IAM1237 – Founder Helps His Clients Get Strategic Financial Advice for their Business

Larry is a seasoned financial consultant disrupting the way companies get strategic financial advice. At the same time, he’s changing the way you view a guy (still working) in his 70’s. This “old guy” can certainly tell stories that will remind you of your favorite uncle, while at the same time teaching you how to increase profitability in your business. And in the process, make you hope you have that kind of energy when you are his age.

• CEO Story: After struggling to get a full-time job as a CFO working for companies, he came to its fruition and now has three CFOs working full-time for him.
• Business Service: Guide companies to have a strategic plan in their financial system.
• Secret Sauce: The ability to look at the business owner's business from a fresh perspective by showing them what the whole economic environment looks like.
• CEO Hack: Hire a virtual assistant and administrative assistant to manage your calendar and other priorities. So you can focus on your day-to-day activities.
• CEO Nugget: Knowing your endpoint. Thinking in advance about what your company will look like in the future.
• CEO Defined: Independence to make decisions and the opportunity to direct your future.

Website: www.cfosimplified.com

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Transcription

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00:20 – Intro

Do you want to learn effective ways to build relationships, generate sales, and grow your business from successful entrepreneurs, startups, and CEOs without listening to a long, long, long interview? If so, you've come to the right place. Gresham Harkness values your time and is ready to share with you precisely the information you're in search of. This is the I AM CEO podcast.

00:47 – Gresham Harkless

Hello. Hello. Hello. This is Gresh from the I AM CEO podcast, and I have a very special guest on the show today. I have Larry Chester of CFO Simplified. Larry, it's great to have you on the show.

00:56 – Larry Chester

Gresh, it's great to be with you. Thanks for giving me the opportunity.

01:00 – Gresham Harkless

Definitely appreciate you for doing all the awesome things you're doing and of course, taking some time out with us today before we jump into the interview, I want to read a little bit more about Larry so you can hear about some of those awesome things that he's been accomplishing. Larry is a seasoned financial consultant, disrupting the way companies get strategic financial advice. At the same time, he's changing the way you view a guy still This old guy can certainly remind you of your f the same time teaching you profitability in your bus process, making you hope yo of energy when you are hi not a day over 21 at all. So I appreciate you for taking some time out. Are you ready to speak to the I AM CEO community?

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01:42 – Larry Chester

Hey, I sure am. And I'll tell you, you're as old as you feel and as young as you are.

01:47 – Gresham Harkless

There you go. There you go. So we might be somewhere in the middle there. So I truly appreciate you again. So what I wanted to do to kick off this time is rewind the clock a little bit. Hear a little bit more on how you got started, what I call your CEO story.

02:00 – Larry Chester

Well, it's kind of interesting. I worked as a corporate CFO for 25 years. And when I left my last full-time employment, I found out that there weren't too many people that wanted to buy or hire a CFO who was in his late 50s. Everybody was looking for people in their mid-30s to 40s. And I was outside of that range. So I started doing some interim work working for companies 6 months at a time and then somebody turned to me and said, you know, why don't you work for this client? They only need somebody for 2 days a week. And I said this is crazy. Working for somebody 2 days a week, I'm looking for full-time employment.

And they said, well, how many days a week are you working now? And I said, none. And they said, well, it sounds to me like 2 days a week is better than what you're currently doing. So I said, all right, that sounds like a reasonable alternative. So I started working with that company and then started trying to fill my schedule. And to be honest with you, it took me about 6 weeks to fill my entire week up. And suddenly I discovered that being a fractional CFO was a real live opportunity. Yeah, absolutely. And for people that aren't familiar with what, you know, being a fractional CFO, could you take us through a little bit more on what that is and what that looks like?

Sure. Every company needs financial advice because what I found is that most business owners start their businesses for 1 of 3 reasons. They have a passion for a product that they want to get out to the marketplace. They have a passion for a customer base that they want to serve, or they have knowledge about a channel of distribution they want to exploit to make money. Nobody gets an MBA and says, I can read a financial statement, let's start a company. The reality is that these people have a desire to put a product or service out into the marketplace, but they have no idea what it means to really be a business person, to understand costs, to understand strategic planning, to understand profitability, to understand what it really takes to run a business.

Just accounts payable and accounts receivable, what you need to do to be able to manage cash flow. And so what we do is we help business owners in the small to mid-sized business category, anywhere from startup on up to let's say, 50 to $75 million a year. We give them the same senior financial advice that large companies get from a full-time CFO, but we're doing it 1 day a week, a couple days a month, a couple days a week. Each one of my employees, and I have 4 full-time CFOs that work for me, work for 3 to 4 companies at a time. And so therefore, we're a lot less expensive than hiring a full-time CFO that might cost you anywhere from 250 to $350, 000 a year.

