Andi Ruda on Cash Flow Management

Andi Ruda Introduction

[00:00:00] Joe Garafalo: Hello and welcome to another episode of The Role Forward. I’m Joe Garafalo, and this episode is brought to you by Mosaic, a strategic finance platform that transforms the way business gets done. Today, we’re talking to Andi Ruda, founder and CEO of Rainbow CFO, a fractional CFO consulting organization focused on flexible services to meet the ever-changing needs of small and mid-sized companies. In addition to serving as a finance transformation consultant at Accenture, Andi also has experience as the CFO for multiple organizations, including Alex and Ani, where she led full debt equity [00:01:00] restructuring. Andi, thanks so much for joining me today.

[00:01:02] Andi Ruda: Hi, I’m excited to be here. 

[00:01:05] Joe Garafalo: Excited to have you here. Do you want to give them a minute on your background, for members of the audience today?

[00:02:09] Andi Ruda: Yes, definitely. So like Joe said, I founded Rainbow CFO about a year ago. Rainbow CFO is a fractional CFO organization providing finance support and strategy to startups from pre-seed to series B. I work with clients across industries, amazing founders, and, and working on really, really fun, exciting initiatives and helping them grow and become more profitable. So, it’s been a blast of the year. Before that I was a full-time CFO at three different companies. Alex and Ani, like Joe said, a law firm, and a VC backed startups. So really different types of companies, big and small, and across all three roles I really found the same things that worked well for me and the same things that I found to be a struggle. I thought that as a W-2 on the payroll, as a CFO, it actually made it incredibly difficult for me to stay at that 30,000 foot view [00:03:00] and give impartial opinions to my CEOs, and founders and bosses, whatever their role might be. Because, at the end of the day my time was unlimited. When you’re a full-time employee, there’s not this, the scarcity of the resource. You’re there, you’re part of the team and you’re all hands on deck. And that’s amazing. But at times I’d say in the CFO role in particular, it really held me back because I was getting in the weeds of problems left and right. And, I was understanding too well why we let’s say weren’t hitting a certain target, and therefore I wasn’t flagging it as severely as maybe I needed to at times. So I had a thesis coming out of that was, which was, if my time were scarce and if founders didn’t have access to as much of my time they would inherently make better use of it, and therefore allow me to do a better job at my job. And, the exciting thing is, is a year later I have completely validated that thesis. I feel like I’m able to really stay impartial. I’m not worried about, let’s say job security when delivering tough recommendations at times. I’m kind of floating up here. There are [00:04:00] resources and outsource firms to handle the accounting and, and the day-to-day tactical finance work. But I come in, I look at their P&L, and I look at it compared to all my other clients where I’m able to see what’s working for different people, and what’s not working, or where they’re getting funding or where they’re finding interesting debt financing options or tools. And, all of it allows me to really stay up here for my clients. Make finance, I’d say a strategic, fun initiative. Like, I think that’s why I called a Rainbow CFO. Finance has a reputation for being the boring back office side of things, but it’s really not. Like, it’s money. We’re, most startups are trying to make money. They’re taking money in, they’re pushing it out. They’re doing everything in between between equity, financing and debt. And at the end of the day, my job is to just take what’s in a founder’s head and get it on the page and organize it in a way that allows us to make pricing decisions, or cost and spend decisions, or hiring decisions that they might not inherently know how to think through in a financial way. But, like I say to any new customer I take on, you [00:05:00] know this better than you think. So many people come to me and say, “Well, I’m not good with numbers. Or I don’t know, I’m not, I don’t have a financial brain.” They underestimate themselves. Like, any business owner or business leader is managing a P&L whether or not they choose to believe it, or technically do it in Excel. So, it’s a long-winded way of explaining how I got to Rainbow CFO. Why I’m the happiest I’ve ever been? And why beak out so much on the model? It’s like, the founders when, because they get access to someone who’s done it many times before, I win because I get the flexibility of working with multiple clients at once and really focusing on my strengths. And like in turn, I feel like everyone’s very happy, everyone’s pushing each other. We’re all learning a lot every day. And, and honestly, I think the fractional CFO model right now, it’s times out around a series B let’s say, but I think in the future, like the CFO role might be one that’s fractional way beyond that. Like, I think there’s more and more people see the benefits of like what I bring to the table and other people in my role. With that outside opinion, with partners like Mosaic, who I’m getting to talk to, the FinTech leaders out [00:06:00] there. And say, like learning more about their product, and then bringing it to all my clients because I believe in it. Or like different solutions might work better for different people, but, but yeah, no, it’s awesome. I love it. I love Rainbow CFOs, love my clients. And I’m excited to talk today more about some of the, some of the things we focus on and really work on with those clients.

