New to working with a CFO
Start with the number that matters most, and see what changes when you know it.
Insights · Know Your Zero
Your bank balance is not your real number.
Your zero is what is left after every job cost, payable, and dollar owed is accounted for. Every other week, Guillermo shows construction and real estate owners how to find theirs and use it to make better decisions.
Interactive story
Why a profitable job can drain your cash.
Follow one $1.2 million job, week by week, and watch a profitable project use $424,000 of your cash before it pays you back. Scroll to play it out.
Play the story →Start here
Not sure where to begin? Pick a path.
Three short reading lists, each built around a question owners ask us most.
Getting ready for the bank or surety
What lenders and sureties look for, and how to show up prepared.
Growing fast
The decisions that come with growth, and the numbers you need behind them.
The archive
Every issue, in one place.
Practical guidance on cash, profit, and growth. No jargon, no fluff, just what owners need to know before the next big decision.
Issue 09 · Cash & Profit
The Bid That's Worth the Most Is the One You Can Least Afford to Guess On
Why the cost model that works for your normal jobs can quietly misprice a much bigger bid, and four ways to price it with numbers you can stand behind.
Read the issue →
Issue 08 · Leadership & Growth
A Partner Wants Out. Your Numbers Need to Be Ready Before the Conversation Starts.
When a partner wants out, gut feel about what the business is worth won't settle anything. Here's why buyouts stall, and how clean, normalized numbers keep both sides at the table.
Read the issue →
Issue 07 · Banking & Bonding
Your Bank Wants a Forecast. Your Spreadsheet Wasn't Built to Give Them One.
Your line of credit is up for renewal and your lender wants a forecast that holds up. Here's why last year plus a growth rate reads as hope, and how to build one from real commitments.
Read the issue →
Issue 06 · Banking & Bonding
Your WIP Schedule Says One Thing. Your Surety Wants to Hear Another.
You read your WIP schedule to see how each job is doing. Your surety reads it to see whether your whole balance sheet can carry your backlog. Here's how to close that gap before your next bid.
Read the issue →
Issue 05 · Client Stories · Cash & Profit
This Is What Happens When You Actually Know Your Zero
A fast-growing real estate investment company went from guessing at the portfolio level to true profit on every property, and cut annual finance costs from $700,000 to under $200,000.
Read the issue →
Issue 04 · Leadership & Growth
Your Bookkeeper Isn't Doing My Job, and That's the Point
Accurate books and good decisions are not the same thing. Guillermo explains where a bookkeeper's job ends, where a CFO's begins, and why you need both to know your zero.
Read the issue →
Issue 03 · Cash & Profit · Banking & Bonding
Why You Can't Bid the Next Job Even Though You're Profitable
Your P&L says you can afford the next job. Your bank account says something else. Guillermo explains how retainage, WIP, and committed spend hide your real bidding capacity.
Read the issue →
Issue 02 · Leadership & Growth
The Leadership Gap Your Numbers Are Already Showing You
Your numbers don't just show what happened financially. They show where your leadership hasn't fully reached yet, and why good people leave or the wrong ones stay.
Read the issue →
Issue 01 · Cash & Profit
The Number Your Bank Account Won't Tell You
Most owners can tell you their bank balance without blinking. Ask for their real number and the room gets quiet. Guillermo explains your zero, and how one fast-growing real estate founder stopped guessing after staffing firms and a full-time CFO fell short.
Read the issue →Follow on LinkedIn
Get every issue of Know Your Zero.
Every other week on LinkedIn. One real number, one real mistake, or one real fix. Subscribe there and LinkedIn will let you know when each new issue goes out.
Prefer LinkedIn? New issues publish there every other week. Subscribe on LinkedIn so you never miss one. Or see every issue on LinkedIn.
Ask Guillermo
Have a money question? Ask it here.
Send Guillermo the question that keeps coming up in your business. He reads every one, and the best ones become future Know Your Zero issues and podcast episodes.
- Questions about cash, pricing, banking, bonding, or growth
- Answered personally, or in a future issue or episode
- No pitch, and no question is too basic
Let's talk
Want to know your zero?
Start with a free 30-minute conversation about your business, your cash, and the decisions ahead.
Prefer to talk now? Call 325-374-2320 or email guillermo@rodriguezcfo.com