Financial support that scales with your business.
Whether you need the books cleaned up or a full CFO-level strategy, we meet you where you are. Four core services, one standard of work, and an engagement designed to shift gears as your revenue does - so the firm you hire at $500K is still the right firm at $5M.
Four ways we keep your business financially sharp
Every McRally engagement is built from four core services. Some clients need one; most end up with a blend that shifts as the business grows. What never changes is the underlying job: giving you numbers you trust and a senior partner who helps you act on them. Here’s what each service covers, who it’s for, and where it fits.
Get a clear, prioritized plan for your business finances. Our financial assessment takes a close look at your accounting software, your CRA account and your cashflow. We find the gaps that could be costing you money, the risks that could lead to penalties or surprises at tax time, and the quick wins you can act on right away. You’ll come away knowing exactly what your business needs to focus on, and what it can safely leave alone.
Senior-level financial strategy, cashflow forecasting, tax optimization, and big-picture planning, without the cost of a full-time hire. Best suited to businesses over $2M in revenue, where decisions carry six-figure consequences and gut feel stops being good enough. You get a standing strategic partner: forecasts you can plan hiring and purchases around, structure that keeps tax working for you, and a second set of senior eyes on every major move.
Day-to-day bookkeeping, financial visibility, and year-end services that keep your books accurate and your reporting on time. This is the foundation layer. Clean, current, categorized books in Xero or QuickBooks Online, monthly reporting in plain language, and a year-end that’s a formality instead of a fire drill. For businesses under $2M, this is usually where the biggest early wins live.
From resolving back taxes to proactive, year-round tax planning that reduces what you owe and keeps you compliant. If you’re behind, we build a clean path back – assessment, filing, and CRA correspondence handled. If you’re current, we make sure tax strategy runs underneath every business decision year-round, so April stops being a season you brace for.
What most businesses need, by stage
Usually needs stronger bookkeeping fundamentals and basic financial strategy – getting the books clean, current, and useful for decision-making. At this stage the common symptoms are books that lag months behind, tax filings built on guesswork, and no clear read on whether the business is actually profitable month to month. The fix is rarely exotic: consistent bookkeeping, a simple reporting rhythm, and foundational tax planning. Boring, high-leverage work that makes everything after it easier.
Usually needs full CFO-level support and strategic guidance as complexity grows. The symptoms change here: cash that disappears despite strong revenue, growth decisions made without a forecast, and a tax bill that feels bigger than it should be. This is where a fractional CFO earns their keep – turning clean books into forward-looking strategy, and giving you a senior sounding board for the decisions that actually move the business.
How to pick your starting point
Here’s the honest answer: you probably don’t need to pick. On a discovery call, we’ll look at your revenue, your books, and your goals, and tell you which service or combination fits. But if you want a rough self-diagnosis first, four questions get you most of the way there.
Do you have a clear picture of where your finances stand? If you’re not sure what’s working, what’s at risk, or where to start, begin with a Financial Assessment. We review your accounting software, your CRA account and your cashflow to find the gaps, the risks and the quick wins, so you know what your business needs before you commit to anything else.
Are your books current and reconciled? If closing last month takes more than a couple of weeks, or you’re not confident the numbers are right, start with Accounting Services. Strategy built on bad books is expensive fiction.
Are you behind on taxes, or surprised by them every year? If yes, Tax Services comes first or runs in parallel. Back taxes compound in both cost and stress, and proactive planning only works from a compliant baseline.
Are you making big decisions on gut feel? Hiring, expansion, equipment, pricing: if the numbers aren’t in the room when those calls get made, and you’re past roughly $2M in revenue, the Fractional CFO service is where the leverage is.
And if the answers point in two or three directions at once, that’s normal too. Most engagements blend services, sequenced so the urgent problem gets solved first and the strategic layer builds on a stable base. The discovery call exists precisely to sort that sequencing out: free, and with no obligation on either side.
Common combinations
One standard, four services.
The service mix changes from client to client. The way we work doesn’t. Whether you’re a $400K business getting the books straightened out or an $8M company with a full CFO engagement, four commitments hold across every file we touch.
Your work isn’t delegated into a queue of juniors you’ll never meet. Senior people review every file and answer your questions directly. The person you talk to actually knows your business, your history, and what you’re trying to build.
Because we run a business too, recommendations get filtered through operating reality: what it costs, what it disrupts, and whether the payoff justifies both. Textbook-correct advice that ignores how businesses actually run isn’t advice – it’s homework.
If you leave a meeting more confused than you entered, we’ve failed at the job. Every report, every recommendation, and every tax explanation is delivered in words an owner uses, with the jargon translated, not performed.
We watch your numbers between meetings, flag issues while they’re still cheap, and bring opportunities to you before deadlines close them. The worst version of accounting is the one where you discover the problem first.
OUR PLATFORM PARTNERS
We're fluent in the tools you're already using
We’re aligned with Xero and fully support QuickBooks Online, which covers the vast majority of the businesses we meet. No forced migrations, no “our system” lock-in: we work inside your file, and it stays yours. If a software change ever genuinely serves you, we’ll make the case with real costs and handle the move ourselves.
Frequently asked
Can I start small and add services later?
That’s the normal path. Most clients start with the most urgent problem – usually books or back taxes – and layer in CFO support as the business grows. The engagement is built to scale, not locked to a package.
Do you replace my current bookkeeper?
Not necessarily. If you have internal bookkeeping that works, we can operate as the strategic and review layer above it. If the bookkeeping itself is the problem, we’ll take it on directly.
What industries do you serve?
Nearly all of them: trades, professional services, retail, tech, manufacturing, and more. The two exceptions are dental and medical practices, which we refer to specialists.
How does pricing work?
Every engagement is scoped after the discovery call and financial assessment, so you’re quoted on your actual situation, not a one-size tier. Scope and pricing are fixed and transparent before work begins.
How quickly can we start?
The discovery call can usually happen within the week. From there, timing depends on the state of your books: a clean file can move to the monthly rhythm almost immediately, while cleanup or back-tax work gets scoped with its own timeline up front.
Do you work remotely or in person?
Both. Calgary-area clients are welcome at our office on 13 Street SE; everyone else is served remotely through Xero, QuickBooks Online, and regular video check-ins – same team, same rhythm, wherever you are in Alberta.