Challenge

The company was formed through the merger of two organizations and sought interim financial leadership to guide its transition to a SaaS business model and complete a delayed NetSuite ERP implementation. Following the merger, the company faced significant financial and operational inefficiencies that hindered growth and strategic focus. The business model shift to SaaS required new systems, processes, and fiscal oversight. The organization:

• Operated with an overstated 13-week cash flow, leading to inaccurate budgets and poor planning.
• Required the CEO to manage day-to-day financial issues, limiting focus on strategic initiatives.
• Struggled to convert to a SaaS model and establish recurring-revenue forecasting discipline.
• Faced 22-day month-end close delays.
• Experienced a NetSuite implementation that was behind schedule and over budget.

Our Role

ETONIEN was engaged to provide an Interim Chief Financial Officer to drive financial discipline and oversee the company’s post-merger transformation to a SaaS business model.

Solutions

ETONIEN’s Interim CFO was tasked with:

• Converting the business model to SaaS with accurate forecasting and recurring revenue tracking.
• Designing a reliable 13-week cash flow model for short-term liquidity visibility.
• Completing the NetSuite implementation to improve automation and financial reporting.
• Establishing fiscal discipline across all departments and aligning leadership on strategic financial goals.

Outcome

• Corrected the 13-week cash-flow model and reduced the month-end close from 22 days to 5 days.
• Established fiscal discipline across departments, enabling the CEO to refocus on strategic growth initiatives.
• Renegotiated NetSuite consulting terms, accelerating deployment by three months.
• Assumed 65% of COO responsibilities (IT, logistics, cybersecurity, and HR) following the COO’s departure.
• Partnered with management to develop a 3- to 5-year strategic plan presented to the Board of Directors.