The gap between accurate books and a clear decision
Clean books tell you what happened. They do not tell you whether you can afford the next hire, how many weeks of payroll your cash covers, which service line carries the others, or what a bank will say when you ask for a line of credit. Most owners hit that gap at the same point: the close lands on time, and the decisions still sit on one desk with no analysis behind them.
A full-time controller or CFO closes that gap and costs more than a growing company can justify, usually for work that fills part of a week. This engagement covers the same scope on a monthly cycle: review the close, track the budget, forecast cash, maintain the metrics that move your margin, and talk it through on a standing call.
You work with one assigned controller who learns your entity structure, your revenue model and your lenders, not a rotating queue. The work is remote, available across the U.S. and Canada, month-to-month, and coordinated with your CPA professionals so planning and filing run off the same numbers. If the books need correcting or catching up first, that happens before any forecast is built on them.
Everything in controller services, handled.
Monthly close review
Your controller reviews the close before it reaches you: accruals, prepaids, deferred revenue, bank and card tie-outs, and any entry that misstates gross margin.
Reporting pack and commentary
P&L, balance sheet, cash flow statement, KPI page and written commentary in one monthly document, formatted to send straight to a partner, board or advisory group.
Budget variance reporting
We build the annual operating budget with you, then report actual against budget by department each month, with a written explanation for every variance worth your time.
13-week cash forecast
A weekly view of cash in and out covering payroll runs, 941 deposits, estimated tax dates, debt service and seasonal dips, rebuilt from actuals every month.
KPI dashboard
A short metric set chosen for your model: gross margin by line, days sales outstanding, revenue per employee, utilization or realization, each trended against target.
Line-level profitability
Revenue and fully loaded cost split by service line, SKU, location or client, so the work that earns its margin is separated from the work being subsidized.
Lender and investor packages
Interim statements, debt schedules, A/R aging and covenant calculations in the format banks request for SBA 7(a) applications, line renewals and diligence requests.
Scenario modeling
Model a hire, a lease, a price increase or an equipment purchase before you commit, with the effect on cash, break-even and covenant headroom shown side by side.
From first call to steady state.
- 01
Discovery call
A free 30-minute call to map the decisions you are making without data, what your current reporting delivers, and whether a controller engagement is the right fit.
- 02
Baseline and setup
We restructure the chart of accounts where it hides margin, define your KPIs and budget structure, and set the reporting calendar. Catch-up work happens in this step.
- 03
Monthly cycle
After each close, your controller reviews the statements, updates the forecast and dashboard, writes the variance commentary, and delivers the pack ahead of your review call.
- 04
Decision call
You walk the numbers with your controller, pressure-test what is in front of you, model anything that needs modeling, and finish with a short written action list.
Built for businesses that look like this.
- Agencies, law firms and professional practices where realization and utilization drive margin but neither appears in the monthly reporting
- E-commerce and consumer brands that need contribution margin by SKU and channel after ad spend, fulfillment, chargebacks and returns
- Companies preparing an SBA 7(a) application, a line-of-credit renewal or a covenant certificate that needs interim statements a bank will accept
- Multi-location operators (clinics, studios, restaurants, franchise groups) that need a P&L per site and an allocation method they can defend
- Contractors and project businesses carrying WIP, retainage and change orders that need job-level margin before a project closes out
Controller Services — answered.
What is the difference between a bookkeeper, a controller and a CFO?
A bookkeeper records transactions and closes the month. A controller reviews that work, owns the budget, forecast and reporting, and explains what the numbers mean. A CFO adds capital structure and long-range strategy. This engagement covers the controller layer plus the planning work most growing companies need, delivered on a monthly cycle instead of a full-time salary.
Can I use controller services if another firm does my bookkeeping?
Yes, as long as the books are reliable. A forecast built on a miscategorized P&L is worse than no forecast. If your in-house bookkeeper or outside firm closes the month accurately, we work from their output and tell them what we need changed. If the books need correcting or catching up, we do that first.
How much does a fractional controller cost?
Pricing is quoted per engagement, because the work scales with transaction volume, entity count, how many lines or locations you report on, and your reporting cadence. We do not publish a rate card that would misprice your situation. A 30-minute call is enough to scope the work and give you a firm number, on month-to-month terms.
Are you a CPA firm, and can you certify my financial statements?
No. AccuLedgers is an accounting and advisory firm, not a CPA firm, and we do not issue audits, reviews or attest opinions. Controller work here is management reporting: statements, budgets, forecasts and analysis you use to run the business. For tax filing and anything that requires a licensed opinion, we coordinate with CPA professionals.
How often do I talk to my controller?
A standing monthly review call, plus availability between calls when a decision cannot wait. You work with one assigned controller rather than a support queue, so nobody asks you to re-explain the business each month. Some clients move to a biweekly cadence during a fundraise, a lender process or a turnaround, then return to monthly.
What accounting software do you work with?
Yours. QuickBooks Online and Xero are primary; we also support Wave, FreshBooks and Sage. Bank and card data arrives through read-only connections, so nobody at AccuLedgers can move money. Budgets, forecasts, dashboards and reporting packs are delivered in formats your bank, board or CPA can open without buying a license.