Finance & Accounting
1. Overview & Mandate
Business Unit Purpose Finance & Accounting is responsible for maintaining the financial integrity, sustainability, and transparency of MorgueBoard LLC. This business unit ensures accurate financial reporting, prudent cash management, compliant accounting practices, and disciplined financial planning to support informed decision-making and long-term viability.
Mandate Statement Finance & Accounting exists to safeguard the company’s financial health by providing accurate reporting, effective controls, and forward-looking financial insight while ensuring compliance with applicable accounting and regulatory standards.
Primary Accountability Owner
- Primary: Finance Owner (John Baci)
- Supporting: Executive Leadership, Operations
- Fractional / External: Bookkeeping, tax, and accounting service providers (as applicable)
2. Core Functions & Responsibilities
Core Functions
- Financial accounting and bookkeeping
- Billing, invoicing, and revenue recognition
- Budgeting, forecasting, and financial planning
- Cash management and expense controls
- Payroll coordination
- Financial reporting and analysis
- Financial compliance and audit coordination
Explicit Responsibilities
- Maintain accurate and timely financial records
- Prepare and distribute regular financial statements
- Own budgeting and forecasting processes
- Monitor cash flow and financial runway
- Ensure appropriate revenue recognition practices
- Coordinate tax filings and external accounting support
- Support executive decision-making with financial insight
Explicit Non-Responsibilities
- Product pricing strategy ownership
- Contract negotiation or commercial deal execution
- Sales pipeline management
- Operational process ownership outside financial controls
3. Fractional & Embedded Capability Partners
This section documents ongoing fractional or embedded partners that support Finance & Accounting execution. These partners provide executional capability for defined scopes while accountability remains internal.
| Partner | Capability Provided | Engagement Type | Accountability Boundary | Primary Engagement Contact | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TBD | — | — | — | — | To be populated as bookkeeping, tax, or accounting partners are engaged |
4. Decision Rights & Authority Boundaries
Important Context The decision rights outlined in this section are intentionally high-level and directional. Formal, binding authority and escalation mechanisms are defined in the company’s Decision Rights & Governance Policy. In the event of conflict, the formal policy prevails.
Finance & Accounting Owns Decisions Regarding:
- Accounting methods and financial controls
- Budget construction and financial forecasting
- Financial reporting standards and cadence
- Expense categorization and cost tracking
Does Not Own:
- Strategic pricing or discounting decisions (Executive / Sales)
- Product investment prioritization (Product Management)
- Vendor selection outside financial implications (Operations)
- Employment terms or compensation structures (People Operations)
Escalation Triggers:
- Material budget variances or cash flow risks
- Compliance or audit findings
- Financial risks impacting company viability
5. Key Interfaces & Dependencies
| Interface | Nature of Interaction |
|---|---|
| Executive Leadership | Financial planning, runway management, strategic decisions |
| Operations | Vendor management, tooling costs, process controls |
| Sales (Revenue Operations) | Billing, invoicing, revenue tracking |
| People Operations | Payroll, benefits, compensation coordination |
| Legal & Contract Management | Financial terms, revenue recognition implications |
6. Budget Ownership & Cost Structure
Finance & Accounting Budget Scope
- Accounting and bookkeeping services
- Financial systems and tooling
- Tax preparation and compliance costs
- Audit and professional services (financial)
Budget Ownership Model
- Finance manages spend within an approved budget
- Executive Leadership approves annual budgets and material changes
- Spend should be justified by compliance, accuracy, or decision-support value
7. General KPIs & Performance Metrics
Financial Health
- Cash runway
- Burn rate
- Budget variance
Accuracy & Timeliness
- Timeliness of financial close
- Accuracy of financial reporting
- Billing and collection cycle time
Compliance & Controls
- Audit findings (financial)
- Tax filing timeliness
- Control exceptions identified
8. Initiatives & Goals Tracking
| Initiative / Goal | Description | Owner | Success Criteria | KPI(s) | Target Date | Status | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Formalize Budgeting & Forecasting Cadence | Establish a consistent budgeting and forecasting process with defined review cadence. | Finance | Predictable, repeatable financial planning cycle | Forecast accuracy, budget variance | Q 2026 | Planned | Supports executive decision-making |
| Improve Billing & Revenue Tracking | Enhance billing accuracy and revenue visibility across customers. | Finance | Reduced billing errors and faster collections | Billing accuracy, days sales outstanding | Q3 2026 | Planned | Coordinate with Sales & Operations |
| Strengthen Financial Controls | Review and strengthen financial controls appropriate to company scale. | Finance | Reduced control gaps and audit risk | Control exceptions | Q3 2026 | Planned | Scales with growth |
| Engage a proactive, neutral CPA firm as Company Accountant | Identify, vet, and onboard a CPA firm to assume responsibility for ongoing accounting operations (monthly close, reconciliations, tax coordination, financial reporting cadence, and advisory support), with clear scope, SLAs, and communication norms. | Finance | Signed engagement letter; CPA fully onboarded; standardized monthly close process established; reliable financial reporting cadence (monthly P&L/BS/CF); clear roles/RACI across CPA vs internal stakeholders. | • Time-to-hire (days to signed engagement) • On-time monthly close rate (%) • # of reconciling items aging >30 days • Monthly financial package delivery by day X • Stakeholder satisfaction score (internal) | Q1 2026 | Planned | Prioritize firms with forensic cleanup experience, SaaS/startup familiarity, and “audit-ready” discipline. Define expectations for neutrality, documentation rigor, and escalation paths. |
| Forensic rebuild of books (2020–present) to maturity/evaluation readiness | Perform a structured historical clean-up and reconstruction of accounting records beginning in 2020, including transaction classification, bank/CC reconciliations, AR/AP validation, payroll alignment, equity/loan/owner activity review, and creation of defensible supporting schedules to produce consistent, GAAP-aligned financials. | Nic Bavetta | All periods from 2020 onward reconciled; consistent chart of accounts and accounting policies documented; tie-outs completed (bank, CC, payroll, taxes); complete supporting schedules (revenue, COGS, prepaid, accruals, fixed assets, debt/equity); “audit-ready” financial statements produced. | • % months reconciled (2020–current) • # of unresolved exceptions • Variance reduction vs prior periods • # of missing documents/items • Delivery of finalized financial statements + schedules (yes/no) | Q4 2026 | Planned | Require a documented methodology and “exceptions log.” Confirm access to all source systems (banks, CC, payroll, invoicing, POS, etc.). Define materiality thresholds and approval workflow for adjustments. |
9. Maturity Roadmap
Current State Founder-led financial oversight with basic controls and limited automation.
Next State Consistent financial processes, improved visibility, and reduced manual effort through tooling and external support.
Future State Mature finance function with strong controls, real-time insight, and minimal dependency on individual institutional knowledge.
10. Document Revision History
| Version | Date | Description of Change | Author | Approved By | Approval Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.0 | 2026-01-04 | Document Creation | Nic Bavetta |