Michael King

I help fractional CFOs and accountants build multiple 6 and 7-figure advisory firms through coaching and community.

If you run a construction company, growth was supposed to make money stress go away.

Instead, revenue is up, profit is flat, and it still feels like you are one bad month away from a big problem.

Most contractors we work with are:
• Bidding 20 to 25 percent and banking a fraction of that
• Losing sleep over payroll and upcoming draws
• Unsure which jobs are actually making money
• Looking at financials that feel like a foreign language
• Making big decisions based on gut, not clear numbers

At Civil CFO, we provide Fractional CFO services for $10M to $70M contractors.

Our job is simple to say and hard to do - we bridge the gap between bid and bank so you can consistently hit 10 percent plus net profit, with clear cash flow and confidence in every major decision.

What we do for construction companies:
• Build clear forecasts and cash flow plans so you know what is coming before it hits
• Install practical job cost and WIP reporting so you can see which projects are winning or bleeding
• Help you set realistic, data backed profit targets and hold the team accountable to them
• Prepare bank, bonding, and lender ready financial packages
• Sit at the leadership table as your finance partner for growth, exits, or succession

We are not your bookkeeper or tax accountant.

We work alongside them and give you the forward looking financial strategy they cannot provide.

Why this matters:
• More cash in the bank and less time worrying about it
• Cleaner, more profitable jobs
• Reduced debt and stronger balance sheet
• A company that is ready for whatever you want next - growth, sale, or hand off

I founded Civil CFO so construction CEOs did not have to figure this out alone. Our team has worked with contractors across the country to turn financial confusion into a clear plan and disciplined execution.

If you are a contractor between $10M and $70M and you are tired of bidding 25 percent and banking 3, let's talk.

Founder

I help fractional CFOs and accountants start, scale, and optimize their advisory services.

Nic Parish crushed it on stage today at CONEXPO-CON/AGG! 

He talked about how to build a people-first company, particularly about the importance of systematizing that process. 

The thing that stood out the most to me was when Nic asked “if you have a people problem in your company, what are you going to doc about it?” 

Great job Nic.

Founder, Civil CFO | Fractional CFO Firm for $10M–$70M Contractors | We bridge the gap between bid and bank so you can hit 10%+ net profit

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This week in Vegas is a who’s who for the dirt world. 

Just got to hang out with Jason Richmond and Luke Eggebraaten and talk dirt!  

Who else do I need to meet this week before I leave?

I'm so grateful for the chance to sit with these folks last night and talk about the construction industry. 

We talked about: 
• Where the industry is
• Where the industry is going
• What the biggest risks are right now
• And the biggest opportunities that are ahead

Thanks for the time and perspective Mrs. Sargent, Herb Sargent, and Zack Estes. 

(We also had some world-class guac as well!)

Most contractors don’t have a profitability problem.
You have a Work In Progress problem. 

And in a $10M-$70M construction company, it’s one of the only reports that shows what's actually happening inside your projects. 

WIP shows you, job by job: 
➜ How far along the project really is 
➜ How much you’ve billed 
➜ How much cost you’ve burned 
➜ Whether you’re overbilled or underbilled
➜ Your projected margin based on percent complete

We’ve had clients say, “But the P&L looks fine.” 

To which we say, “Then why are you still cash broke?”

Things we see (on the regular): 

• You’re 60% complete, but only billed 40% of the job 
• Approved change orders that were never recorded
• Labor being applied inconsistently across projects

The estimate says 10%.
Reality says 3%. 

A properly maintained WIP catches these issues early.

When WIP is accurate (and reviewed every month!), you stop discovering that a job lost money after it’s already finished.
 
You see it while there is still time to do something about it.

We had a client come to us through a referral from a former client. They were hanging on by a thread. 


They weren’t just “using” their line of credit.
They had fully maxed it out.
They were borrowing just to cover payroll and keep the doors open.

Most owners assume the solution at that point is to “go sell more.”

But that wasn’t the real problem.

The real problem was cash trapped inside the business.

They were sitting on $2.2M in inventory.
And $700K of it hadn’t moved in five years.

