Interview with David Belbeck, Staircase Ventures Advisor and Former CFO of PointClickCare, on the Importance of Strategic Financial Management

The Advisor Series – Featuring David Belbeck

Staircase Ventures has an outstanding team of Advisors supporting our portfolio companies. In this blog series, we introduce you to each of our Advisors, share their stories, and highlight some of their insights and advice on building startups.

Introducing David Belbeck!

David was the CFO and SVP of Corporate Development at PointClickCare for over 12 years, leading the company to over $350 million in annual revenues. He also led 7 strategic acquisitions, driving growth in product offerings and addressable markets. Before joining PointClickCare, David spent his time as a CFO and in other leadership roles at various startups and enterprises like IBM and Honeywell.

In an interview with Robbie Marks, David discusses the importance of financial discipline, the benefits of a strategic CFO, and some advice for startups thinking about hiring their first CFO.

Q: Why is the CFO role critical for startups?

A: A CFO brings financial discipline and strategic guidance to the business. Early-stage founders/CEOs are often focused on building their product and finding product-market fit. Most founders are naturally very bright and so they’ll pick up the basic finance of the business pretty quickly. But one of the key drivers as a startup scales is to build a regular financial planning cycle. A CFO helps align your financial strategy with your business goals, whether it’s managing cash flow, preparing for fundraising, or planning for growth.

Additionally, CFOs can take time-consuming financial and administrative tasks off a CEO’s plate so they can focus on leading and scaling the business. A great example of this is during a fundraising process. A CFO can take on a significant portion of the administrative burdens during a fundraise, ensuring both historical and projected financials are investor-ready as well as help with managing the behind-the-scenes due diligence process. This allows the CEO to concentrate on pitching the vision and building relationships with investors.

Q: When is the right time to hire a CFO? Should you hire fractional or full-time?

A: It really depends on the stage of the business. Early-stage companies, from Seed to Series A, could often benefit from involvement with a fractional CFO. It can be a cost-effective way to help formally establish processes like financial reporting, forecasting, budgeting, and tracking KPIs, without the commitment of a full-time hire. This allows founders to focus on growing the business while ensuring the financial health of the business is not overlooked.

Once a company reaches $10-20 million in revenue, it’s probably time to consider a full-time CFO. At this stage, a CFO’s role becomes much more strategic. There is a greater focus on scaling operations, optimizing cash flow across business units, and supporting growth initiatives like acquisitions or geographic expansion. This phase requires a full-time CFO who is fully engaged in driving the company’s growth.

Q: How does the CFO role change as a company scales?

A: A CFO’s responsibilities change significantly as the company scales. It’s best to think of the role in three stages:

1. Early Stage ($1-10M ARR): The CFO focuses on operational tasks like simple cash flow management and setting up financial processes.
2. Growth Stage ($10-100M ARR): The role becomes more strategic, focusing on scaling financial reporting systems, fundraising, and preparing for potential M&A opportunities.
3. Late Stage ($100M+ ARR): The CFO shifts to managing investor relations, regulatory compliance (if any), and navigating public markets if the company is considering going public.

At all stages, the CFO should ensure that the management team has a great handle on the key metrics that drive shareholder value. In a SaaS business, recurring revenue growth, recurring gross margin percentage, customer retention and customer acquisition costs are all critical metrics in growing value.

Founders should also keep in mind that the same CFO may not scale with the company through each stage. It’s important to continually assess whether your CFO’s skill set (or any C-suite executive, for that matter) matches the company’s current needs.

Q: How did your role as CFO help shape PointClickCare’s success?

A: At PCC, financial planning and discipline were core to our growth. We established an annual strategic planning cycle that aligned the team and set clear targets. We were extremely focused on hitting our targets each year and maintaining a clear focus which aligned budget decisions with strategic intent.

We were also one of the first companies in the healthcare market to implement a recurring revenue model. In the early days, we introduced SaaS to the market and most of our competitors effectively discounted the idea. This allowed us to rapidly capture market share, grow consistently, and hit our numbers with precision. The predictability of revenues also helped us plan effectively for cash flow and operational needs.

Later on, probably 15 years into the business, M&A became a useful tool to expand our addressable market. However, I believe the most accretive growth in early-stage businesses is organic growth.

Q: What advice, from a finance perspective, do you have for early-stage founders?

A: First, prioritize cash flow management—it’s the lifeblood of your business. Second, don’t raise too much capital too soon. It might seem counterintuitive, but overfunding can dilute your ownership and set unrealistic expectations for growth. Only raise what you need when you need it, ensuring that the timing aligns with your strategic goals. Finally, focus on building your company for your entire customer market, not just for one early customer. Too many startups tailor their product to one big customer, only to find it doesn’t meet the broader market’s needs.

Q: What’s your advice for founders considering their first CFO hire?

A: Take your time to find the right fit. A good CFO should complement the CEO’s leadership style and align with the company’s culture. Look for someone who not only manages the numbers but also brings strategic insights that drive growth.

Q: What motivates you to work with founders today?

A: I’ve been fortunate to have a successful career, and I see this as an opportunity to give back to the Canadian startup ecosystem. Growth-stage companies face unique challenges, and I enjoy helping founders navigate them by sharing lessons from my experience. My goal is to help founders avoid common pitfalls and think strategically about scaling their businesses.