Building Finance Processes That Scale
How to design financial processes that work at 10 employees, 50 employees, and beyond— without creating bureaucracy that slows you down.
Early on, startup finance is simple: you check the bank balance, pay bills when they come in, and figure out taxes at year-end. But as you grow, this "deal with it as it comes" approach creates chaos. Information gets lost. Balls get dropped. Financial decisions get delayed.
The solution isn't complex bureaucracy—that would slow you down even more. Instead, you need lightweight, scalable processes: systems that provide structure without friction, and that can grow with your company.
This guide walks through the core finance processes every startup needs, showing how they should evolve from seed stage through Series B and beyond.
The Goal
Good finance processes give you reliable information quickly, enable fast decision-making, maintain appropriate controls, and don't create unnecessary work. They should make things easier, not harder.
Why Processes Matter
"We're a startup—we don't need bureaucracy." We hear this often, usually right before something goes wrong: a payment gets missed, a budget spirals out of control, or an investor asks a question nobody can answer.
What Happens Without Processes
Information Gaps
- Financial data is inconsistent or outdated
- Different people have different numbers
- Questions require manual research
Control Failures
- Unauthorized spending goes unnoticed
- Duplicate payments occur
- Compliance issues emerge
What Good Processes Enable
Monthly Close Process
The monthly close is the foundation of financial reporting. It's the process of finalizing your books for the month so you can produce accurate financial statements and make informed decisions.
Close Timeline by Stage
| Stage | Target Close | Realistic Expectation |
|---|---|---|
| Seed | Day 15 | May slip to day 20 |
| Series A | Day 10 | Should not exceed day 15 |
| Series B | Day 5-7 | Boards often require this |
Essential Close Checklist
Standard Monthly Close Steps
Common Close Problems
- Missing receipts: Implement expense tools that capture receipts at purchase
- Uncategorized transactions: Set up rules and train the team on proper coding
- Late vendor invoices: Establish cut-off procedures and communicate with vendors
- Complex revenue recognition: Document your policy and automate where possible
Budgeting and Forecasting
Budgeting and forecasting are how you translate strategy into financial plans and track progress against those plans. The process should evolve as you grow.
Evolution by Stage
Seed Stage
- Annual budget: Simple, primarily headcount and major expenses
- Forecasting: Quarterly or as-needed runway updates
- Variance analysis: Basic—are we on track or not?
- Tools: Spreadsheets are fine
Series A
- Annual budget: Detailed by department with headcount plan
- Forecasting: Monthly or quarterly re-forecast
- Variance analysis: Monthly budget vs. actuals with explanations
- Tools: Spreadsheets or early FP&A tools
Series B
- Annual budget: Comprehensive, bottoms-up with department ownership
- Forecasting: Rolling forecasts, multiple scenarios
- Variance analysis: Detailed monthly analysis with action plans
- Tools: Dedicated FP&A platform
Budget Process Best Practices
Start with Strategy
Budget should flow from business goals. What are you trying to achieve? What resources do you need? Don't just add 20% to last year.
Department Ownership
Department leads should own their budgets. Finance provides the framework and guardrails; teams make the trade-offs within their allocations.
Regular Re-forecasting
Plans change. Re-forecast at least quarterly to ensure your projections reflect reality. Some companies re-forecast monthly during rapid growth.
Scenario Planning
Build base, upside, and downside scenarios. Know what you'll do if things go better or worse than expected.
For more on runway and cash management, see our Startup Runway Guide.
Approval Workflows
Approval workflows ensure appropriate oversight of spending without creating bottlenecks. The key is matching approval requirements to risk levels.
Expense Approval Matrix
| Amount | Approver (Seed) | Approver (Series A+) |
|---|---|---|
| <$500 | Self (with manager awareness) | Manager |
| $500-$5,000 | CEO/COO | Department Head |
| $5,000-$25,000 | CEO | CEO/CFO |
| >$25,000 | CEO + Board awareness | CEO + CFO (or Board) |
Other Key Approvals
Vendor Contracts
Annual contracts above a threshold (e.g., $10K) should require finance review. Multi-year commitments or auto-renewals need extra scrutiny.
Headcount Requests
New hires have the biggest budget impact. Require finance sign-off on all positions, confirming it fits the budget and headcount plan.
