Frequently Asked Questions

FRACTIONAL CFO & BUSINESS ADVISORY

  • If you're running a business and making decisions about growth, cash flow, hiring or where you're heading, then yes.

    Most business owners have an accountant for compliance and maybe a coach for mindset, but no one in their corner who understands both the numbers and the strategy behind them.

    If you've ever made a major decision without a trusted sounding board, or found yourself reacting to financial problems instead of anticipating them, that's the gap a business advisor & Fractional CFO fills.

  • Think of a fractional CFO as a senior CFO who works with your business on a regular, structured basis only without the full-time salary, super, and overhead that comes with hiring one in-house.

    It's not ad hoc or on-call like a consultant. It's an ongoing working relationship with real accountability, regular sessions and direct access between meetings.

  • A Fractional CFO provides the same strategic financial leadership as a full-time CFO without the full-time cost.

    For SMEs and growing businesses in Sydney and across Australia, that means regular cash flow management, financial forecasting, budgeting, performance analysis and strategic planning. All delivered by a senior finance professional who knows your business deeply.

    In practice, working with a Fractional CFO means you stop reacting to financial problems and start anticipating them.

    We review your numbers together, build forecasts that actually reflect how your business operates, and use that financial clarity to make better decisions about hiring, expansion, pricing, investment and exit planning.

    At Knox Advisory, the Fractional CFO service is combined with business advisory, so you're not just getting someone to interpret the numbers. You're getting a strategic partner who connects the financials to the direction of your business.

  • For most SMEs, absolutely and often more!

    A full-time CFO makes sense once you're at a scale where the role genuinely demands 40+ hours a week.

    Until then, you're paying a significant salary for work that doesn't fill that time. A Fractional CFO brings the same calibre of experience and thinking, applied to your business at the right intensity for your stage of growth.

    You get the strategic and financial expertise without the cost of a full-time hire.

  • It's one of the most common questions SME owners ask and it's a genuinely important distinction.

    Your accountant is primarily focused on compliance: tax returns, BAS, financial statements and making sure you meet your obligations. They're working with historical numbers and looking backwards. That's essential work, but it's not strategy.

    A Fractional CFO looks forward. The focus is on financial forecasting, cash flow planning, business performance analysis, growth strategy and the financial decisions that will shape where your business goes next.

    Where your accountant tells you what happened, your Fractional CFO helps you decide what to do about it and what to do next. The two work best together.

    At Knox Advisory, I work alongside your existing accountant and bookkeeper, not instead of them. You keep the compliance covered, and add the strategic financial layer that most SMEs are missing.

  • Business coaches are typically focused on mindset, accountability, leadership and goal-setting. There's real value in that but it's a different discipline to financial strategy and CFO-level support.

    A Fractional CFO brings formal financial expertise: cash flow management, forecasting, financial modelling, performance analysis and strategic financial planning.

    The advice is grounded in your actual numbers, not frameworks or general principles. When a major decision lands an acquisition, a new location, a pricing restructure, a funding round, a Fractional CFO can model the financial impact and help you stress-test the decision with real data.

    At Knox Advisory, the advisory and CFO service combines both dimensions.

    The financial rigour of a CFO with the strategic, commercial perspective of someone who has built, scaled and exited a business.

    It's not coaching. It's not consulting. It's a working partnership built around your numbers and your goals.

  • I work with privately held SMEs across a range of industries, with particular depth in hospitality, retail, health, and creative & professional services businesses across Sydney, Northern Beaches and Australia-wide.

    This matters because financial strategy isn't one-size-fits-all. A hospitality business has a completely different cash flow profile to a health practice or a product-based retail brand. Understanding the operational and financial drivers specific to your industry is what makes advisory and CFO support useful rather than generic.

    My background spans over 20 years advising private businesses, including founding and scaling Integrated Workforce Solutions (IWS), which serviced 1,000+ SMEs before a successful exit to ASX-listed PayGroup and subsequently US-based unicorn Deel.