04:40 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah, well, I appreciate you so much for sharing that. And I love that fractional CFO piece and I love how it aligns with it, it sounds like how you organically started as well too, where it was just 2 days a week. But then now you're doing the same thing. It sounds like for clients and customers where it might be one day, it might be 2 days, it's whatever it sounds like that can fit and fulfill their needs to reach their goals. So what would you consider to be what I like to call your secret sauce? This could be for yourself personally, the business, or a combination of both, but what do you feel kind of sets you apart and makes you unique?

05:10 – Larry Chester

Well, I think the thing is our ability to work with business owners and help them understand that change is inevitable. I think any business that tries to live with the way they've always done things is doomed for failure. Certainly, the pandemic has created a dramatic paradigm shift in how business operates, but I think even in a normal economy and a normal economic situation, business is changing. Customers change, customers' needs change, the economic environment we're working in changes, the employees change based on what they're looking for in jobs and how they want to work, all those things change.

It's a business owner's responsibility to recognize those changes and understand what he needs to do within his business to be able to accommodate and in some cases take advantage of those changes. So where do we fit in there? Well, we're an outside resource that can look at the world from a fresh perspective, can look at the business owner's business, not from the, not from the perspective that he's always had the blinders on to know that he's got to get in this direction, but really show him or her what the whole economic environment looks like and be a trusted advisor to them to help guide them through those changes that they're inevitably gonna have to make.

06:35 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah, I love that. And especially being able to kind of navigate those changes and understand that. And I love that fresh eyes perspective that you mentioned, but also that word that you use responsibility because I think it's so important to understand that, of course, the pandemic has been something that has affected literally everybody, every industry in some form, shape or fashion, but there's little or smaller or maybe less felt across the board disruptions that happen whether you mentioned clients or you're talking about industry changes or different things that happen on a regular basis.

So it's so important to be able to kind of lean on that expertise so that you are able to make as best decisions as you can, you know when those come up. So I love that you connect those, to connect that, fulfill that gap, and connect those dots. Absolutely appreciate that. So I wanted to switch gears a little bit and I wanted to ask you for what I call a CEO hack. So this could be like an app, a book, or a habit that you have, but what's something that makes you more effective and efficient?

07:27 – Larry Chester

Well, you know, I think the thing that made me the most efficient and the biggest change I made in my business was hiring an administrative assistant, hiring a virtual assistant to help me manage my day. She's got a better memory than I have. She manages my calendar. She's got a marketing background, which helps me on that side of things. But there are so many things that I think every business owner manages on a day-to-day basis. I wrote a blog that mirrored the 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins, which was a book that Dr. Seuss wrote early in his career.

The issue is that every business owner is wearing 500 hats when he starts a business, and his job is to get rid of as many hats as he can, as quickly as he can, so that he can focus on the one thing that he enjoys doing the most. And I think having a virtual assistant has really allowed me to do that. That was probably the most strategic move I made and the thing that has freed me from a lot of the day-to-day activities.

08:32 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah, that makes so much sense. I love, you know, talking about those 500 hats and how can we get as close as possible to having just that one that we can focus on because a lot of times that's our Zona Genius. That's how we can make the best impact and a lot of times give everybody else their own hat as well. And being able to kind of take all those things that are needed within our organization and be able to have the people that have their zone of genius being worked on is really the thing that we need to unlock. So I love how hiring that assistant, administrative assistant, the virtual assistant has been impactful and it's a reminder of how that could be impactful for us too.

09:05 – Larry Chester

No, very good. Yeah, she's been she's been absolutely a dream.

09:09 – Gresham Harkless

Yes, absolutely teamwork to make the dream work. That's what I always say. So I always ask you now for what I call a CEO nugget. So this could be a little bit more of a word of wisdom or a piece of advice. It might be something you would tell a client, your best client, or if you hop into a time machine, you might tell your younger business self.

09:24 – Larry Chester

I think the key is to look down the road and figure out what your exit plan is going to be. Because there are so many decisions you make when you start a business that has an impact on the business going forward and you drive things into the future. Look, I think there are a lot of people that start businesses, and the business changes as they grow forward, and that's inevitable. You may start a business and just figure that it's just gonna be you. And so you don't need to worry about a lot of things, but eventually you find out that you're getting too busy, you can't do all the things you need to do so you start hiring people.

Well, suddenly you get to the point where you've got an organization with 3 employees, 5 employees, 10 employees, and what does that mean down the road? So I think you need to always keep in mind what that end point is. Even if you figure it's going to be 25 or 30 years from now, what is that endpoint going to be? So for me, when I started my business, I knew that at some point in time, there was a possibility that I was going to leave the business, sell the business, or be brought out by somebody, whatever the case may be.

Well, that's why I didn't name the company Larry Chester & Associates, because after Larry Chester is no longer here, then what is the company and what does that mean? So we came up with the name CFO Simplified which describes what we do, simplifying what people consider to be a mysterious and complex process, which is being a chief financial officer. And that's also generic enough that Larry Chester doesn't need to be tied to it.

