In our continuing Fractional CFO series, we speak with Corinne Thompson, founder of Ecap Financial, about her journey into specialised fractional CFO work, the challenges she overcame, and her advice for finance professionals considering a similar path.
From corporate finance to specialised fractional services
Corinne Thompson knew early in her career what energised her. After training with KPMG for nearly five years, she moved into the tech space in 2013, primarily holding commercial finance director roles. What she discovered was a passion for fundraising and M&A activities.
"I realised quite early on in my career that I really love fundraising and M&A type activities, and so have tried to pick roles that are a lot more focused or geared around that," Corinne explains.
This clarity of purpose led her to establish Ecap Financial at the beginning of 2023, after leaving a company where she had spent nearly five years. Her firm now focuses on two core services: financial due diligence for investors and fractional CFO work for companies looking to fundraise.
"I call it fractional CFO work because it's a term that lands in the market right now," Corinne says. "But the reality is it's basically corporate finance type work. We build financial models, investor decks, data rooms, TAM SAM calculations – any of the collateral required to go out and do a fundraise or some kind of M&A transaction."
Finding energy in specialisation
When asked what drove her decision to focus on this niche, Corinne offers a refreshing perspective.
"When you're going through activities or general things in life, you find out what gives you energy and what drains your energy," she says. "When I was involved in fundraising – whether equity or debt financing – I got a lot of energy from this process. When I realised that's where I was getting my energy from, I thought, 'This obviously resonates with me, and therefore I should double down on it.'"
Unlike many who advocate following your gut, Corinne takes a different approach.
"I personally don't necessarily follow that mantra, just because I think my gut is trying to always keep me safe. If I was to trust my gut, I'd probably never do anything outside of the box."
Challenges of project-based work
The transition to project-based work brought its own set of challenges.
"When the projects are on, they're all-encompassing. It's full-time, it consumes all my time, and so finding new work is then tricky alongside that," Corinne admits.
She's addressed this challenge in two ways. First, she's built a strong referral network that brings in work organically. Second, she's expanded her team to allow for more specialised roles.
"Before, I was spinning all the plates in the world, trying to win work while servicing work, while doing invoicing and admin and all that in your business," Corinne explains. "Now I have someone who focuses specifically on X, so I can focus specifically on Y. It means I get to spend more of my day doing what I enjoy, which is building the pipeline for the company and doing sales work."
Building a referral network
For Corinne, building a strong referral network comes down to one fundamental principle:
"Do a good job – that's really basic. Someone will think about you and recommend you if you knock the ball out of the park in every engagement you do."
She emphasises the importance of managing client expectations and delivering on promises. Another key element of her strategy is recognising the interconnected nature of the venture capital ecosystem.
"Doing a great job for VC-backed companies gets you noticed by the VC," she points out. "They're going to say, 'I have a portfolio client who needs these services, and those guys seem to do a really great job on their fundraise."
Advice for aspiring Fractional CFOs
For finance professionals considering a move into fractional work, Corinne offers several valuable insights:
- Know your pitch: "Get your pitch straight. Know how you're pitching yourself and what you're focusing on. I'm not a generalist – I have specific areas I focus on. It's okay to say no; there are loads of clients out there."
- Leverage your network: "When I first started, I literally exported my Google contacts and emailed every single one. I said, 'Hey, I've left my full-time job. I'm looking for contract work. Do you know anyone looking for this skill set?' People respond to that."
- Understand yourself: "Work out what type of character or personality you are. I'm a 'jump in with two feet and figure it out as I go along' type of person. My husband does a lot of desktop research first. We arrive at the same place but take different routes."
- Embrace iteration: "You will fail. Things will go wrong. You just have to keep moving forward in this iterative manner and say, 'Okay, it was a learning experience. I'm not going to get it right the first time. The bar of perfection has to be removed.'"
- Lower your expectations: "Take pressure off yourself. Do your best to find clients and work through your to-do list, but don't get yourself so wound up that you become unwell."
- Invest in sales skills: "Sales is a phenomenal skill to learn. I bought a course on sales – it cost me 4 or 5 grand at the time, which wasn't cheap – but it was one of the best investments I've ever made."
- Use LinkedIn strategically: "LinkedIn has been phenomenal. I try to post content daily. It's hard to measure the direct ROI, but it creates a brand around your company and yourself."
Embracing a niche rather than limiting it
While some might worry that specialising would limit opportunities, Corinne has found the opposite to be true.
"There's a lot of work out there," she asserts. "Being very strong operationally is a skill in its own right. Being very strong commercially is a skill in its own right. Even within commercial finance, being very strong on credit versus equity is a skill in its own right."
She concludes, "I haven't found specialising limiting in any way at all. I've actually found it more expansive because I'm saying, 'This is my specialty. This is what I focus on when I work with companies.'"
For finance professionals considering the fractional path, Corinne's journey offers valuable lessons in finding your niche, embracing your strengths, and building a sustainable business model around what truly energises you. |
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