somesh@sschandak.com
Thane | Mumbai | Bangalore
Mon-Sat: 10AM-7PM

CFO discipline before a full-time CFO makes sense — cash, compliance, numbers

A senior team that owns your monthly close, 13-week cash view, budget vs actuals, compliance calendar and board or investor reporting — built for funded startups and growing MSMEs that have outgrown founder-managed finance.

Explore Virtual CFO on WhatsAppor call +91 89468 83420
Who this is for
  • Funded startups that owe investors monthly MIS and clean data rooms
  • MSMEs scaling past what founder-managed finance can hold
  • Foreign subsidiaries needing India-side finance control
  • Businesses where compliance keeps slipping between people
What you get
  • A monthly close calendar that is actually kept
  • 13-week cash-flow visibility and budget vs actuals
  • Board, investor and lender reporting packs
  • Compliance oversight across GST, TDS, ROC and payroll
  • Margin, pricing and working-capital analysis with decisions attached
What we need from you
  • Accounting system and bank view access
  • Cap table, loan and facility documents
  • Existing MIS or reporting formats, if any
  • A monthly review slot with the founders

A retained finance function for businesses that have outgrown bookkeeping but do not yet need a full-time CFO: monthly MIS on a fixed close calendar, a 13-week cash view, working-capital discipline and numbers a board or lender can rely on.

When this service is typically required

  • Decisions are made from the bank balance because MIS arrives late or never
  • An investor, board or lender has started asking for monthly reporting
  • Multiple lines of business with no division-wise profitability view
  • Collections, payables and runway are managed by memory
  • The accounts team records transactions but nobody closes the month

Indicative scope

  • Month-end close on an agreed calendar with a defined checklist
  • Monthly MIS: P&L with budget variance, balance-sheet summary, cash flow
  • 13-week rolling cash-flow forecast and working-capital monitoring
  • Receivables ageing with follow-up cadence; payables planning
  • Division-wise or product-wise profitability where books permit
  • Quarterly review discussion and board/management pack where agreed

Key points at a glance

ItemPosition
RhythmClose → MIS → review call, on fixed dates each month
ComparabilityFormats standardised at onboarding — month 6 reads like month 1
FoundationRequires reconciled books; clean-up is scoped first if needed
SystemsZoho Books, QuickBooks; Tally via defined exports

Deliverables

The monthly reporting pack (MIS, cash-flow forecast, variance commentary), the close checklist evidencing what was verified, and a quarterly review note with trends and action points.

Information and documents generally required

Accounting-system access, bank and loan statements, payroll register, GST/TDS workings, prior-year financials, and a management contact for the monthly review. A responsibility matrix records who provides what, by when.

Engagement process

01 · DiagnosticState of books, systems and reporting reviewed.
02 · Engagement letterScope, calendar, responsibilities, exclusions, fees.
03 · OnboardingChart-of-accounts and format standardisation.
04 · Monthly cycleClose → MIS → review discussion.
05 · Quarterly reviewTrends, budget reset, action points.

Client responsibilities, assumptions and reliance

Transactions recorded on time (or bookkeeping added to scope), data furnished per the responsibility matrix, and business decisions with management — the firm reports and advises; management decides.

Scope exclusions

Statutory audit, tax representation, valuation and transaction advisory are separate engagements. Fund-raising outcomes, lending decisions and business results are outside any provider's control and are not assured.

Frequently asked questions

How is this different from our accountant?

Bookkeeping records transactions. The Virtual CFO layer closes the month, verifies numbers against a checklist, converts them into MIS and cash views, and discusses them with you — the difference between having data and having a position.

Can this start if the books are behind?

Yes — a historical clean-up is scoped first so the MIS starts from a reliable base. Reporting built on unreconciled books is not offered.

What does the monthly rhythm look like?

A close calendar fixed at onboarding: books closed by an agreed working day, MIS circulated on a set date, review call thereafter — recorded in the engagement letter, not assumed.

Which systems do you work on?

