Fractional CFO - CPG

Job Description

Fractional CF: CPG Focus

About Your Cohort

Your Cohort is a fractional CFO firm dedicated to making financial clarity an empowering experience for founders. We specialize in strategic advising, cash flow management, FP&A, financial modeling, and building the right financial team structure for growing companies. We work with self-funded and VC-backed startups across CPG, beverage, tech, agencies, and other founder-led businesses.

Our approach goes beyond the numbers. We help founders understand their financials, make informed decisions, and scale with greater clarity and control. Whether a founder is deeply familiar with financials or just beginning to build that knowledge, we meet them where they are and equip them with the tools, insights, and structure they need to grow.

Position Overview

As a Fractional CFO at Your Cohort, you will serve as a senior finance leader embedded across a portfolio of 2–4 client companies simultaneously. Your clients are product-driven businesses, primarily in consumer goods, fashion, apparel, and inventory-intensive industries, generating between $1M and $50M in annual revenue. They are scaling, managing physical inventory, navigating multi-channel distribution, and often using debt instruments like factoring and revolving credit lines to fund growth. They need a strategic partner who can help them understand what is happening in the business and make better financial decisions.

This role carries both client-facing responsibilities and required internal commitments. You will participate in team meetings, training sessions, and firmwide initiatives alongside your client work. Investing in the team is part of the job; it is how we raise the quality of everything we deliver.

This is a remote, engagement structured as a 1099 independent contractor arrangement. Total hours, including client and internal commitments, are discussed during the interview process.

Responsibilities

Client Delivery

• Design and own each client’s financial strategy, annual operating plan, and 13-week rolling cash flow model.
• Build and maintain channel-level contribution margin analysis across DTC, wholesale, Amazon, and retail, including SKU-level profitability.
• Manage trade spend ROI and retailer program performance for CPG and multi-channel brands.
• Oversee working capital optimization: inventory financing, purchase order timing, supplier deposits, and demand planning alignment.
• Structure and manage debt instruments, including accounts receivable factoring, revolving lines of credit, revenue-based financing, and inventory-backed credit facilities.
• Prepare board materials, investor-grade financial models, and fundraising documentation.
• Lead ERP selection and implementation oversight,  including NetSuite, QuickBooks, AIMS360, and other industry-relevant platforms.
• Establish KPIs, reporting frameworks, and financial dashboards that give founders real visibility into their business.
• Advise on financial controls, compliance, and audit readiness.

Forecasting and Business Model:

• Build and maintain dynamic financial models that connect revenue, margin, inventory purchases, working capital, debt, and cash flow.
• Own and manage 13-week cash flow forecasts, including weekly updates, variance analysis, and clear recommendations for founders.
• Create annual operating plans and rolling forecasts that reflect realistic sales targets, inventory needs, channel mix, hiring plans, and cash constraints.
• Model inventory buying decisions, including purchase order timing, minimum order quantities, landed costs, supplier deposits, production timelines, and expected sell-through.
• Understand the relationship between inventory, gross margin, contribution margin, accounts payable, debt, and cash availability.
• Support founders in making buying decisions across wholesale, retail, DTC, Amazon, and distributor channels.
• Connect inventory forecasts to financing needs, including factoring, lines of credit, inventory financing, PO financing, and supplier terms.
• Translate complex financial models into clear recommendations that founders can understand and act on.

Internal Team Commitments

• Participate in all team meetings, team trainings, and firmwide sessions; these are required, not optional.
• Share tools, frameworks, and learnings with the broader team.
• Engage in continuous professional development, including working with AI-powered finance tools.
• Contribute to the firm’s internal knowledge base and documentation standards.

Qualifications

Industry Background

Deep, direct experience in one or more of the following is required. Candidates without verifiable experience in CPG, fashion, or inventory-driven businesses will not be considered.

• CPG: Multi-retailer and distributor experience (major national retailers), trade spend management, slotting fees, and promotional ROI.
• Fashion / Apparel: Seasonal inventory, SKU-level financials, markdown strategy, order management, EDI, and omnichannel distribution.
• Inventory-intensive businesses: Physical product companies with supply chain complexity, purchase order financing, and landed cost management.
• Excellent at time management and being resourceful.
• Looking to expand network and bring new vendor relationships

Financial and Technical Skills

• Expert-level financial modeling, cash flow forecasting, and scenario analysis. 
• Demonstrated experience advising on and structuring factoring arrangements, including evaluating factor terms, advance rates, and fee structures.
• Working knowledge of debt financing instruments: revolving credit facilities, inventory loans, PO financing, and revenue-based financing.
• Hands-on ERP experience,  NetSuite, QuickBooks, AIMS360, or equivalent, including implementation or migration oversight.
• Ability to build multi-retailer financial models incorporating trade spend, margin stacking, and channel contribution.
• Comfort working in the $1M–$20M revenue range, where cash efficiency and working capital management are daily priorities.

AI Knowledge

We are building a forward-looking finance practice. Every member of our team is expected to actively engage with AI tools and emerging financial technology. Candidates who are not actively engaging with new tools are not the right fit for this team.

• You are already using or actively exploring AI-powered FP&A, reporting, or automation tools.
• You are curious, you read, experiment, and invest in your own learning without being asked.
• You understand that AI is not a replacement for financial judgment, but a way to work faster and better.
• You can speak to how AI tools have changed or could change your workflow.

Team Orientation

This is not a solo consulting role. We are a team, and that matters here.

• We are looking for someone who can show up fully for client work, internal commitments, team meetings, training, and firmwide projects. These are part of the role and part of how we maintain a strong standard of client service.
• You should enjoy learning from peers, contributing to the team, and taking ownership of your own development. This role is a strong fit for someone who is curious, accountable, collaborative, and open to adopting the Your Cohort way of working.

Experience and Credentials

• 12+ years of progressive finance leadership experience, including 3+ years in a CFO or equivalent role.
• Proven track record delivering results at companies in the $1M–$20M revenue range in CPG, fashion, or inventory-driven sectors.
• CMA, CPA, MBA, or CFA strongly preferred but not required; equivalent operating experience in relevant industries may substitute.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills; ability to translate complex financial concepts for founders who are not finance experts.
• High integrity, structured thinking, and the ability to prioritize across multiple client engagements at once.

Engagement Structure

• Type: independent contractor (W-9 required).
• Hours: Minimum committed hours per client, plus required Your Cohort team hours, as discussed during the interview process.
• Compensation: Competitive monthly retainer, commensurate with experience and portfolio size.
• Location: Remote, with occasional in-person client and team sessions.

This Role Is Not the Right Fit If

• You are actively building or plan to build your own independent CFO practice and view client relationships as proprietary.
• You are currently a W2
• You are already stretched across too many engagements and cannot commit to the required team hours.
• You have only worked in SaaS and have no inventory or retail experience.
• You are not actively using or learning AI tools.
• You view internal training and team meetings as overhead rather than an investment.

Application process:

• As part of the interview process, we will also assess your Excel skills to ensure you have the technical foundation required for the role.
• You will be required to provide two referrals from the last 18 months.

Company Onboarding Expectations:

As part of joining our team, you will be required to complete an onboarding process where we will train you on our company’s methodologies, standards, tools, and internal processes. This will be a one-month training period before you are eligible for a client assignment.

Our company is an equal-opportunity employer. We encourage candidates from all backgrounds to apply. Note: This job description is intended to convey information essential to understanding the scope of the role. It is incomplete and may change based on the business's needs.