[00:06:17] Joe Garafalo: Yeah, I love that. And I’m excited to tap into that wealth of knowledge that you have. And, one personal anecdote is I, I love Alex and Ani, they’re great gifts for my mom and sister. So anyone listening that needs a choice maybe for Christmas, or the holiday season coming up, highly recommend. And Andi, the last time we spoke we had a conversation about cashflow forecasting and how accurate cash flow forecast, forecasting is one of the most critical processes performed by finance teams. I totally agree. And to, to, to quote the late great Biggie Smalls, he said, “Cash is king, cash rules everything around me.” And poor cashflow, I think is like one of the main reasons that most small businesses fail. It’s probably not the flashiest topic in finance, but it can make or break the [00:07:00] company. Can you tell us why you believe cash flow forecasting is so important and how you make it a first priority for the customers you work with?

The Importance of Cash Flow Forecasting

[00:07:07] Andi Ruda: Yeah, a hundred percent. So first and foremost, for anyone who’s newer to the fractional CFO space. Most of the clients, like I said, who I’m working with are pre series B, let’s say. So inherently, the, the, I would say the areas that those startups are optimizing towards is cash. So like profitability is a long-term goal. And for some that comes by that point and for others it just doesn’t. Like, there’s still other obstacles through scale that like, we’re investing and we’re not totally there yet. But, the one thing that’s constant across all my clients is that like usually cash is a scarcity source. And it doesn’t mean that they don’t have a lot of it or they haven’t raised impressive rounds, but that like, as they’re investing in growing the business at that stage, like most investors want, they, they, they, they believe and they know you’re going to need to take in more money. And so, with that, like I meet a new client and I pretty much know like, “Okay, like you have X amount of dollars we’re investing, [00:08:00] we’re, let’s say, spending on product development, we’re marketing, we’re, we’re, we’re really running our business in a way that might look different than a P&L of a business five years in.” And so with that, like, it’s not all about profitability on the bottom line, it’s really figuring out the movement of cash in and cash out. And when are you going to conduct your next raise? Are there financing from a debt perspective that you could be taking in let’s say revenue wise? Like, what are your, what are your cycles? Like, you’re still learning so much about your business. Where like, again, like when I was cash forecasting at Alex and Ani, like we knew our seasonality. We knew so much about the business because we were further along, but with a lot of founders I work with like, we’re, we’re all learning together as we go about their unique business. And I think there’s no better way to learn a business. Like I’ll always say this, I feel like when, whenever I’ve been the CFO of the company, especially full-time, let’s say, but like no one understands the company better than the CFO, because they know every single point in which a dollar comes in to a company and a dollar goes out. And so I think that like [00:09:00] conducting a cash report with a client, really getting their arms around their cashflow, is oftentimes the easiest way for them to understand their business, know what’s working well, aka where the cash is really coming in or where the cash is going out. And we’re not seeing that return. And I think cash reporting gets a rap as like to your point. Like, let’s say like straightforward, very mechanical, but it’s oftentimes like, it’s a real art, it’s not a science. Like you’re shifting things, you’re pushing payables. You’re, you’re making investments. You’re deciding on like, we’re going to wait two more weeks to hire this person. Or, like there’s honestly a lot, especially in the startup world, that goes on behind the scenes of like managing cash that is, a lot more strategic, I would say, then I think most people think so. That’s why, like, when I’m, again, like I’m starting with a new client, a lot of times it’s their first time working with a fractional CFO. I don’t want to push too much on them at once. I don’t want to say, “Let’s forecast your full P&L balance sheet all the above, like right away. Like, let’s see how you take to, like getting into some new reporting and [00:10:00] better understanding your business and seeing that transparency, and then we can ease into more work as you, as you actually start to use it. And so for most clients, let’s say 75%, I will recommend that we start with cashflow management. And that’s normally the burning platform for a lot of, like I said, startups in the earlier stages.

