The Short Version
Shea Business Solutions compares a bookkeeper, a controller, and a fractional CFO for small businesses in Orlando, FL. Some Orlando owners ask for "CFO" or "financial advisory" services when what they actually need is solid bookkeeping plus a clear monthly read on cash flow, margins, and where the money is going.
Shea Business Solutions provides that reporting layer on top of the books: monthly financial statements, cash-flow tracking, budget-versus-actual, and plain-language answers to the questions an owner asks when the business starts to grow. It is delivered by the QuickBooks Level 2 ProAdvisor who already keeps your books, so the numbers behind every report are reconciled and real.
Scope note: this is operational financial reporting for a business, not personal investment, securities, or wealth-management advice. For those, and for audits or legal tax opinions, we point you to a licensed specialist.
- Monthly profit and loss and balance sheet, built from reconciled numbers.
- Cash-flow tracking, so you see what is actually available, rather than only what you invoiced.
- Budget-versus-actual, with the variances explained in plain language.
- A short list of the few numbers that actually move your business.
- A standing answer channel for the "can we afford this" questions.
Bookkeeper, controller, or fractional CFO
These three roles get used interchangeably, but they do different jobs. Most small businesses need a bookkeeper from the start and grow into a controller. A fractional CFO is needed only sometimes.
Shea Business Solutions covers the bookkeeper role in full and the reporting-and-cash-flow part of the CFO role, part-time, for owners who need the view without a full-time hire.
What the reporting layer includes
On top of a clean monthly close, the reporting layer adds a cash-flow picture that looks forward a few months, a budget you can hold the business to, and a handful of key numbers tracked month to month. With that in hand you can see whether the business can carry a new hire or a lease.
A Lake Nona boutique fitness studio came to us after inaccurate financial statements kept the owner from securing a bank loan to expand the gym space. We rebuilt the chart of accounts and integrated their Mindbody booking software with QuickBooks Online, with a monthly profit and loss and balance sheet on top. The verified financials secured a $75,000 business expansion loan.
Signs you have outgrown basic bookkeeping
A few signals tend to show up together: you are making hiring or spending decisions on gut rather than numbers, you cannot say what your cash will look like in ninety days, month-end tells you what happened but not what to do, or you are big enough that a wrong call is expensive. None of these mean you need a full-time finance chief; a forward-looking layer on top of the books usually covers it.
Scope and limits
The scope here is business financial reporting and cash-flow work. Personal investment or wealth-management advice, audits and legal tax opinions are outside it, and for those you get a referral to someone licensed.
Frequently asked questions
Do you offer CFO or financial advisory services in Orlando?
Shea Business Solutions offers the reporting-and-cash-flow part of a fractional CFO role, on top of full bookkeeping: monthly financial statements, cash-flow tracking, budget-versus-actual, and the key numbers behind decisions. It is operational financial reporting for your business, not personal investment or wealth-management advice.
What is the difference between a bookkeeper and a fractional CFO in Orlando?
A bookkeeper records and reconciles what already happened and reports it accurately. A fractional CFO looks forward, planning cash flow, building budgets, and putting numbers behind big decisions, part-time rather than as a full-time hire. Shea Business Solutions covers the bookkeeper role in full and the reporting side of the CFO role for growing Orlando businesses.
Can you build a budget and track cash flow for my Orlando business?
Yes. On top of the monthly close, the reporting layer includes a forward cash-flow view, a budget you can hold the business to, and budget-versus-actual with the variances explained in plain language, so you can see whether the business can carry a hire or a lease.
Do you give investment or wealth-management advice to Orlando owners?
No. This work is business financial reporting and cash-flow planning only. Personal investment, securities and wealth-management advice require a licensed advisor, and for those questions you get a referral to one.
Does an Orlando small business need a full-time CFO?
Most small businesses do not. If you are making decisions on gut instead of numbers, cannot forecast cash ninety days out, or find that month-end reports what happened but not what to do, a part-time reporting-and-cash-flow layer on top of clean books usually solves it without a full-time hire.
