The engagements in numbers
- 12 mandates, 11 of them as interim CFO, since January 2019, plus four years as CFO for e-commerce at a listed retail group
- Seven private equity firms and venture capital investors as shareholders on the other side of the table: Main Capital Partners, Verdane, Paragon Partners, AEM Capital, Insight Partners, eCapital and BayBG
- Series A to C funding rounds totalling around 95 million US dollars prepared and supported – among others with Target Global, Insight Partners, One Peak and Digital+
- Company sizes from 30 to more than 500 employees, finance teams of one to 15 people led
- Consolidation structure for nine entities built, plus close processes across Germany, the United States and the United Kingdom
- All five engagement types covered: transition, bridge, post-merger integration, exit preparation and restructuring
What these engagements have in common
The client is rarely the only party at the table. In eleven of the twelve engagements there was, alongside the management team, an institutional shareholder with its own reporting standard, its own investment committee and a time horizon set by the fund. A large part of the work is translating between those two sets of expectations.
The trigger is temporary, the structure should last. Whether it is a vacancy, an acquisition, a funding round or preparation for a sale: the peak load lasts four to twelve months. What holds afterwards is not presence, but a documented close calendar, defined approval paths and a successor who has been properly onboarded.
Sequence matters more than tooling. In almost every engagement it was tempting to start with a system change. What has always worked is the other sequence: reporting capability and cash flow forecast first, then planning, then systems.
Frequently asked questions about these references
Which industries and company sizes does the experience cover?
The focus is on B2B software and SaaS with 30 to more than 500 employees. Added to that are legal tech, HR tech, IT security, payments, a B2B trading company and, from the years before the interim engagements, four years of e-commerce retail within a corporate group. Regionally, mostly Germany, plus Austria and Italy; we work both remotely and on site.
Which private equity firms has there already been collaboration with?
On the shareholder side these were Main Capital Partners, Verdane, Paragon Partners, AEM Capital, Insight Partners, eCapital and BayBG. In financing processes, Target Global, One Peak, Digital+ and Recap were added.
Which systems were implemented or used in these engagements?
Among others LucaNet for the consolidation of nine entities, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central as the ERP, DATEV, Sage, NetSuite, Odoo, weclapp, Xero, Agicap, Candis, Spendesk, Pleo, Moss, Qonto, Stripe and Klarna. A detailed assessment of finance software is available in our tool database.
Can reference calls be arranged?
Yes. After an initial conversation about the specific brief, we put you in touch with contacts from comparable engagements – after checking with everyone involved.
Further reading
- Finance for private equity portfolio companies – scope of services and how we work
- Interim CFO in a private equity setting – the five engagement types in detail
- The first 100 days after closing – the sequence week by week
- Profile of Sebastian Janus – career, teaching and publications
- Interim management for the finance department – first profiles within 24 hours, start within a few days
Detailed case descriptions
Seven of these mandates are written up in full as anonymised case studies – with starting position, brief, scope, approach, outcome and duration. No company names, but with sector, size and type of shareholder.
- CFO transition and buy-and-build in B2B SaaS – over 40 employees, PE fund, six months.
- Leading a finance department while acquisitions run – over 100 employees, a team of five, four months.
- Exit preparation and restructuring in a group environment – over 500 employees, nine entities, eight months.
- The first CFO role at an HR tech company before its Series A – over 50 employees, VC funded, 20 months.
- Series C and consolidation across three countries – over 300 employees, 26 months.
- ERP rollout and handover to the incoming CFO – B2B distribution, PE fund, five months.
- Growth financing with a regional investment company – over 70 employees, ongoing advisory mandate.