Building a High-Impact Finance Team to Support Business Growth
Building a High-Impact Finance Team to Support Business Growth
As businesses evolve, so too must their finance function. A team that once focused solely on reporting and compliance must develop into a key driver of strategic decision-making, commercial insight and long-term value creation.
Building a high-impact finance team is an essential step for any organisation looking to support sustainable growth. Yet achieving this requires careful planning — from aligning the team’s role with business strategy, to structuring it for scale, to hiring the right talent.
In this article, we explore how businesses can approach building a finance team that delivers genuine impact and supports growth effectively.
Defining What “High-Impact” Means for Your Business
Every organisation is different, and so are its finance priorities. Before making decisions about team structure or recruitment, it is important to clarify what “high impact” means in your specific context.
For a fast-growing SME, the focus may be on improving financial controls and forecasting. A private equity-backed business may prioritise building value creation expertise and supporting exit strategies. A company expanding internationally may need specialist knowledge in cross-border compliance and cash management.
Aligning the finance team’s focus with broader business goals ensures that decisions about structure and hiring are driven by the outcomes the organisation wants to achieve.
Structuring for Scalability
Many businesses find that their finance function lags behind their pace of growth. Teams that were fit for purpose at an earlier stage often struggle to meet the demands of a more complex, fast-evolving business.
For example, relying solely on an external accountant or a single in-house finance lead is unlikely to be sufficient as financial complexity increases. A common progression is to appoint a Financial Controller to take ownership of core finance processes, reporting, and risk management.
As the business continues to scale, building FP&A capability becomes critical. Insightful analysis and robust forecasting help drive better decisions and manage growth effectively. Ultimately, adding CFO or Finance Director leadership provides board-level expertise and ensures that finance is fully embedded in the strategic direction of the business.
Importantly, any finance team structure should be designed with scalability in mind — able to evolve as the organisation’s needs change.
Hiring for the Right Capabilities
Technical accounting skills are essential, but a high-impact finance team must bring more than technical expertise. The ability to contribute commercially, influence decision-making, and collaborate across functions is increasingly important.
For example:
Can your Financial Controller communicate financial risk clearly to non-finance colleagues?
Does your FP&A capability translate data into practical business insight?
Is your CFO an active partner to the CEO and board in shaping strategy?
Hiring with these capabilities in mind ensures that the team adds value across the business, not just within the finance function.
Developing Leadership and Culture
High-impact finance teams do not operate in isolation. They are connected to the wider organisation and contribute to an open, collaborative business culture.
Finance leaders play a key role in fostering this environment. Encouraging finance professionals to engage with operational teams, understand commercial drivers, and communicate effectively helps embed finance at the heart of the organisation.
This leadership mindset is as important in smaller businesses as it is in larger corporates — and becomes increasingly critical as the business grows in size and complexity.
Final Thoughts
A high-impact finance team can be one of the most important assets a growing business has. By defining what the business needs from its finance function, structuring the team with an eye to scalability, hiring for both technical and commercial capabilities, and developing strong leadership, organisations can ensure that finance is a true enabler of growth.
Taking a thoughtful, strategic approach to building your finance team pays dividends — helping your business not only keep pace with growth, but drive it forward with confidence.