So they were literally burning cash to build inventory… to keep people busy.

The intention was good! 
They wanted to take care of their team.
But financially, it was killing the company.
Pretty soon, no one was going to have a job.

So we did an inventory analysis and made the hard calls.
➜ We helped them sell what could be sold
➜ We reworked the schedule to reduce labor costs

Within 6 months, the entire $250K LOC was paid down.
The client had $500K sitting in the bank.
And hours for employees were increased.

That’s a $750K swing.

“Sell more” isn’t always the answer. 
First, you’ve got to stop the bleeding.

One thing that makes me nervous the second I see it?


Backlog and revenue are way up. 
…but cash is way down.

That combo is a flashing red light in a $10M–$70M construction company.

Because it usually means you “grew” by winning big jobs that came with
:➜ Slow payers
➜ Thin margins
➜ Bad billing terms
➜ Big upfront labor and material costs

So yes, the backlog looks great.

But what you actually won is a cash crunch with a demanding schedule.

This is how contractors end up saying things like, “We’re busier than we’ve ever been… but I feel broke.”

That’s what happens when you scale revenue faster than you scale cash discipline.

In our world, backlog isn’t a trophy.

Backlog is a liability until you know two things:

1. What it does to cash over the next 13 weeks
2. Whether you’re actually billing and collecting at the pace you’re building

If you’re running a $10M+ construction company and you’re feeling that “we’re growing, but I’m freaking out” tension…

You’re not crazy.
You’re seeing the right problem.

It’s fixable.
And we can help.

In the last 30 days, I’ve watched multiple $10M+ construction company owners make the same mistake. Almost all of them thought it was normal.

You’ve got 1 or 2 big clients sitting 60–90 days past due, and you’re not treating it like an emergency.

Because you tell yourself:
“They always pay.”
“It’s just part of construction.”

So your follow-up is light.
[Or non-existent.]

And at the exact same time…
You’re paying subs and vendors like clockwork.Because you’re “a good partner.”

So here’s what’s actually happening.

You’re running AP like you’re the premium client… while your AR is treated like it’s optional.

And it gets worse.

On more than one job, I saw projects that were 55% complete, but had only billed 45%.

Because the pay app didn’t go in on time.
Because approved change orders didn’t make it into the billing.
Because nobody wanted to “rock the boat” with the GC or the owner.

That 10% gap doesn’t sound like a big deal until you do the math.

On a $5M job, that’s $500,000 of cash you already earned… just sitting there twiddling it's thumbs.

While you live under the constant pressure of making payroll. 

If that’s you? 
You don’t have a profitability problem.
You have a billing + collections discipline problem.

If you’re running a $10M–$70M construction company and this feels familiar, DM me.

“Can we afford to take this job?”

That’s a loaded question!

It’s about timing.
It’s about cash flow.
It’s about current backlog strain.
Field supervision bandwidth.
Equipment, bonding, and overhead factor in too.

Most contractors look at a new opportunity and ask, “Is it profitable?”

That’s the wrong first question.

A job can look profitable on paper and still create a cash crunch.

Without cash flow forecasting and backlog planning, you’re guessing.

When you can’t confidently say, “Yes, we can take this and here’s why,” or “No, this isn’t the right move right now,” that’s when you’ve outgrown basic bookkeeping.

At $5M, you can (usually) still muscle through.
But at $20M+, that stops working.
            
The clear sign you’re ready for CFO-level planning?
 
When opportunity feels stressful instead of exciting.
 
Growth should feel controlled.

If every new job feels like a gamble, the financial system behind the business hasn’t caught up to the growth yet.

FIRED UP to attend the CONEXPO-CON/AGG conference next week. 

Who do I need to meet while I'm there?

Last day at ConExpo! 

Had a chance to have a coffee and a great convo with Cody Epp this morning. 

Anyone else I need to see before I leave this afternoon?

Fractional CFO for growth-minded business owners of 7 & 8 figure service-based businesses.

Backbone CFO helps construction, restoration, and trades businesses move from financial chaos to control.

