A fractional CFO plans your owner pay, next hire, and cash, part time, once your books are clean.
A fractional CFO is a part time financial lead. You get the forward looking work of a CFO, planning pay, hiring, cash, and growth, without paying for a full time hire. For a DPC practice, that means someone who already knows your numbers sits in on the big decisions.
Bookkeeper, CPA, or fractional CFO?
Each one answers a different question.
- Bookkeeper: what happened. Accurate monthly books, reconciled accounts, membership dues recorded correctly.
- CPA: what you owe. Tax returns, filings, and tax planning.
- Fractional CFO: what to do next. Owner pay, the next hire, cash for the slow months, and growth targets.
A CFO is only as good as the books underneath. Clean monthly books come first. You can read more in bookkeeper vs CPA for DPC.
Signs you are ready for one
- You are thinking about adding a provider and don't know if the panel can support one.
- You are weighing a second location.
- You pay yourself whatever is left over, and you want a number you can plan around.
- Your entity or pay structure needs a second look, and you want the numbers modeled before you talk to your CPA.
- Cash gets tight in some months and you want to see it coming.
- You want budgets and growth targets you can track, not a report you skim once a year.
Signs you are not ready yet
If your books are behind, or you are still opening the practice, start with the basics. Get the books current, get membership revenue recorded correctly, and read four numbers every month: active members, monthly recurring revenue, cost to serve one member, and months of cash on hand. Here is how to read them. Step up to CFO work when the questions get bigger.
What a DPC fractional CFO works on
- Owner pay. Setting your pay on purpose, backed by what the practice earns.
- The next hire. Modeling a new provider before you commit: how many members it takes to cover the cost, and how long it takes to get there.
- Cash flow. Forecasting the months ahead, so the tight months are a plan and not a surprise.
- Budgets and targets. A yearly plan you check against each month.
You can run rough versions of these yourself with our free panel break even, cash runway, and revenue goal calculators.
What it costs with us
Our Fractional CFO for DPC level starts at $2,500 a month, plus a one time $5,000 setup. It includes everything in our bookkeeping and monthly financial partner levels. Your exact fee is confirmed on a short call. See all three levels.
Common questions
What is a fractional CFO?
A part time financial lead who plans owner pay, hiring, cash flow, and growth, without the cost of a full time CFO.
Does a DPC practice need a fractional CFO?
Not at first. Most practices start with clean monthly books. A fractional CFO helps once you are adding providers, weighing a second location, or planning owner pay and cash ahead of time.
How is a fractional CFO different from a CPA?
A CPA handles taxes and filings. A fractional CFO plans the business decisions ahead of you. You can use both.
How much does a fractional CFO for DPC cost at DPC Bookkeeper?
It starts at $2,500 a month plus a one time $5,000 setup, and includes monthly bookkeeping and a monthly financial partner.
Want a partner at the table for the big calls?
Our Fractional CFO for DPC level plans your pay, your next hire, and your cash, on top of clean monthly books. Apply to see if it fits.