[00:10:17] Joe Garafalo: Are there any common blind spots that founders have when they’re thinking about their cashflow?

Common Cash Flow Blind Spots and Best Practices for Reporting

[00:10:23] Andi Ruda: I would, I don’t know if I’d say blind spots. I think like, for the most part, and again, I’m spoiled because I have real, I have a lot of founders I work with who are so invested in their business. Like they have their arms around it. Like every decision that’s made is like thoughtfully, thoughtfully conducted. But I think it’s like, the blind spot is more the timing of it all. I think that like, there’s this, there’s like the P&L and like most, I’d say most startups are getting like a P&L from their accounting firm. And they’re looking at it, the numbers look directionally right. But like, they’re not getting under the hood as much of like how the mechanics of it all worked. Like, you can look at a P&L of a very profitable company, but there’s still, let’s say, times where they have to invest heavily [00:11:00] into inventory. Like, even the largest companies that you see in on the news and, and that you know from your mall, or let’s say like somewhere, something you might just think cash flow must be endless. Like, there’s a lot of financing that happens with inventory runs for seasonal businesses. And, I think like that’s like, and it’s, I wouldn’t say necessarily a blind spot, but I think understanding how to time that and understanding how to pull levers to let’s say finance during those times, and then repay those, that’s in like the more fruitful times, and when to raise around, it’s like, it’s the timing of it all. And that’s why like without a cashflow model your, and even if you’re just looking out, like, let’s say last month’s cashflow, you’re not going to have the full view and you’re not going to truly understand your runway. And again, like, the more I can extend runway for my clients, to me, I see it like giving them money back, like making their equity worth more. Like, you’re going to get a higher valuation if you can push that runway out and show more traction. So the time we can extend between rounds is meaningful. Not only for the company [00:12:00] and, and for passion needs, but really for helping my founders and, and helping their investors and making kind of like making a really I’d say synergistic process for everyone involved in a company from the cap table to the employees on the ground. 

[00:12:12] Joe Garafalo: Cool. What do you think is the right best practice for your, your cash reporting?

[00:12:19] Andi Ruda: I mean, so it depends on the client. There’s like, I’d say like, if you’re a, if a business is let’s say less concerned about cash, there, they just raised around, there may be a little bit more in that feast for salmon and mode. Maybe the monthly cash report might work where we run it more off of their financials, we update the forecast. Like in line with, let’s say a P&L and balance sheet forecast, like we do monthly with any client. But like, I have a lot of founders that are moving fast and they know what they need to do to grow their business. And most of the decisions can’t wait to a once monthly cadence. And things are coming up, people are leaving, coming, going. There’s new opportunities to partner. And so, I like the bi-weekly cashflow. Some I do weekly, some I do monthly, but like that bi-weekly sweet spot for most [00:13:00] works because it’s like giving you that check-in in between your financial statements. It’s also like, it’s almost chunking out the work for review for you. So, and not for me as the person preparing it, but like for the founder. Like, the monthly financials come and they don’t have time to go through all the details. Like, it’s a massive report. It’s, there’s a lot to go through. But, when we’re looking at cash bi-weekly and I’m showing here’s where the cash went the past two weeks, in a slightly more granular we’ll call it like sub-account level, they’re able to really see like, “Oh, I forgot we didn’t cancel that subscription. Or why is this look so high?” And it gives them just a lever to pull 24 times a year instead of 12, we’ll say. And I think just like giving them, like startups are nimble startups are fast, so following that like once monthly period is just, it’s almost like preposterous. That like a startup could do that when we all know anyone who’s worked at one and it was like decisions are happening on the fly, and if not daily. And so my job is to at least try to provide that bi-weekly structure to hold like, to work towards that monthly [00:14:00] governance for a startup.

