As a financial professional, have you ever wished there was an alternative to working 9am to 5.30pm without your career taking a hit? (Let’s be honest, you often end up working much longer hours than this, with work creeping further and further into your evenings and weekends.) But you’ve spent years building your career as a finance professional and you don’t want to throw that away. At the same time, the type of work you do doesn’t tend to come with a part-time option and you’re not yet ready for retirement. 

Is it time to ditch the “Corporate hours” lifestyle? 

If you’re looking for an alternative, then you’re not alone. More than ever, people are rethinking their work life. If there was one thing the pandemic taught us, it was that the traditional notion of working fixed hours sat in an office block is outdated. With people forced to work from home, new ways of working had to be found. While it was a stressful time, many found the more autonomous pace of life enjoyable and something they wanted to continue in their life. 

However, as we move beyond the pandemic, those flexible practices are disappearing as employees return to the office. Having experienced a different way of working, though, has made many rethink their careers and believe that there are alternatives, where they can have the balance and flexibility they need without giving up what they have worked so hard to achieve. 

They still want to use their skills and expertise and receive a financial reward for them. But they also want to play a round of golf or other sport during the week or create better family time (good for health, good for productivity, and good for networking). They want to feel more benefit from their holidays, have time to relax, and indulge in their interests before they think of retiring. 

If this sounds like you, then you’ve probably considered the option of starting your own business. However, you know this can be daunting, time- and energy-consuming, especially in the beginning, as you build your client base. It won’t give you the balance in life you desire for quite some time. 

Without a solution, you will continue in your current role, spending most of your working hours at the office each day. 

How to balance the career and lifestyle you want 

This is the situation many of our associates faced before they came to EFM and built a portfolio career with us. EFM is a nationwide team of Finance Directors, Business Advisors and Financial Controllers providing ‘pay as you go’ financial management services to businesses. 

Our associates are independent, which means they get to design their lifestyle while still meeting their financial objectives. For example, our top earners regularly bill over six-figure amounts per annum. 

EFM provides associates with a whole range of support, including: 

• Access to an extensive network of contacts, tools and opportunities 
• A vital induction programme including guidance on compliance and risk management 
• An advisory board 
• Access to your coach and mentor to help you get started. 

Rather than starting your business on your own, you get to do it with an entire team behind you: a team with a track record of delivering leads and new clients and a group of other supportive associates with similar aims and values 

There are many reasons our associates have joined us, from feeling their skills were being underutilised, to wanting to move to the coast and enjoy a different lifestyle. 

However, many of them are simply looking to create more balance in their life. Not ready for full retirement, they want to strike a middle ground between still having a career with a great income and having more freedom with their time. 

How to become an associate 

If you’re interested in creating that kind of balance in your life, then we are currently recruiting for associates nationwide. EFM offers a complete turnkey business solution without the restrictions found in the usual franchise agreement. The first step is to become more informed about what is involved in becoming an associate and how our licensing works. 

We would recommend you register for one of our Virtual Discovery Events. Rather than a sales pitch, these are informative events where you discover more about the opportunity we offer and what it’s like to work as a part-time Finance Director with your own portfolio of SME clients. And you’ll hear it directly from those who have taken this career path. Alternatively, you can get in touch with us here. 

There are many SME businesses out there in need of affordable support, often in the shape of a part-time Finance Director or similar. As a finance professional looking for more flexibility, you could provide this help. You get to continue your career and have more freedom, while clients’ businesses get the much-needed advice and guidance they rely on. It’s a win-win.