    Current and past clients include businesses in hospitality, wellness, training, retail and professional services.

    If you're unsure whether your industry is a good fit, a free 30-minute call will answer that quickly.

  • Fractional CFO pricing in Australia varies depending on the size and complexity of the business and the scope of work involved.

    What's consistent is that it represents a fraction of the cost of hiring a full-time CFO, which in Sydney can cost $200,000–$350,000 per year in salary alone, before super, leave and on-costs.

    At Knox Advisory, engagements are structured on a fixed-fee basis agreed upfront. No hourly billing, no surprise invoices. You know exactly what you're paying and what you're getting.

    For most SMEs, this makes accessing senior CFO-level expertise genuinely viable for the first time — without the overhead of a full-time hire.

    If you'd like a fee estimate based on your specific situation, the best starting point is a free 30-minute call to understand your business and what support would actually make a difference.

    All calls are free, no obligation & designed to be helpful from the first conversation. And if my experience doesn't fit your needs, I'll point you in the right direction.

  • Exit planning is one of the highest-value services a Fractional CFO can help with and one of the most underutilised by SME owners who often leave it too late.

    Preparing a business for sale isn't just about getting your financials in order in the final months. The businesses that achieve the best outcomes, strongest valuations, cleanest due diligence & most competitive sale processes are the ones that have been building toward exit readiness for years.

    That means clean, well-presented financials, a clear growth story, documented systems, diversified revenue and a business that demonstrably runs without the owner at the centre of everything.

    My experience here is direct. As founder and CFO of Integrated Workforce Solutions, I led the business from startup through to acquisition by ASX-listed PayGroup and the subsequent sale to US-based unicorn Deel.

    That's not theoretical exit planning, it's lived experience of what acquirers look for, how due diligence actually works and what drives valuation outcomes.

    Whether your exit is two years or ten years away, the earlier you start building toward it, the better the result.

    If you're thinking about selling your business in Sydney or anywhere across Australia, this is worth a conversation.

    All calls are free, no obligation & designed to be helpful from the first conversation. And if my experience doesn't fit your needs, I'll point you in the right direction.

  • Sessions are held virtually, which means wherever you are, we can connect without the friction of travel or fitting around a fixed office location.

    Our initial deep dive is typically around an hour to really get under the hood of your business.

    Ongoing sessions are structured to cover what matters, your numbers, strategy and any big decisions on the table.

  • Yes. There are no juniors, no handoffs and no outsourcing.

    Every session, every conversation, every piece of work is with me directly. That's deliberate. The value of this relationship is built on trust, consistency and someone who knows your business deeply and that only works if it's always the same person.

  • At a cadence that works for you and your business.

    After we get set up and I have the full picture of your financials and operations, we meet regularly, whether that's monthly or more frequently depending on what's going on in the business.

    The goal is that you're never flying blind.

  • Yes. You have direct access between sessions.

    Questions come up mid-week, a deal lands on your desk, or you just want a gut-check before you pull the trigger on something just reach out.

    That access is part of how this works. You shouldn't have to wait until the next scheduled session to get perspective when you need it.

  • Absolutely! All advisory and CFO sessions are held virtually, so location is no barrier.

    I work with business owners across Australia. Wherever you are and if we're a good fit we can make it work.

  • No specific accounting software is required to work with Knox Advisory.

    Most SMEs I work with use Xero or MYOB, and familiarity with those platforms makes the financial review process smoother but it's not a prerequisite.

    What matters more is that we can access meaningful, up-to-date financial data to work with together. Whether that's through your existing accounting software, management accounts or regular reporting from your bookkeeper.

    We'll work with what you have and help you.

VALUATIONS

  • If you're divorcing, dissolving a partnership, selling your business, or facing a legal dispute, you need an independent valuation. Your accountant's or lawyer’s estimate won't cut it in court. Neither will guesswork.