So if at some point in time, 5 years from now, now, I decide to sell the business, I've already created that ability to be able to transition and be able to move that to another owner without me being tied in the middle of it. So that future thinking, that thinking way, way in advance is I think important for every business owner.

11:26 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah, absolutely. And one of the habits of highly effective people is beginning with the end in mind. And I think that you know, as you said, 5 years or 10 years, whatever that number ends up being, you don't want somebody to walk into the business and say, hey, where is Larry at? Because it's CFO simplified. And when you have that brand and that identity, you allow yourself to start to make those decisions, you know, about the end, even like when you're in the present or in the, even in the past, you start to make those strategic decisions.

And I think that as businesses, as much as we love a lot of times, and we are tied to what it is that we do, it's so important to kind of think about those changes that are inevitable as you said, so that you can make strategic decisions in the future to get to where you ultimately want to be. Oh, very true. Absolutely appreciate that. So I wanted to ask you now my absolute favorite question, which is the definition of what it means to be a CEO. And we'll open up different quote-unquote CEOs on the show. So Larry, what does being a CEO mean to you?

12:19 – Larry Chester

I think independence and really an opportunity to direct my own future. I think that before I started my company, I always felt that I was a big, I was a very successful number 2 to any business, being a CFO, being a strategic advisor to the businesses that I worked for and the business owners that I worked for. When I started my business, I started out really just trying to figure out how I was gonna keep bread on the table, so to speak. But a business is a business.

And so being in a position where I own my own business and have people working for me, I certainly have responsibilities for them. I have to make sure that they're taken care of.

That's another part of my family, the people that work for me. But the other side of it is having the independence to be able to make my own decisions and not worry about trying to convince somebody that this is the direction the company should move in. It certainly doesn't mean that all the decisions that I make are correct. I make as many bad decisions for my business as some of my business owners, who are clients of mine. But you learn from those, and you have nobody to blame but yourself when things don't go right.

But you have the flexibility and the ability to make changes quickly, to be nimble, to be able to accept the fact that, well, we don't have to prove this one anymore. We know that it's not working. Let's go in a different direction. Or to celebrate that success, that was a great idea. I'm glad we figured out how to do that and move in another direction. That's all important stuff. And so the independence to be able to make those decisions and be able to take the company forward is certainly a key.

13:58 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah, absolutely. I love that, you know, the independence piece, but also too, you alluded to the impact that you make in so many people's lives that you said that the family and a lot of times we forget that the impact that we make and sometimes those decisions and the things that we do and sometimes things that we don't do have such an impact and reverberate in so many different ways. So I love that kind of holistic look at, you know, what it means to be a quote-unquote CEO and how impactful that's been for you. And it sounds like it could actually be for us as leaders and whatever title we decide as well.

14:26 – Larry Chester

Well, that's very true. And I think that understanding that we're not just a person unto ourselves, but we do have a sphere of influence. And those people who live within that sphere who work with us, whether that be the family that we interface with or the employees that work for us or the clients that we work for. We have an impact on all of those people and understand that impact and how we can help them improve their lot by providing them with stability, strength, income, with answers. I think that's the thing that makes my life tick.

15:02 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah, absolutely. It ends up being the ultimate charge and reason for doing all the things that we do. And sometimes the sacrifices that you have to make as well. So Larry, truly appreciate that definition and I appreciate your time even more. What I wanted to do is just pass you the mic, so to speak, just to see if there's anything additional that you can let our readers and listeners know. And of course, how best they can get a hold of you, find out about all the awesome things you and your team are working on.

15:24 – Larry Chester

Yeah. Well, what I want to just say is we're always available to answer questions. Our website is cfosimplified.com and you can reach us on our 800 number at 1-844-IMACFO. And just please feel free to reach out to us. And my phone number is on our website. So if you want to reach out to me directly, please feel free.

15:45 – Gresham Harkless

Awesome. Awesome. Awesome. And to make it even easier, we're going to have the links and information, the show notes as well too, so that everybody can follow up with you and the team as well. But I truly appreciate you for taking some time out. I appreciate you even more for helping people to understand those numbers and to be able to make those financial decisions and those strategic decisions that are so necessary to see those products and services come to fruition.

So thank you so much for letting us be a part of your family, and be a part of your spirit of influence as well. And I hope you have a phenomenal rest of the day.

16:12 – Larry Chester

No, Gresh, thanks very much for the opportunity. I've enjoyed talking to you.

16:16 – Outro

Thank you for listening to the I AM CEO Podcast powered by Blue 16 Media. Tune in next time and visit us at iamceo.co I AM CEO is not just a phrase, it's a community. Be sure to follow us on social media and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes Google Play and everywhere you listen to podcasts, SUBSCRIBE, and leave us a five-star rating grab CEO gear at www.ceogear.co. This has been the I AM CEO Podcast with Gresham Harkless. Thank you for listening.

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