1. Understand the current setup
Review the business, existing finance responsibilities, immediate concerns and decisions expected during the months ahead.
Outsourced CFO & Finance Function · London & UK
Outsourced CFO and Finance Function Services for Growing UK Businesses
An outsourced finance function gives a growing business access to coordinated accounting, management reporting, forecasting and senior financial support without building every capability in-house.
Singletree provides this support through a modular, agreed scope. We can replace or complement selected parts of the existing finance setup, connecting reliable accounting information with reporting, planning and CFO-level review.
The service is delivered by an owner-led accountancy and advisory practice for businesses in London and across the United Kingdom.
- Modular scope agreed in advance
- Accounting, reporting, forecasting and advice connected
- Led by Ali Tekagac FMAAT
- London and UK-wide support
What is an outsourced finance function?
An outsourced finance function is an external service that performs and coordinates agreed financial activities for a business. Depending on the scope, this may include bookkeeping, VAT and payroll support, month-end reporting, management accounts, cash-flow forecasting, budgeting, financial analysis and senior financial review.
The purpose is not simply to move tasks outside the business. It is to create a clearer operating structure in which financial records, reporting, planning and management decisions are connected.
The service can support an existing employee, bookkeeper or management team, or take responsibility for selected activities that the business does not need to employ internally. Responsibilities, access, approvals, deliverables and review points should be agreed before the service begins.
When the finance setup begins to hold the business back.
The need for an outsourced finance function is usually driven by complexity rather than turnover. The existing arrangement may have worked when the business was smaller but become less reliable as transaction volumes, reporting requirements and commercial decisions increase.
- Bookkeeping or reconciliations are falling behind
- Month-end information arrives too late to guide decisions
- The owner is coordinating several disconnected providers
- Cash-flow visibility depends mainly on the bank balance
- Budgets and forecasts are not updated when conditions change
- Management information is inconsistent or difficult to interpret
- Financial systems and responsibilities have developed without a clear structure
- The business needs stronger financial oversight but not a complete employed finance department
These signs do not automatically mean the entire finance function should be outsourced. They indicate that the current responsibilities, systems and reporting rhythm should be reviewed before the business becomes more complex.
One finance function, scoped around what the business actually needs.
The service is modular. Not every engagement includes every activity, and the appropriate structure depends on the existing team, the quality of the records, the systems in use and the decisions management needs to make.
| Layer | What it may include | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Foundation | Bookkeeping, reconciliations and accounting records | Maintain a dependable financial information base |
| Compliance support | VAT, payroll, statutory accounts and tax coordination | Connect recurring obligations with the wider financial timetable |
| Management reporting | Monthly management accounts, KPIs and commentary | Explain current performance while there is still time to act |
| Planning | Cash-flow forecasts, budgets and reforecasts | Assess what may happen next and identify pressure earlier |
| Commercial analysis | Profitability, margin, cost-to-serve and business-driver analysis | Support pricing, resource and growth decisions with clearer evidence |
| Financial leadership | Regular review, decision support, financial controls and board-level input | Connect financial information with management priorities and accountability |
The final scope must be agreed in writing. A business may need only selected layers, while another may require a broader combination of accounting delivery, reporting and senior review.
What is not included automatically.
An outsourced finance function should not imply unlimited responsibility for every financial activity. Under Singletree’s core service model, the following operational activities are not included automatically:
- Raising routine sales invoices
- Approving or making supplier payments
- Day-to-day accounts payable processing
- Day-to-day accounts receivable administration
- Credit control and debt collection
- Cash handling or authority to make business decisions
If a business requires any of these activities, the capability, workload, systems, approval controls and responsibilities must be assessed separately before they are included in an engagement.
Outsourced finance function, Fractional CFO or in-house team?
These models solve different problems. The right choice depends on whether the business needs connected financial delivery, additional senior leadership or permanent internal capacity.
| Consideration | Outsourced finance function | Fractional CFO | In-house finance team |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary purpose | Coordinate agreed accounting, reporting, planning and financial oversight | Provide flexible senior financial leadership | Provide permanent internal financial capacity |
| Day-to-day accounting | May be included within the agreed scope | Normally relies on an existing internal or external accounting team | Handled by employed team members |
| Management reporting | Can be prepared, coordinated and reviewed | Usually reviews and uses the reporting to support decisions | Prepared internally according to team capability |
| Strategic financial input | Can be included alongside the wider finance service | The central purpose of the engagement | Depends on the seniority and experience of employed roles |
| Flexibility | Scope can be adjusted by agreement as needs change | Time and responsibilities can be tailored | Capacity is tied to recruited roles and employment arrangements |
| Most suitable when | The business needs connected finance delivery without employing every capability | The existing finance setup works but needs stronger senior leadership | The business requires dedicated daily capacity and can support an internal team |
If the existing accounting and reporting are already dependable but the leadership team needs a senior financial sounding board, our Fractional CFO service may be the more appropriate option.