Customer Contracts
Non-standard terms (extended payment, heavy discounts, custom SLAs) should involve finance to understand revenue impact.
Approval Workflow Tips
- Use tools (Ramp, Brex, Bill.com) to automate approvals—don't rely on email
- Set thresholds that balance oversight with speed—too low creates bottlenecks
- Review and adjust thresholds as you scale
- Have backup approvers so nothing gets stuck
Reporting Cadence
Consistent reporting keeps stakeholders informed and creates accountability. Establish a rhythm that matches your needs without creating report fatigue.
Standard Reporting Schedule
| Report | Audience | Cadence | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cash Report | CEO, CFO | Weekly | Monday morning |
| Financial Statements | Leadership team | Monthly | After close |
| Budget vs. Actuals | Dept heads, leadership | Monthly | After close |
| Key Metrics Dashboard | Leadership, board | Monthly | After close |
| Board Deck | Board of directors | Monthly or quarterly | 3-5 days before meeting |
| Investor Update | All investors | Monthly or quarterly | Mid-month |
| Forecast Update | Leadership, board | Quarterly | End of quarter |
For guidance on board reporting, see our Board Decks and Investor Reporting Guide.
Cash Management
Cash is the lifeblood of startups. You need processes to track it, forecast it, and protect it.
Essential Cash Processes
Weekly Cash Review
- Current cash balance across all accounts
- Expected inflows (AR collections)
- Expected outflows (upcoming payments)
- Rolling runway calculation
Monthly Cash Forecast
- 13-week rolling cash forecast
- Monthly projections for 12+ months
- Comparison to prior forecast
- Scenario analysis (what if revenue slips?)
Cash Controls
- Bank account access: Limit who can initiate and approve payments
- Payment approval: Dual approval for large payments (e.g., >$10K)
- Vendor verification: Verify bank details directly for new vendors (prevent fraud)
- Regular reconciliation: Weekly bank reconciliation to catch issues early
Learn more about cash management in our Cash Flow Forecasting Guide.
Documentation and Controls
As you grow, you'll need documented policies and internal controls. This isn't bureaucracy—it's risk management that investors and auditors will expect.
What to Document
Accounting Policies
Revenue recognition, expense capitalization, depreciation methods
Close Procedures
Step-by-step monthly close checklist with owners and due dates
Approval Matrices
Who can approve what amounts for expenses, contracts, hires
Expense Policy
What's reimbursable, per diem rates, receipt requirements
System Access
Who has access to what financial systems, with what permissions
Basic Internal Controls
Segregation of Duties
The person who approves a payment shouldn't be the same person who initiates it. Separate access and responsibilities where possible.
Review and Approval
All transactions above a threshold should require a second person's review before execution.
Reconciliation
Regular reconciliation of accounts catches errors and fraud. Don't let bank reconciliation slip.
Access Management
Review who has access to financial systems quarterly. Remove access promptly when people leave.
Scaling Tips
Building scalable processes is about balance: enough structure to create reliability, but not so much that you slow down.
Start Simple, Add Complexity
Don't over-engineer processes at seed stage. Start with the basics and add sophistication as you grow and feel the pain of missing process.
Automate Before Adding Headcount
When processes get slow, first ask: can we automate? Tools like Ramp, Bill.com, and FP&A software can handle work that would otherwise require hiring. See Automating Finance.
Document as You Go
Don't wait until you're 100 people to document processes. Write things down as you establish them. It's easier to maintain documentation than create it from scratch.
Build for 6-12 Months Ahead
Design processes for where you'll be in 6-12 months, not just today. But don't build for 3 years out—you'll change too much before then.
Warning Signs of Process Problems
- Financial close keeps getting later
- Same questions keep coming up
- Different people have different numbers
- You can't answer investor questions quickly
- People work around the process instead of through it
Related Articles
Scaling Your Finance Function
Complete guide from seed to Series B
Automating Finance
What to automate and when
Cash Flow Forecasting
Building accurate cash projections
Board Decks and Investor Reporting
Communicating with stakeholders
Need Help Building Finance Processes?
Eagle Rock CFO helps startups build scalable finance processes that grow with them. Let's discuss what you need.
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