Industries We Serve | Charles River CFO

THE PRESSURE, NAMED

The scrutiny is the same as a company twice your size. The capacity is not.

Select a pressure to see how the engagement answers it.

Expertise you cannot hire We need a CFO-level mind, and the budget does not have one in it. A financial team matched to your organization on a flexible contract, so you buy the seniority you need for the hours you need it, and scale it back when you do not.

Board and funder confidence Our board and our funders ask questions we answer slowly and nervously.. Financial reporting and pro forma business case analysis that let you walk into a board or funder meeting with the answer already prepared, and no caveats attached.

Grants, restrictions, and endowments Restricted funds, grants, and the endowment are handled by people learning as they go. Endowment fund accounting and grant and compliance discipline handled by a CPA who has done it, so restrictions are honored and reporting satisfies the funder the first time.

Audit and staff transition Our finance lead is leaving, and the audit is coming. Interim coverage through the transition, audit preparation and management, and support sourcing and hiring your permanent finance staff.

Measuring impact We can report what we spent. We struggle to report what it achieved. Planning, budgeting, and scenario modeling that connect spend to outcome, so impact is something you can evidence rather than assert.

WHAT IT SOUNDS LIKE

HOW WE ANSWER IT

WHAT WE OWN IN THIS INDUSTRY

The specialized support medium and large organizations need to serve a mission.

Flexible, experienced, senior financial expertise, with the specialized knowledge the sector requires.

A financial team matched to your organization on a flexible contract.
Services that scale up or down as the organization requires.
Planning, budgeting, forecasting, and scenario modeling.
Endowment fund accounting.
Internal controls and business process improvement.
Cost management and operational efficiency.
Financial reporting and pro forma business case analysis.
Revenue generation and development support.
Board engagement and strategic planning.
Audit preparation and management through staff transitions.

Delivered through

Fractional CFO

Interim CFO

Outsourced Accounting

AI-Enabled Finance

Financial Consulting

Tax Consulting

WHO WE HAVE DONE THIS FOR

Foundations, schools, charities, and advocacy organizations we have supported.

Faced with both the demands of the COVID pandemic and a financial staff transition, their expertise was essential in supporting our operations, navigating important PPP government funding, and in preparing for and managing our audit process. They were also essential as we sourced and hired our permanent financial staff.

Ellen Varney

Director of Finance and Operations

THE WALDORF SCHOOL OF LEXINGTON

Reading for nonprofit boards and executive directors.

ALL INSIGHTS

Nonprofit Organizations

Dorcas Riley Joins Charles River CFO

Dorcas Riley joins the firm as Nonprofit CFO.

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Nonprofit Organizations

The Nitty-Gritty About NICRA

Indirect costs cannot be attributed to a specific product, service, or grant. Getting a negotiated rate agreement right decides how much of them a funder covers.

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Nonprofit Organizations

Navigating the Impact of Federal Grant Uncertainty

The Urban Institute reports that in every state, 60 to 80 percent of nonprofits relying on government grants would be at financial risk. Strategies for leaders holding that exposure.

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Nonprofit Organizations