Driving strategic growth: $90M healthcare company transforms finance operations in two months with scalable framework 

The Challenge

A private equity-backed business services organization, formed to consolidate regional practices, experienced rapid expansion through strategic investments and partnerships. This growth, however, presented significant operational hurdles. The organization struggled to standardize its finance, sales, and back-office functions into a unified entity. With finance and sales teams operating on multiple systems with disparate processes, the close and consolidation process was heavily manual and inefficient.

Facing the critical task of creating their first-ever budget for board and PE owner presentation, the company identified a gap in skillsets, technology, and financial models needed to implement a robust budgeting process, including a detailed sales commission analysis. Highspring was engaged to build a new CFO organization and guide the client through this pivotal first budget cycle.

The Solution

Highspring implemented a multi-faceted approach to establish a strong financial foundation and support the client’s strategic objectives. This began with the development a comprehensive set of future-state financial processes designed to streamline operations and enhance efficiency across the organization. Then, the team created an organizational roadmap that projected the necessary functions and full-time equivalent (FTE) requirements for the next five years, providing a clear path for growth.

To achieve this, the Highspring team detailed a set of initiatives to advance the finance function’s maturity, leveraging NetSuite’s capabilities to maximize automation and integration. The team also conducted a thorough sales commission analysis, facilitating the development of a refined plan aligned with healthcare industry best practices.

Highspring provided expert guidance on planning and executing the budget cycle, supplying tailored templates for revenue, cost, and capital expenses to drive information gathering. The team then aggregated the collected data and developed a three-statement model to consolidate all inputs and produce comprehensive financial statements. Additionally, a board presentation storyboard was crafted, which included the development of detailed Revenue, Direct Cost, and EBITDA bridges with supporting narratives for board approval.

Our Impact

This structured approach and detailed preparation culminated in the board’s approval of the company’s first budget, achieved within the established timeline of two months. The collaborative effort produced immediate results, positioning the organization for sustained, scalable growth. In partnership with Highspring, the company initiated the implementation of the NetSuite ERP system to streamline its finance operations and began hiring for key missing positions identified in our team’s organizational roadmap.

All disparate finance organizations were also successfully consolidated into a single, centralized back office, eliminating redundancies and improving process consistency. The engagement provided the client with the necessary tools, processes, and strategic clarity to manage its finances effectively and report to its stakeholders with confidence.