Fractional CFO for Manufacturers · Dallas–Fort Worth
Your Manufacturing Business Already Knows the Truth. Your Financials Should Too.
Fractional CFO and controller services that tie your operations to your financials, so you can make confident decisions backed by numbers you trust.
Schedule a Discovery Call
Industry-built, not Big FourManufacturing & distribution financeDallas-Fort WorthMost Manufacturers Don't Have a Data Problem. They Have a Clarity Problem.
You're not short on data. You're short on data that turns into actionable information. When it doesn't, here's what it usually looks like:
The books don't match reality.
The financials arrive, but they don't match what you see on the floor. Something's off, and no one can explain why.
You're making calls on instinct.
Your reports show company-wide totals, not whether a given product, customer, or line actually turns a profit.
Profit looks good. Cash doesn't.
The P&L says you're making money. Your bank account tells a different story.
You're always a month behind.
By the time the books close, the problems are weeks old, and the chance to fix them has passed.
Operations and Finance Speak Different Languages.
JD Speaks Both.
A manufacturing business speaks two languages: operations and finance. Most leaders become fluent in one or the other, and very few speak both. That's where costly decisions get made.
JD Brem has spent more than a decade connecting what happens on the plant floor to what appears in the financial statements. He doesn't just explain the numbers; he explains why they happened. He can take a manufacturing P&L with a hundred accounts buried in cost of goods sold, identify the handful that actually move profitability, and explain them just as easily to a plant manager as to a board of directors.
Clarity Through the Noise.
Accounting has a way of making simple problems sound complicated. Accruals, absorption, timing, variances: they matter, but they shouldn't get in the way of a good business decision. We cut through the jargon, connect the numbers to your operation, and give you the clarity to act with confidence.
A Structured Path, Right-Sized to the Problem.
Diagnose
Assess how the financials connect to operations. Find critical gaps and quick wins that make the numbers useful.
Stabilize
Shore up the financial processes to ensure reliable reporting with actionable insights.
Systematize
Build the repeatable processes, KPIs, and dashboards that turn ad-hoc fixes into durable infrastructure.
Scale
Equip your team to run it without us, and stand behind you in the investor, lender, and buyer conversations as they come.
Fractional engagement: a right-sized commitment with CFO / Controller Impact.
Fractional CFO Services for Manufacturers
CFO-level strategy with the hands-on cost-accounting and operational depth most fractional finance leaders don't bring, built over a career inside manufacturing.
Financial Controllership
Month-end close ownership, reconciliations, internal controls, and a monthly reporting package that scales as you grow.
Reporting & FP&A
Board- and investor-ready reporting, KPI dashboards, and variance analysis that stands up to lender and sponsor scrutiny.
Product-Level Profitability
Standard cost design and variance decomposition that gets you down to whether this widget is actually making money, not just enterprise-level guesses.
Audit Readiness
GAAP alignment, cash-to-accrual conversion, PBC schedules, and clean narratives that prepare you for an audit performed by your licensed CPA firm (we don't perform audits).
ERP Support
We implement smaller systems directly and partner with your team on enterprise ERPs, handling remediation, UAT, and stabilization so you get the result you're paying for.
Sell-Side QoE Support
Quality-of-Earnings databook preparation and proactive financial reviews that strengthen your position before a buyer's diligence team starts asking questions.
Fix the systems, or run the numbers every month.
Two ways in. One-time project work that puts your systems and history right — or an ongoing retainer that keeps the books current once they are.
Start here
Are your books and systems in shape today?
No — something's off.
The numbers don't reconcile, the ERP doesn't fit, or we're behind on the close.
Start in Pillar A →Yes — we just need them run.
The systems work. We need the close owned and the reporting to hold up.
Start in Pillar B →Not sure which? That's the first thing we work out on a call.
Systems & Implementation
One-time projects — defined end state
Pick the one that matches the problem. Most engagements start with cleanup, then move to the build.
Best for catch-up or restatement, or systems that aren't talking to each other.
