Sector of demonstrated depth
VC-Backed Startups
Burn discipline, board-ready reporting, and an unblinking 13-week cash forecast — without the cost of a full-time CFO. Catalyst plugs in alongside founders, controllers, and external accountants to make the next round of capital easier to close.
Where it usually hurts
You’re probably here because…
Investors are asking for a 13-week cash, scenario plan, and burn-multiple — and you're rebuilding the deck every Sunday night.
Your books close on day 25 (or never), so the dashboard a board member would trust doesn't exist yet.
You raised the round, but you don't have a real FP&A function to deploy it against.
How we engage inside this sector
The Catalyst playbook for VC-Backed Startups
Investor-grade financial system
Set up a clean ledger, board pack template, and KPI dashboard in 30 days. Brian sits in the financial seat at the board table, not behind it.
13-week cash + burn-multiple discipline
Live cash forecast tied to head-count and pipeline assumptions. Burn-multiple, runway, and milestones tracked weekly — surfaced in a one-page board update.
Capital readiness for the next round
We get the company diligence-ready before you launch the raise: clean cap table, defensible cohort metrics, scenario plan, and a CFO available to take diligence calls.
Outcomes you can expect
- Board pack delivered the same week the books close
- 13-week cash run weekly, scenario-stress-tested
- Diligence checklist closed before founders go on the road
Anti-commoditization
How to vet anyone you talk to in this sector
| Metric | Industry Red Flag | Catalyst CFO Advisors |
|---|---|---|
| Years in Finance Leadership | 5 - 10 years; often an ex junior or non-exec finance FTE | 25+ years across Wall Street, asset management, and CFO/COO seats since 1999 |
| AI & Automation Depth | "We use ChatGPT" — no track record building or running AI in production | ~10 years embedding AI in finance ops; venture work spans AI compliance, healthcare/telehealth, AI scheduling, and the AI/automation practice inside Catalyst |
| Founder-Operator Experience | Zero — first-time fractional, never sat in the exec seat | 12+ years running Catalyst plus CFO/finance leadership at venture-backed, PE-sponsored, and privately funded companies across multiple industries |
| Capital Raised & Deployed | Has only modeled or advised — never closed a round | >$25M secured for SMB clients; institutional Series A and strategic capital across multiple ventures |
| Wall Street Pedigree | No institutional or capital markets experience | Partner at a boutique institutional equity asset manager; helped grow firm AUM from $3B to $15B; sell-side equity research at global bank franchises |
| CFO + COO Scope | Lacks senior finance experience, little or no operational experience | Both functions; packaged as Fractional CFO, Fractional COO, Interim CFO, and Interim COO |
| Crisis Leadership | Has not led through a market collapse, bank failure, or cyber attack | Macro (since 1999): recessions, the GFC, COVID-era disruption, inflation/rate cycles, banking-system stress. Company-specific: cyber attacks, liquidity strain, and national payments-infrastructure outages |
| Time-to-Value | Weeks of "discovery" before producing anything useful | Two-week onramp; first operating model in days; close cycle reduced from 15 to <3 days at clients |
| One-Sided Commitment | Tries to lock into 6–12 month engagements | All CCA contracts are month-to-month — if we don't produce ROI, we don't get paid. |
Other sectors of demonstrated depth
Founder-Led Lower Middle Market
$10M-$100M owner-operated companies bridging from gut-feel to systems-driven decisions.
Explore the sectorPE Portfolio Companies
Sponsor-backed platforms and add-ons needing operating CFO depth between portfolio CFOs.
Explore the sectorProfessional Services Firms
Agencies, consultancies, MSOs, and design firms where utilization and realization decide profit.
Explore the sectorReady to put a real CFO at the table for your vc-backed startups engagement?
Schedule a 30-minute discovery call. We'll walk through your situation and tell you straight whether fractional, interim, or something else is the right next move.