ONE-ON-ONE with Jaime Davison

Jaime Davison is the President & CEO of My Finance Resource in Westlake Village, Calif. She is also the President & CFO of My Book- keeping Resource, a sister company that has a full-time remote team in the Philippines. Her partner, Dona Amores, CPA, oversees all operations and staff development there.

My Finance Resource offers virtual CFO services that work with companies in various stages of transition. Jaime’s key skills as a fractional CFO include mergers & acquisitions, ERP system implementation, operational & strategic planning, cost savings initiatives, SEC filings & reporting, continuous process improvement, internal controls and Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

Jaime and her team specialize in healthcare / biotech companies, but have numerous types of closely-held businesses as clients. They include entertainment, restaurant, e-commerce, and cannabis companies. She has more than 20 years of success in these and other B2B service industries. She has worked with start-ups to Fortune 500 companies (Gannett, Quest Diagnostics).

Speaking with Jaime, you can hear her passion for helping clients through complicated times. Especially ones with complicated accounting issues.

You’re a CPA, a fractional CFO, and the partner of a bookkeeping firm. How do those work together?

Being a CPA ties my other roles together because it shows that I have the accounting profession’s highest level of competence. There are few bookkeeping firms that have this standard available within their firm. It allows me to review and return consistent, high-quality work product. CFOs do not have to be CPAs, but it definitely helps to provide clients a complete back- ground in corporate finance. CPAs are knowledgeable about rules and laws and CFOs are strategic. To use a football analogy, both the CPA and the CFO are the quarterback role for the Team.

A lot of people are surprised that many accounting firms do not have bookkeeping services. It’s generally outsourced. What’s the benefit of using a bookkeeping-specific firm like yours?

Using a bookkeeping-specific firm is helpful because we are in-tune with the latest and greatest technology that gets the job done most efficiently. We also see many common issues and know how to correct them. We are very well versed in what the tax preparer needs to get their job done. We provide exactly what is required so there isn’t a lot of back and forth between the Team requesting additional items.

What are some of the common mistakes you see when you take over for a company’s internal bookkeeper?

The most common mistake we see is that most internal bookkeepers are under-qualified for their position. They rely on their tax preparer to correct any issues with journal entries at year-end. This takes up valuable time during a critical deadline and stresses the system of tax preparers. The next most common mistake is that the bookkeeper is over-qualified and more expensive than what is needed for bookkeeping tasks. With a bookkeeping firm, we can shift workload to the appropriately-skilled staff for each task. This is key for efficiency and cost savings to the client.

How important is it for the bookkeeping firm and an accounting firm be working together for a common client?

It is critical that the bookkeeping and accounting firm work together to avoid doing tasks incorrectly and having to re-work them or have the more expensive accounting firm correct it. Open communication is key to keeping the bookkeeping up-to-date on a consistent basis and not just “fixing it” at year-end. You cannot make good business decisions with incorrect data.

As a CPA, a fractional CFO, and a partner in a bookkeeping business, what’s the favorite part of your work?

I love solving problems for our clients! It is challenging to be a small business owner with a constantly changing environment to deal with while trying to grow your business. When I can give a client a resolution that helps them sleep better at night and makes them more profitable, it’s a win!