Cleanup & Integration
Historical cleanup & catch-up accountingRestatement to review-ready conditionERP & system integration auditClean handoff into ongoing supportBest for manufacturers migrating systems or outgrowing their setup.
ERP Upgrade & Configuration
System evaluation & selection supportChart of accounts & workflow configurationData migration & validationIntegration: payroll, inventory, bankingTeam training & go-live supportBest for manufacturers who need real per-product-line costs.
Standard Costing System Build
Standard costing methodology designBOM & routing setup in the ERPVariance tracking frameworkUnit economics by SKU / product lineRollout & staff trainingOngoing Advisory
Monthly retainers, each building on the last
Start at the level that matches your reporting burden. Moving up is a conversation, not a new engagement.
Best for smaller or single-entity manufacturers needing accurate, review-ready books.
Foundation
Month-end close ownership & reviewCore reporting: P&L, balance sheet, cashBasic variance commentaryStanding email & scheduled-call accessBest for growth-stage or PE-backed manufacturers needing a true controller.
Controller
Everything in Foundation, plus:
Full board & investor reportingGross margin by product lineStandard cost variance analysisMulti-site / multi-entity coordinationMonthly review meetingBest for multi-site operations and PE-grade reporting rigor.
Fractional CFO
Everything in Controller, plus:
Multi-entity consolidationStandard cost updates & adjustments within the current systemsVariance decomposition & ownership reportingKPI & dashboard developmentDeeper operational-finance partnershipNo two manufacturers are the same, so no two engagements are.
Thirty minutes on a call is usually enough to tell you which side of this page you belong on — and whether you need us at all.
Book a 30-minute fit callYour Financials, Built on a Process.
The goal isn't a prettier report you still can't use. It's a set of scorecards you can run the business on: the same numbers, at the level where you can actually act on them, refreshed on a rhythm instead of a scramble. You'll easily see how the business is running and where you get to make a call.
Daily
The handful of metrics that tell you how today is going, surfaced in minutes, not mined in a science experiment.
Weekly
Weekly metrics to reduce daily variability, cash forecasting to ensure adequate funding levels, and profitability reviews.
Monthly
A clean, on-time close and a reporting package (P&L, balance sheet, cash) with commentary that explains why the numbers moved, not just that they did.
Year-to-Date
The rolled-up view that keeps ownership, lenders, and buyers looking at the same reliable story you are.
How it scales
Depth and cadence scale with your engagement. Every client gets a reliable monthly close and reporting package; the weekly and daily scorecards come in as the engagement deepens.
And when it's built, we train your team to run it, so you keep the system whether or not you keep us.
He Knows Finance. He Also Knows the Floor.
JD Brem has spent twelve years inside manufacturing and PE-backed finance, building the financial infrastructure that turnarounds, ERP implementations, and multi-site operators depend on. He's led finance across as many as eleven P&Ls and roughly $500M in COGS in North America, and he's done it from inside industry, not from a Big Four office.
That's the difference. JD speaks the language of the shop floor, the warehouse, and the boardroom, connecting production, inventory, routing, and purchasing data to the financial statements so leaders understand what drives results. He goes deeper into product-level costing, variance decomposition, and the operational levers that move margin, aligning the Value Creation Plan with specific actions and easy-to-track hourly and daily metrics. Everyone, from the floor to the boardroom, can see what needs to happen and whether those actions are delivering results.
inside manufacturing and PE-backed finance
in COGS experience across North America
managed simultaneously at one time
JD Brem
Fractional CFO for Manufacturers
Finance + Operations Foundation
Accounting/finance degree and supply chain graduate degree with hands-on operations experience
PE-Backed Manufacturing Expert
Trained inside a global, publicly traded manufacturer across multiple PE-backed LBO environments
Systems & ERP Expertise
Certified QuickBooks partner; works across any accounting system, including Oracle, SAP, Dynamics, NetSuite, Xero, Zoho, and more.
Results
Details are kept deliberately vague to respect client confidentiality, but the numbers are real.