[00:14:02] Joe Garafalo: I love that. And you mentioned something earlier about runway. What are some of the common blunders that you see founders making when they’re thinking about runway?

[00:14:10] Andi Ruda: I mean again like, it’s not that I even see blenders, I think like the, I am trying to think. I think that like, like I said earlier, like if you’re looking at just like what happened to predict what the future, I think, like that’s not going to be an accurate picture for most startups. 

[00:14:25] Joe Garafalo: So last month’s cash balance divided by what you spent is not the right way to think about runway?

[00:14:31] Andi Ruda: If, if, if, if it’s a really stagnant company, maybe, but I don’t think most, most startups we’re talking to are really going to be able to fit that mold. So that’s not going to capture anything coming down the line. That’s going to like, there’s, there’s just like no way that could work. I mean, I get it, like it’s obviously directional and it’s helpful. And I would, I think like one of the most helpful like deliverables I provide to a client is a cashflow forecast versus actuals. So obviously the actuals are incredibly insightful. And so when I show [00:15:00] them, here are the past two weeks forecast, and here’s what you actually spent, the variances are how we strategize. Like, if a client said to me like, “Hey, here’s my P&L. Where do you want to start?” I, I, I couldn’t tell you. I’m like, “What did you plan for?” Same with the cashflow. It’s like, until I understand what you were planning for and then what happened, it’s really hard to make strong recommendations, like off the bat, like not knowing a client from Adam. So, I think like looking at actuals is incredibly important, but it’s really just like coming up with a tactical plan. Like, this is what I say to everyone. Like, it doesn’t have to be that hard. You don’t have to have had an eye banking job to understand how to make a cashflow. Like, literally take the months of the two weeks of the year, put them across the top, all the areas you spend to the right, and just start plugging in numbers. Like, don’t get fancy with your Excel formula. It’s like, of course there are intricate models that we can build. And, again, if you’re working with a fractional CFO, you might have some templates that they’ve used elsewhere that you can leverage. But at the end of the day, the thing I’d urge to a founder who maybe isn’t quite ready to work with a fractional CFO yet, or doesn’t have the budget is, [00:16:00] don’t over complicate finance. Like my job, for my job I view it as to keep it simple for my clients because they’re running a business, they need to have like information to make decisions, and I think at the end of the day, if you’re just planning however works best for you you’ll, you’ll inherently just be able to see what’s coming down the line better than like analyzing your, like the data from last month or, or anything like that. Like, it’s all part of the big picture. But I think just like a tactical plan of like, when you see things coming down the line, like you’re going to buy inventory next month, put it here. You just hired a new outsource development agency and they required a deposit up front, like, get that in your cashflow. Like it’s, it’s, it’s very tactical and I think for so many startups at this stage, like there’s a few big spend buckets. It’s usually development for a tech company, it’s marketing for most consumer facing companies, and maybe a sales staff if it’s B2B. So I think like keeping that in mind and like keep trying to like always move towards simplicity. Like, figure out what the big spends are in that buc, those buckets. If you have revenue coming [00:17:00] in the door, a make it conservative estimate. Cashflow should never be your pie in the sky sales targets. It should always be like a rainy day. And I always encourage my clients too. Like, I’ll tell them here’s our cash runway and here’s our cash runway if you didn’t make a dollar more. Just understanding like what is the burn inherently? Like how long would that last you? Like, I learned that during COVID. Like when all of a sudden one day the entire world shut down. And suddenly, like, it was very up in the air, like what was going to happen? What is happening? And, and how do we plan for that? So I think understanding the rainiest day and understanding the, what actually will happen are, are two different toggles to understand, especially if you have a lot of employees you’re responsible for. And, and some costs that are pulling out of that bank account no matter what, and you need to make sure you know how to pay it, 