    A proper independent valuation gives you a defensible number backed by evidence. That matters when lawyers, judges, or the ATO are involved.

  • A business valuation tells you what your business is worth. These are typically used for tax compliance, commercial dispute, business share sales etc.  

    An independent expert report or joint expert report does that plus meets court requirements for evidence.

    Independent expert reports are built for litigation. They follow stricter standards, include more documentation, and hold up under cross-examination. Family law matters and commercial disputes bound for court need this level of rigor.

  • 5 to 10 business days from when I have everything I need. That includes completion of a detailed business valuation questionnaire, financial statements & tax returns from your accountant, access to Xero / MYOB, leases and any other relevant details / documents affecting the business and its value.


    If you're missing documents, can’t give me access to Xero / MYOB or the business structure is complex, it can take longer. 

    Rest assured I’ll give you a realistic timeline upfront once I see what we're working with.

  • Depends on your business size and complexity. 

    Limited-scope valuations start around $5,000 + GST. 

    Full Independent Valuation Engagements (as defined by APES 225) with multiple entities, trusts, or incomplete records obviously cost more.

    I quote you a fixed fee after reviewing your situation. No surprises.

  • Minimum 2 years of accountant-prepared financial statements and tax returns, Xero / MYOB access, current YTD profit and loss and balance sheet, applicable lease agreements, and completion of our detailed valuation questionnaire.

  • Yes, but it requires more assumptions. I document every assumption clearly and explain how it impacts the valuation range.

    Incomplete records weaken the report's defensibility in court. I tell you upfront what we're missing and how that affects the outcome.

  • Methods used depend on your business. 

    Our processes use a combination of quantitative and qualitative factors relevant to the business to provide an opinion of its value based on the available evidence.

    Commonly used business valuation approaches/methods are:

    • Income Approach - Discounted Cash Flow

    • Income Approach - Capitalisation of Future Maintainable Earnings

    • Market Approach - Publicly Listed Securities

    • Market Approach - Comparable Transactions

    • Market Approach - Rule of Thumb

    • Asset Based Approach - Summation of Net Asset Values

  • I’ve built, listed, and exited a business to an ASX-listed company and a US Unicorn. I’ve worked with thousands of SMEs and been on and advised on both sides of M&A transactions. I know what to look for and what questions to ask. 

    I received a great foundation and understanding of valuation methodologies and practices at Grant Thornton (one of the world's leading organisations of independent assurance, tax and advisory firms) in Sydney, so I’m not a career valuer who did a course once and only knows the theory.

  • Yes. I prepare independent expert reports for family lawyers, commercial litigators, and dispute resolution professionals throughout Australia.

    Based on the Northern Beaches in Sydney, I work remotely where needed and attend NSW courts in person.

  • Yes. I prepare court-compliant joint / independent expert reports for family law matters across NSW and Australia.

    These reports meet Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia standards. I've built businesses, exited businesses, and understand what courts need to see.

  • Yes. I can attend court and be cross-examined, if required.  My reports are defensible and will stand up in court.

  • Yes, I can provide shadow / “dirty” expert services to prepare you (or your barrister) for questioning and cross examination. 

    If you've received a valuation that doesn't make sense or seems off, you should definitely reach out. I’ll review the methodology, assumptions, and conclusions. I tell you what needs questioning and where the weaknesses are. This helps your legal team prepare for negotiation or challenge the expert's position.

    If the report looks good and I largely agree with the outcome, I’ll tell you!

  • Quite simply because your accountant isn’t independent and may not be qualified to provide an independent valuation report. APES225 and APES110 confirm the need to act independently in providing a valuation outcome.       


    Your accountant’s quote may be cheaper, but the risk is that you may not ultimately be able to rely on the valuation report and it may not stand-up should it ever be tested in court, or by the ATO.

  • You receive the full written report. I walk you through the findings, explain the methodology, and answer questions.

    If this goes to court or mediation, I'm available for follow-up discussions with your legal team and court attendance for cross examination, if required.