Case Study 1 - Profitable isn't the same as healthy
Situation
A manufacturer was posting solid revenue while margin quietly leaked out through untracked variances, stale annual budgets, and cash blind spots. The team was doing everything they believed was right, and still couldn't see where the business was actually headed.
Action
We automated weekly metrics so problems surfaced in week one instead of at month-end close. We replaced the static annual budget with rolling forecasts tied to real volume. And we put cash discipline at the center of every decision, with no new software required.
Result
Case Study 2 - Managers can't own a budget they can't see
Situation
Costs were tracked at the plant level, but no one below that level had real visibility. Expenses drifted because the people making the decisions never saw the numbers attached to their decisions until a monthly report weeks later. That's not a discipline problem. It's a visibility problem.
Action
We tied costs directly to the departments and managers responsible for them, gave budget owners real-time visibility into their own numbers, and built a weekly rhythm: P&L, inventory, and metric reviews as routine, not a fire drill.
Result
"You give finance a third dimension. I can see it, I can touch it, I can feel it. I can walk out on the plant floor and act on it."
—Former GM, Global Manufacturer
Who We Work Best With
Brem Enterprises brings the corporate-grade finance of a CFO / Controller to manufacturers who can't yet justify one on payroll:
Private equity firms
stepping into firms to upgrade processes for institutional grade investment expectations
Family offices
running acquired businesses that need clean, board-ready numbers and steady hands
Venture-backed manufacturers
scaling fast and burning through cash faster than their reporting can keep up
Family-owned and owner-operated small businesses are welcome too.
If you're ready to see your business clearly and act on it, we're glad to step in.
Questions worth asking
Are you a CPA firm?
No. Brem Enterprises is an operational finance firm providing fractional CFO, controller, financial reporting, FP&A, and transaction-readiness services. We are not a licensed CPA firm and do not perform any service requiring a CPA license or issue any form of assurance. We are also not a transactional (M&A) advisory firm. If you need that, we’re glad to connect you with the right partner.
Do you do taxes, audits, or attestation work?
We don’t. We do not provide audit, attestation, review, compilation, or tax services, and nothing in our work should be construed as such. We’ll get your books review-ready and stand beside you through the process, but the audit or tax engagement itself belongs to your licensed CPA firm, and we’ll happily coordinate with them.
How is this different from my tax CPA?
Your tax CPA is focused on filing returns and keeping your tax liability low. We’re focused on the opposite side of the same coin: building the bridges between all the moving pieces so you can actually run and grow the business. Most tax professionals live on one side of the house. JD has spent his career tying operations and financials together.
Do I need a specific software or ERP?
No. We’re system-agnostic. Whether you’re on QuickBooks or Xero, a full ERP like NetSuite, Dynamics, SAP, or Oracle, or a hodgepodge in between, we make it work. We’ll also tell you honestly when a tool is holding you back versus when a smart spreadsheet gets you there for a fraction of the cost.
Do you do the actual accounting, or just strategy?
It depends on the engagement. We can own the close and the day-to-day, or we can sit above your existing team and make sure the numbers and metrics are right. Many engagements are hands-on controller work; others are a lighter weekly touchpoint. We scope to what you need.
What does it cost?
Pricing is custom, presented as a straightforward monthly fee scoped to your engagement, not an hourly meter. Cleanup and remediation projects are scoped and priced separately from ongoing retainers. We’ll walk you through it on the call.
Do I have to sign a long-term contract?
No. We’re glad to start month-to-month, which keeps both of us honest. Most relationships continue because they’re working, not because they’re locked in.
How do you protect confidentiality?
Seriously. It’s why the results above are kept industry-vague and why we don’t name clients without written permission. Discretion is part of the job, especially in and around a transaction.
Start with a conversation.
The best place to start is a focused thirty-minute conversation. Tell JD where the business stands, and you'll leave with a straight read on what it would take to get where you're going.
You work with JD directly, not an account team. Book a time above, call JD, or send a note using the form below.
Or put it in writing.
Not ready to schedule? Send JD a quick note and he'll get back to you.
JD personally reviews every message and responds promptly.