[00:17:48] Joe Garafalo: I love that. And it reminds me of two of the metrics that we have in our app today. One is called gross burn and another is called net burn. And that gross burn number is going to give you that, that rainy day cashflow just in case [00:18:00] things don’t pan out exactly how you, how you’d like. You mentioned building a lot of this in Excel. Are there any other tools that you look to to kind of make, make the cashflow forecasting process a little bit easier, faster?

[00:18:12] Andi Ruda: Well, so, yeah, so I obviously, like my background is finance. So for me, it’s like, I have built my templates and I, I ha, I use Excel a lot because it doesn’t require a client to necessarily invest in new tools and it’s something I can bring to them, and whether it’s Excel or Google sheets. But like Mosaic, for example, is a great example of like, if you’re not comfortable in Excel but you want to like start to forecast out and really like own your planning, like, it’s a great tool that like, that walks you through it a bit more. If you don’t know the metrics to look at, like the ones you just talked about, it will show you and it’ll help you, and it’ll, it’ll allow you to like, to let’s say understand finance, even if it’s not your first language. Other than that, I mean, I think there’s a lot of tools out there. Not only for cash planning, but also for like the, the cash management. Like, more than ever FinTech is blowing up with financing [00:19:00] options, with new credit cards. Like the startup world is flourishing with options for startups. And I see so many stories of founders who started a company, a CPG, or a SaaS company, and felt like they themselves didn’t have the, the options available to them that a larger company would. And so, like whether it’s Roe or Brex as great credit cards my clients work with for some factoring options, like Settle, where they can extend their, their payable terms during let’s say like, look down months revenue wise. There’s, there’s so much out there. The list goes on and on. And, and honestly I, there’s tools I like, but every client is so different. Especially because I’m working across industries where I myself am hearing of new, new partners every day. And one client worked with them and someone gets good terms and I recommend them to others. I, I feel like I have a front row seat to like the newest innovation. And so like for me it’s like, “Okay, there’s planning and then there’s extending our runway.” And so those are the two places I’m always really excited to see new tools come. And again, I also have some clients that [00:20:00] use more of my time and we can let’s say build a custom model that really works for them. But then there are some clients where it’s more of like a higher level advisory. And so, like an automated planning tool where they can do some of their own work in between and understand it and, and really like control their own business is really appealing. And it’s, it’s like, my job isn’t to like do more work, and to bill more hours. That’s like not how I view this at all. So, if there’s tool that I can use to automate and give my clients control, like, I see it as a win if I can give them the most transparency in less hours. Like, to me, that’s my competitive advantage. I think I like honestly, and take a different approach than most consulting podcasts I’ve ever listened to which say, “Sell more work to fewer clients.” I try to sell a little work possible to as many clients as possible, and that might be more of a personality thing. But, I think finance at the back office function at the end of the day, but it’s one of the most important ones there are. So for me it’s increasing profitability and like, by by, by honestly keeping my own hours in check, it, it [00:21:00] helps that. And so it’s like, “How can I give my clients the tools they need to really run this business while giving them a brain on it, who’s done this before, who sees what else is out there?” And so, yeah, I’m a huge fan of tools. Anything that makes my clients comfortable. I like for them to always try out a few different options, whenever we’re sourcing financing, we compare and contrast and all that. But, but the good news is, this is a great time to be a startup. Like, there’s options, like more than ever. And I, I honestly can’t even imagine what the next few years will look like because these tools are just allowing, allowing capital to get into the hands of founders more quickly, but not in such as alluded map manner, where they feel like every time that they need to let’s say cover an inventory runner or invest in their product, they need to embark on a, a round, which aside from the impact and the cap table is time consuming and takes away from running the business. So, yeah, long story short.

