What is the first strategic move a private equity firm makes when it acquires a company? Hire a new sales leader? Launch a new marketing push? Make operations more efficient through AI integration?
While all of those steps can drive growth, the first move experienced equity firms make after an acquisition is installing a Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Many private equity firms recognise that experienced financial leadership can help support growth initiatives.
The growing emphasis on strategic finance reflects broader changes in the role of the CFO. According to McKinsey, finance leaders are increasingly expected to help shape corporate strategy, allocate capital and support long-term value creation rather than focusing solely on financial reporting and compliance. Similarly, EY's 2026 Global DNA of the CFO Survey found that 60% of CFOs believe they should define and shape how the business creates value, while 71% say traditional financial metrics alone are no longer sufficient to evaluate long-term initiatives.
“With privately held businesses, finance is typically treated as a back-office function,” says Jay Jung, Founder and Principal of Embarc Advisors. “The bookkeeper makes sure everything is recorded, the CPA files taxes, and owners ask for financial statements when things start to feel tight. It's a reactive approach that holds businesses back. Add a CFO to the mix, and finances become a proactive function that propels businesses toward their strategic goals.”
Over his 20 years of involvement in corporate finance, Jung has served as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs and a consultant at McKinsey & Company. He currently works with startups and middle-market companies on M&A, capital raises, and strategic CFO services. He has an MBA from the Wharton Business School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Embarc Advisorsis a corporate finance advisory firm that works with middle-market businesses on strategic finance, capital raising and M&A. Blending flawless technical execution with strategic insights based on real-world experience, the corporate and strategic finance advisory firm helps businesses achieve more.
“Without a strategic, forward-looking financial plan, companies typically get caught up fixating on how much they are spending,” Jung says. “Strategic finance takes financial analysis to another level, positioning companies to understand the return they will get before they spend. It empowers better decision-making, which drives growth and increases business value.”
Strategic finance begins with committing to a solid financial foundation
Companies that fail to establish a solid financial foundation won't have the resources needed to support strategic finance. Without reliable financial data, they don't have a base for analytics or the fuel for financial forecasts. Once a financial foundation is in place, CFOs and other finance professionals can evaluate financial processes to identify the issues limiting growth.
“Building a solid financial foundation requires three things: a clean chart of accounts, accrual-based accounting, and a disciplined monthly close process,” Jung says. “None of these are complicated goals to achieve. And all of them are non-negotiable for the company that wants to implement strategic financial processes.”
With a clean chart of accounts, companies can make finance-driven decisions with confidence. When combined with accrual-based accounting, clean charts also speed up decision-making, giving companies the real-time data they need to act when opportunities to further strategic initiatives arise. The disciplined monthly close process maximizes the value of financial data, ensuring strategic decisions are not being built upon data that is no longer accurate.
“An effective monthly close process makes sure key financial data is available to fuel strategic planning,” Jung adds. “Companies that do it consistently gain an edge not because they have better data, but because they actually activate the data they have.”
Strategic financial management uses financial reporting to drive action
When companies take a strategic approach to financial management, they add credibility to their financial planning. Rather than just adopting a static plan that outlines what the company hopes to achieve, strategic finance puts a dynamic plan in place that shows the progress the company is actually making and reveals the changes that may need to be made.
“When leaders want to make informed decisions that allow them to adapt to changing business conditions, they need more than a budget,” Jung says. “They also need rolling forecasts, budget-versus-actual reviews, and root cause analyses. Budgets communicate aspirations, but with a financial forecast built on historical trends, known drivers, and strategic context, leaders get a credible tool for driving growth.”
Strategic corporate finance positions companies for growth
Most companies ensure their financial operations are tactical, meaning numbers are accurate, processes are functional, and records are organized. But being tactical isn't the same as being proactive, which means those companies aren't ready to capitalize on the key moments that drive growth.
Those who take a strategic approach are poised to raise capital, scale, pursue acquisitions, and successfully prepare for an exit. They are the companies that are ready to make big strategic moves.
“Major hires, capital raises, and acquisitions are decisions that can drive significant growth, but they are also decisions that can't be undone easily,” Jung says. “Navigating those decisions successfully requires more than a good guess. Building a strategic financial infrastructure allows you to make those decisions with confidence, and investing in financial infrastructure can help companies make more informed long-term decisions.