A controlled transition, not a sudden handover.
Moving financial responsibilities should be structured carefully. The transition begins by understanding what currently happens, who performs each activity and where the important gaps or risks sit.
2. Map responsibilities
Document which activities remain with the business, which sit with another provider and which may move to Singletree.
3. Review records and systems
Assess the accounting records, reporting quality, software, access arrangements and any unresolved issues that may affect dependable delivery.
4. Agree outputs and timing
Define the reporting pack, forecasts, review meetings, recurring obligations and information deadlines required from each party.
5. Establish controls and access
Agree who prepares, reviews, approves and receives information, including how exceptions or urgent matters are escalated.
6. Begin the agreed cycle and review it
Start the agreed activities, monitor the first reporting cycles and adjust responsibilities where the evidence shows that a change is needed.
There is no universal onboarding timetable. Timing depends on the scope, condition of the records, systems, access, unresolved work and the responsiveness of everyone involved.
Clear ownership is part of the service.
Outsourcing should improve accountability, not make responsibilities harder to understand. The engagement should establish:
- Who supplies each item of information
- Who prepares and reviews each output
- Which decisions or payments require client approval
- When reports and recurring information are expected
- Which systems hold the source records
- How data quality issues and assumptions are documented
- How exceptions, delays and urgent matters are escalated
- How access changes when responsibilities or personnel change
The business retains responsibility for its commercial decisions, approvals and legal duties. Singletree’s role is limited to the services and responsibilities agreed in the engagement scope.
A practical outsourcing test
“An outsourced finance function should make responsibilities clearer: who prepares the information, who reviews it, when it is delivered and how decisions are escalated. Outsourcing should reduce ambiguity, not move it elsewhere.”
What you may receive through an agreed monthly finance cycle.
Outputs depend on the agreed scope and the quality and availability of the underlying records. A coordinated service may include:
Current accounting records
Bookkeeping and reconciliations maintained to the agreed timetable, with unresolved items identified rather than concealed.
Compliance timetable
VAT, payroll, accounts and tax obligations coordinated with the information and approval deadlines needed to complete them.
Management reporting
Profit and loss, balance sheet, cash information, selected KPIs and plain-English commentary prepared for management use.
Cash-flow and planning information
Cash-flow forecasts, budgets or reforecasts prepared using documented assumptions and updated when circumstances materially change.
Commercial analysis
Focused analysis of profitability, margin, cost-to-serve or other financial drivers where a management decision requires closer evidence.
Review and agreed actions
A regular discussion of performance, risks, decisions and next actions, with responsibilities recorded where appropriate.
The engagement should not promise every output to every client. Deliverables, frequency, responsibilities and limitations must be agreed before work begins.
Complexity matters more than turnover.
There is no fixed turnover level at which a business automatically needs an outsourced finance function. Suitability depends on the work involved, the existing team, reporting expectations, financial complexity and the decisions management needs to make.
The service may be suitable when:
- The business has outgrown informal financial processes
- Several providers or team members operate without clear coordination
- Management needs dependable monthly information
- Cash flow, budgets or forecasts require regular attention
- The owner is spending too much time organising financial administration
- The business needs accounting and senior financial review to work together
- Recruiting a complete internal finance team is not currently appropriate
A different service may be more suitable when:
- The business only needs annual statutory accounts and tax compliance
- Existing accounting and reporting work well and only senior leadership is missing
- The required service is primarily daily AP, AR, invoicing, payments or credit control
- Reliable outputs cannot be produced because essential records or access are unavailable
- The business expects the provider to make commercial decisions or approve payments without appropriate controls
Where only senior leadership is missing, Fractional CFO support may be more proportionate.
Why Singletree
A connected, owner-led finance relationship.
Owner-led accountability
The relationship is led by Ali Tekagac FMAAT, Managing Director, rather than treated as a placement from a large CFO network.
Accounting and advice connected
Accounting records, reporting, forecasting and advisory support are considered as connected parts of the financial picture.