[00:21:49] Joe Garafalo: I love that. Work, work harder, work smarter not harder is what I always like say. And that’s really the core of what we’re building at Mosaic here. Is like, what you said, [00:22:00] it should be digestible. Finance should be understandable to not only the CFO, but the entire business. And when you boil it down, it’s, it’s actually less scary than a lot of people think. So I love your approach there. You mentioned that the funding rounds, the, the less dilutive capital, with more money flowing into businesses than ever before, a big topic and the spirit of like, you know, the, the cash forecasting and cash conservation is what do you do with all that extra money in the bank account? Do you advise your customers to do one thing versus another?

[00:24:00] Andi Ruda: So I, I love the act of honestly separating your money out into a separate account. And obviously an interest yielding money market account is a really great option if it’s a large pot of money that’s sitting there. But even aside from the fact that let’s say you’re in a slightly more favorable account or, or making some pennies on the dollar there, I think it’s, it’s, it’s more about the ritual of like having that money in one pot and not losing sight of, the way it’s decreasing or increasing month over month. Because like again, like changes week over week, payroll leaves this, that like, it’s a slow, it could be a slow burn and you can lose sight of it if you’re processing expenses or putting things on credit cards, et cetera, et cetera. But moving that money into your operating account each month for what the budget is really is like a good reminder for, for a lot of founders. And a lot of companies I work with, where it’s like, “Okay, I moved this in, this is what I have to work with.” And of course there’s times where you need to, you need to chip back into and take more back from that pot. And I encourage my founders to do that all the time. Like, there is return on investment [00:25:00] for so many things and so many initiatives. And again, I’m a CFO of a startup for growing, for startups for growing companies, and they need to be investing to grow. I’m not restructuring. We’re not at this stagnant point like, we are growing. And so, so I’m all for it, but I want founders to be conscious of it. I want them to feel like they’re owning that decision and they’re moving the money that they have and the capital that is a scarce resource to be spent this month on the things that they believe are worth it. So I think sometimes it’s just a nice check. It’s not just, “Oh, the, the pot is huge and we’re just chipping away.” And it’s like, “No, I am taking more money out of my budget and I am spending it.” So, yeah, I recommend that to a lot of founders. Again, especially the ones who I’m not in the weeds with day-to-day managing with them. It’s, it’s a nice way to empower them, to feel like they know what the budget is. They don’t have to check on with me for a report to see where they are against it. It’s, again, it’s cash, it’s not perfect, but it’s, I think it’s a good practice.

[00:25:50] Joe Garafalo: Yeah, I would agree. And even, there’s a saying that you, you, you measure what you improve, sorry. That you may, you improve what you measure is, is a really common saying. And if you’re [00:26:00] moving money into your operating account, and you’re seeing that, that balance decline faster than your cashflow forecast. You go through that exercise of having to transfer money back from your, your mutual market account into your operating account. And, that helps hold founders, I think, even more accountable to, to spending what, what was in check with the plan. There’s always going to be times to invest more, but at least if you have to wire money between accounts, it’s, it’s a trigger point to, to really think about are you, are you planning the right way.

[00:26:27] Andi Ruda: Totally. And honestly, it’s like the good news for me is, anyone who’s working with me has chosen to work with me. Like the founders who come looking for a fractional CFO want accountability. They want to understand how they can improve their financial situation and they want to be responsible. And, and there’s two sides of a founder’s brain. There’s the, “I want to grow and I know what’s best for my business, and I want to invest and I want to hire. But the other side is the part that hires a fractional CFO.” And that’s like, I want this business to last for a long time and I want my equity to be worth something. And I want my team to really, to, to be along for the ride of it, like a company that [00:27:00] explodes and takes off. And so, these tricks, like my founders are hungry for them. Like, just as much as sometimes they don’t want to hear me say, “No, we shouldn’t spend on that.” They do. And they do want like mechanisms to train themselves to better understand the way it moves, because no, no one wants to feel out of control of their financial situation. And again, like, I think so many people over-complicate finance where, we’re, people who don’t inherently have a career and it feels like they can’t manage it. And it’s just not the case. Like, even a simple check like that, like moving money to a different account in your same, like bank is like so easy. And like suddenly though you understand like you overspend budget, it’s, it’s beautifully tactical. 