Zoho Books and QuickBooks natively; Tally via an export-based close. Where the system itself is the problem, migration is scoped separately.

Is there a minimum commitment?

Retainers are periodic engagements reviewed at an agreed frequency; terms and notice periods sit in the engagement letter.

How is a Virtual CFO engagement priced?

As a fixed monthly retainer set by scope — the entities covered, the reporting cadence and the board or investor calendar — recorded in an engagement letter before we begin. Project work such as fundraise support or due-diligence preparation is scoped and quoted separately, so the retainer stays predictable.

Discuss this requirement

The applicable scope, documentation, professional responsibilities and timelines are agreed in an engagement letter before commencement.

Bookkeeping & AccountingZoho Books SetupFinance AutomationRequest a Scope Discussion

This page describes the service in general terms as on 6 August 2026 and is not professional advice or an assurance of any outcome. Registrations, filings, refunds and departmental outcomes depend on facts and the concerned authority. Figures and due dates change; verify current positions before acting.

Who this service is for

Funded startups with reporting dutiesInvestor MIS, budget vs actual, runway calls — finance leadership without the full-time cost. CA for startup founders.
MSMEs scaling past the promoter’s deskWhen working capital, pricing and bank facilities need a numbers person in the room. CA for MSMEs.
Exporters managing currency and creditForex exposure, receivable cycles, LUT/refund cash-flow timing. Our exporter desk.
Founders preparing for diligenceData rooms, clean cap tables and defensible projections before the term sheet, not after.
Self-check

Does your finance function need a CFO layer? Tick what is TRUE today.

Books close by the 10th of next month Owners see a monthly MIS they trust A 13-week cash view exists Budget vs actual is reviewed monthly One owner tracks every compliance date A data room could go out this week

A quick mirror, not an audit — six disciplines we install in the first quarter of a Virtual CFO engagement.

Fees — how Virtual CFO engagements are structured

Why is this cheaper than hiring?

A full-time CFO is a seven-figure annual commitment before ESOPs; a Virtual CFO buys the decision-making layer — close discipline, MIS, cash forecasting, board support — for the days per month you actually need it.

What shapes the monthly retainer?

Cadence (weekly versus monthly involvement), the reporting stack you want maintained, entity count, and whether fundraising or diligence support is live during the engagement.

How do we quote?

A written monthly retainer with named deliverables and meeting cadence — reviewed each quarter against what the business actually used. Set up a scoping call.

Compliance-grade books, by designAudit-trail (edit log) accounting software is mandatory for companies — and auditors must report on it. Clean monthly books are now a statutory posture, not a luxury.First-year compliance checklist →
Key due dates at a glance — FY 2026-27
ComplianceDueNote
Monthly closeBy the 10th (good practice)Feeds GSTR-3B, TDS and MIS on time
GST + TDS calendar11th / 13th / 15th / 20thBooks must be reconciliation-ready
Audit trail softwareMandatory for companiesRule 3(1), Companies (Accounts) Rules
MIS / cash-flow packMonthlyInvestors and banks expect it
Year-end audit prepFrom AprilSchedule III + ICAI disclosures

Dates as generally applicable on 15 July 2026; extensions/notifications can change them — confirm current dates before relying.

What's Included

  • Month-end close on an agreed calendar with a defined checklist
  • Monthly MIS: P&L with budget variance, balance-sheet summary, cash flow
  • 13-week rolling cash-flow forecast and working-capital monitoring
  • Receivables ageing with follow-up cadence; payables planning
  • Division-wise or product-wise profitability where books permit
  • Quarterly review discussion and board/management pack where agreed

Our Process

1
Diagnostic

State of books, systems and reporting reviewed.

2
Engagement letter

Scope, calendar, responsibilities, exclusions, fees.

3
Onboarding

Chart-of-accounts and format standardisation.

4
Monthly cycle

Close → MIS → review discussion.

5
Quarterly review

Trends, budget reset, action points.

Get Started

Have questions about this service? Contact us for a free consultation.

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