Ep.205: Alex (@aebridgeman) is joined by Mike Wyman (@michael-k-wyman). My guest today, Mike Wyman, brings over 30 years of experience in various CFO roles to this episode where we dive into the CFO role, especially in newly acquired businesses with limited financial infrastructure. Today Mike advises CEOs throughout the search fund ecosystem on making critical CFO hires and brings his experience to several boards as well. In our discussion, Mike outlines the CFO mentality and focus on constant improvement, what the various phases look like early in a new CEO’s tenure concerning finance, and advice for hiring your financial team. Listen weekly and follow the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Breaker, and TuneIn.  Learn more about Alex and Think Like an Owner at https://tlaopodcast.com/ I want to tell you about our audience survey we are currently running. These surveys help us create the best content for listeners and better understand your needs and interests. Thank you in advance for sharing your feedback, we greatly appreciate it. After 30 days we are giving $250 cash to 4 survey responders, just add your email at the end of the survey. Take the survey here: https://bit.ly/3QLBB1N Links: Mike on LinkedIn Topics: (00:00:00) - Intro (00:04:02) - Mike’s favorite roles during his career (00:12:31) - Developing the CFO Mentality framework (00:16:19) - Early improvements to implement in a finance department post-acquisition (00:18:38) - Phases and priorities in the finance of a search fund company (00:30:27) - Hiring a CFO (00:34:07) - Responsibilities of a strategic CFO (00:36:25) - Personal discoveries about life as a CFO (00:38:16) - Common mistakes from CFOs and CEOs post-acquisition (00:39:57) - What makes an effective finance team? (00:42:25) - Closing advice