We provide fractional CFO leadership for owners who are growing fast but lack clear visibility into cash flow, profitability, and the financial decisions required to scale with confidence.

Our CFOs don’t just report numbers. We sit at the leadership table. Using our proven Financial Control Framework, we provide executive-level leadership, perspective, and accountability so owners can make better decisions, faster.

Backbone CFO is built for businesses that:
• Have outgrown basic bookkeeping or controller support
• Need real cash flow visibility and forecasting
• Want disciplined, EOS-aligned financial leadership
• Are experiencing growth or planning for exit

Clients partner with us to replace financial chaos with control, confidence, and clarity. Without the cost or commitment of a full-time CFO.

👉 Book a Discovery Call to see if you’re CFO-ready:
https://backbonecfo.com/book-a-strategy-session/

James Emerich

Speaking to a group of business owners tomorrow. 
Here’s what’s going through my head 👇

When I think about the most basic, fundamental value of a Fractional CFO, I have a hard time getting past the concept of Financial Leadership.

What does that mean? 

From my experience in working with nearly 100 business owners in growing complex businesses like:

- Property Restoration
- Construction (GCs, Design/Build)
- Speciality Trades (Roofing, HVAC, Excavation)
- Super Niche Construction (hello FLORIDA ENERGY SERVICES, INC. ) 

Financial Leadership comes down to having the capability and process to create a financial plan to for businesses to reach their financial & business goals…

PLUS!!!!

The executive-level presence, perspective and leadership to hold its leadership team accountable for executing against that plan. 

It is that simple. 

Yet, that challenging.

All at the same time.

Do you agree?

Jim Emerich

Backbone CFO, Fractional CFO for Construction & Restoration businesses. Speaker for Business Owners Experiencing Chaos. Husband & Father of 5.

Backbone CFO and team

wishes you a happy Snow Day! 


John Awtry 
Chris Summers 
Melissa Zinni  
Megan Kay Christman, MBA 
Andrew B. Koniecki 
Jordan Martinez  

Let it snow!

Backbone CFO & our clients thrive from

Partnering with leaders like Brian Underhill  

The combination of running your business on EOS Worldwide AND and leveraging the leadership capability of our Fractional CFOs produce:

✅ Leadership Team alignment toward short and long term goals

 ✅ An executive-level leader in the finance seat capable of providing the necessary perspective to make financial decisions

✅ Leveraging imperfect data to make informed recommendations while concurrently…

✅ Helping you build the right team, systems, and processes needed to create data integrity and timely information 

The entrepreneurial game requires you to build the plane as your flying. 

It’s best to get the right people in your world to make that possible. 

Interested in learning more about how EOS and our Fractional CFOs work hand in hand?

DM me and let’s talk!

When you run on EOS, you can feel the difference between a finance function… and a true Finance Seat.

Here’s what it looks like when an EOS Implementer can confidently bring a CFO partner into the room—at the exact moments where decisions get real and traction gets tested:

“As an Expert EOS Implementer that has taken 80 businesses through the EOS Journey and facilitated 1,000+ sessions, I can truly say that I have developed one of the best synergistic relationships since I started my practice in 2016. As of today, I have gotten five of my clients working with Backbone CFO, and the feedback from my clients have been beyond expectations. I pull them into my sessions at several critical stages of the agenda, and the results of the analysis, forecasting and strategic alignment around a unified vision have taken my clients to the next level. If you are a business considering wanting to 'next-level' your organization - schedule a Discovery Call with them; if you are an EOS Implementer that wants to see your clients go to the next level - get them to schedule a Discovery Call with them. Your investment will pay off.” Brian Underhill, EOS Implementor

Big thanks to Brian Underhill for putting real words to what “from chaos to control” actually means in the room—where the numbers meet the Vision.

If you’re an EOS Implementer and you’re seeing the same finance bottlenecks show up across clients (cash, confidence, clarity, forecasting), there’s a better way to support the leadership team without derailing the agenda.

If you’re a business owner who’s ready to “next-level” the organization: schedule a Discovery Call with Backbone CFO. https://lnkd.in/eMKjpy5X

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