes certain the numbers are right, and that they arrive on time.
- 01Ensures financial records are reliable
- 02Oversees month-end reporting
- 03Improves accounting procedures
- 04Reviews reconciliations and internal controls
- 05Prepares year-end working papers
- 06Explains historical financial results
The CFO
Uses those numbers to decide what the business does next.
- 01Guides decisions with financial information
- 02Leads budgeting and forecasting
- 03Advises on growth and financing
- 04Performs scenario and investment analysis
- 05Supports lenders and major transactions
- 06Helps management plan future results
Most businesses need some of both — and almost never a full-time version of either.
03
Forward looking
CFO engagements
Advisory work that puts financial information to use — planning, financing, analysis, and the decisions that follow from them.
Planning & forecasting 01–04
- 01Strategic financial planning and decision support
- 02Annual budgets and financial forecasts
- 03Cash-flow projections and working-capital management
- 04Financial modelling and scenario analysis
Capital, financing & growth 05–08
- 05Financing proposals and lender reporting
- 06Capital expenditure and investment analysis
- 07Business acquisition and expansion analysis
- 08Restructuring and succession-planning support
Performance & advisory 09–12
- 09Profitability and performance improvement
- 10Key performance indicators and benchmarking
- 11Management and owner advisory meetings
- 12Coordination with bankers, lawyers and advisors
04
Backward looking
Controller engagements
The quality, reliability and usefulness of your financial information — the foundation everything above depends on.
Reporting & close 01–04
- 01Monthly and quarterly financial reporting
- 02Month-end and year-end closing procedures
- 03Budget-to-actual and variance analysis
- 04Gross-margin and departmental profitability analysis
Records & reconciliation 05–08
- 05Balance-sheet account reconciliations
- 06Review of bookkeeping and accounting records
- 07Receivable, payable and cash-management oversight
- 08Inventory, work-in-process and job-costing controls
Controls & year-end 09–13
- 09Internal controls and accounting procedures
- 10Accounting-system and reporting improvements
- 11Preparation of year-end working papers
- 12Assistance preparing for compilation engagements
- 13Liaison with your external CPA or assurance provider
Accurate figures, real analysis and experienced judgement — throughout the year, not in a file delivered months after the fact.
The standard we work to
05 / Signals
You probably already know
which of these apply.
Tick the ones that sound familiar. Three or more is usually the point at which owners call us.
0
of 10 selected
Most owners call us when two or three of these are true at once. If any of them are, the first conversation costs nothing.
Owner-facing
by design
06 / How we work
We are not a reporting service.
We work directly with owners and management to turn accounting information into something you can act on. We help you understand what the figures actually mean, flag problems while they are still small, and weigh the financial consequences of decisions before they are made.
Every engagement is scaled to the size and complexity of the business — nothing more elaborate than it needs to be.
Industries served
- Manufacturing
- Construction
- Retail & multi-location
- Professional & medical
- Engineering
- Hospitality
- Real estate
Engagements are led by Fernando Renna, principal of Renna & Associates Limited.
RPA · APA · CAP · C.MGR · MBA · CEA
Scope
Renna & Associates is not a CPA firm and does not perform audit, review or other assurance engagements. Where assurance is required, we prepare the file and work alongside your external CPA.
Stronger financial oversight,
without a full-time hire.
The first conversation is confidential, costs nothing, and usually makes the answer obvious either way.