A modular scope
The engagement is shaped around the capabilities the business actually needs rather than assuming every activity should be outsourced.
Plain-English communication
Reports, assumptions, responsibilities and limitations should be understandable to the people making the decisions.
Technology with human oversight
Cloud accounting and reporting tools support timely information, but technology does not replace review, professional judgement or accountability.
A proportionate long-term approach
The finance structure should evolve as the business changes without creating unnecessary reporting, systems or cost.
Service led by Ali Tekagac FMAAT, Managing Director of Singletree Accountants Ltd.
Connected services within the finance function.
Fractional CFO
Senior financial leadership for businesses whose existing accounting and reporting already provide a dependable foundation.
Management Accounts
Monthly financial statements and commentary that explain current performance and important variances.
KPI Dashboards
Focused financial and operational measures for monitoring performance between reporting cycles.
Cash Flow Forecasting
Rolling and scenario-based cash visibility focused on timing, liquidity and future pressure.
Budgeting and Forecasting
Budgets, reforecasts and scenario plans built around documented assumptions and commercial drivers.
Profitability and Margin Analysis
Focused diagnosis of margin, pricing, cost-to-serve, sales mix and other commercial profit drivers.
See how these capabilities connect across our service packages.
Outsourced CFO and finance function questions
What is an outsourced finance function?
An outsourced finance function is an external service that performs and coordinates agreed financial activities for a business. Depending on the scope, it may connect bookkeeping, VAT and payroll support, management accounts, cash-flow forecasting, budgeting, financial analysis and senior financial review without the business employing every capability internally.
Is an outsourced finance function the same as a Fractional CFO?
No. A Fractional CFO primarily provides flexible senior financial leadership and normally works with an existing internal or external accounting team. An outsourced finance function may coordinate accounting delivery, management reporting, forecasting and CFO-level review within one agreed service scope.
What can Singletree’s outsourced finance function include?
The service may include bookkeeping, reconciliations, VAT and payroll support, monthly management accounts, KPIs, cash-flow forecasting, budgeting, profitability analysis, financial systems review and regular senior financial review. The exact responsibilities and deliverables are agreed before the engagement begins.
Do you replace our existing bookkeeper or accountant?
The service can replace or complement selected parts of the existing finance setup. Before recommending a structure, responsibilities should be mapped carefully so work is not duplicated and important activities do not fall between providers or team members.
Are invoicing, supplier payments and credit control included?
Not automatically. Routine invoicing, supplier payments, accounts payable, accounts receivable and credit control require separate assessment of workload, systems, approval controls and capability before they can be included in an engagement.
Will we lose control of our financial information?
No. A properly structured outsourced service should define data access, approvals, reporting responsibilities and review points clearly. The business retains visibility over its information and remains responsible for commercial decisions, approvals and legal duties.
How does the transition to an outsourced finance function work?
The transition normally begins with a review of the current setup, followed by responsibility mapping, assessment of records and systems, agreement of outputs and timing, and establishment of access and approval controls. The timetable depends on the scope, condition of the records, systems and unresolved work.
Is outsourcing a finance function always cheaper than hiring internally?
No. Outsourcing may reduce or delay the need to employ several internal roles, but it is not automatically cheaper. A fair comparison must consider the agreed scope, existing resources, transaction volume, systems, reporting requirements, management time and the level of financial expertise required.
How much does an outsourced finance function cost?
The fee depends on the agreed responsibilities, transaction volume, reporting frequency, systems, condition of the records and level of senior financial input required. Singletree’s service packages provide starting points, but the final scope and fee are agreed only after reviewing the existing finance setup.
What size business needs an outsourced finance function?
There is no fixed turnover threshold. Suitability depends more on financial complexity, the quality of the existing setup, the decisions management needs to make and whether the business requires connected accounting, reporting, planning and financial oversight.
Do you only support businesses in London?
No. Singletree provides outsourced finance-function support for businesses in London and across the United Kingdom, subject to the suitability of the systems, information available and the agreed service scope.
Next step
Build a finance function that fits the business.
If financial responsibilities have become fragmented or current information is arriving too late, a structured review can help clarify what should remain in-house, what could be outsourced and what level of senior support is appropriate.
Services are agreed in writing and depend on the business’s records, systems, complexity and available information. Outsourcing does not guarantee lower costs, improved profits, funding or any other commercial outcome. Directors and management remain responsible for business decisions, approvals and legal duties.