[00:27:36] Joe Garafalo: I love that. I love that. So looking back at your career, and this is a question we asked to all of our podcast guests, what is one thing that you wish you knew when you were starting your career in finance, that, that you would share with others aspiring to be maybe a fractional CFO or a full-time CFO?

Finance Career Advice from Andi Ruda

[00:27:52] Andi Ruda: I think there’s so, there’s so much. There’s so many, so many mistakes that have led to good lessons learned, but honestly, I’d say when I made the transition from consulting into [00:28:00] my first full-time CFO role. The angst I had that I wasn’t in fact an expert in all areas of finance is, I wasted a lot of energy on that. And I think like, if you’re looking to be a CFO, like you really need to own and embrace that, like you are the strategist, you’re the person who’s linking it all together. And like, your focus needs to be, where are we going? Like, accounting owns what happened, I own where we’re going. And like, if you can keep that simple split, like in your mind, like, it kind of, it it’ll allow you to flourish and just use parts of finances inputs. Like, when I was managing a tax team, when I had no tax experience, or when I was managing a team of seasoned accountants, I, at first I felt intimidated. I was like, “Well, that’s not my world. Like I’m at P&A, I’m forward-looking”, but like suddenly I’m the boss of people who are, who are way more skilled in an area than me. And, and I think it’s honestly just a broader lesson for leadership is, you don’t need to be the best at what every, every task on your team, you just need to understand how to link it all together in a strategy. And so, [00:29:00] being a CFO’s amazing. It’s like I said earlier, it’s, it’s my seat at the table. It’s my way to know a business better than I could in any other role, really. Because you’re seeing the money movement. If you’re lucky enough to have a strong team of accountants, you can trust for your inputs. Like, it’s a nice checks and balances and, and there’s a lot to learn. And I think I’m always learning and I’ll always raise my hand when I’m not the expert in something. But, but yeah, I would say that like, it’s a misconception that being the CFO means you have worked in every area of finance. It really, you don’t need to. And in fact, I think you’ll be better for it if you have your strengths and you can rely on a team for the rest, and keep strategy at heart. Like again, like this is a strategic role, this isn’t a tactical role. The best thing like I can do in my career is stay out of the day-to-day work. Like I personally love modeling, so you’ll never get me out of modeling. And, and honestly being a fractional CFO and not having as large of like a day-to-day team to manage anymore allows me to do more of that like hands-on work myself, which I I just love, but like, I wouldn’t be doing a lot of like more tactical, like day-to-day finance [00:30:00] things. Because that’s, like I said earlier, my whole thesis is like, it holds me back from seeing that big picture. So focus on the big picture, find your strengths. And if you’re, and find a good team, if you’re managing, if you need to manage tax and accounting and this and that, like find strong resources who, who can arm you with that information.

[00:30:16] Joe Garafalo: Love that. I always like to hire the smartest person in the room for what they’re best at. So, totally resonates with me. And I appreciate you making the time to chat with us today. I think we talked a lot about some really great things, some really great practices around cashflow forecasting and cashflow management, and looking forward to our next conversation.

[00:30:35] Andi Ruda: Yeah. Likewise. You guys are, you guys are killing it over there at Mosaic. So, it’s, it’s always fun to chat and catch up. 

[00:30:41] Joe Garafalo: Cool. Well, thanks for being here, Andi. 

[00:30:43] Andi Ruda: Thank you. 

[00:30:44] Joe Garafalo: Bye.