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Many do not--and for understandable reasons. It wasn't too long ago that corporate America dismissed the connection between cash flow, risk and share value as unproven theory, and a few lone practitioners wandered executive offices in search of converts. Those lone practitioners didn't listen, they preached. They had to. Fortunately, the need for bible-pounding has passed. The debt-driven 1980's did as much as any missionary to spread awareness of the importance of cash-flow and share value. And that awareness has ballooned in the 1990's, as growing numbers of investors pressure for reform from within. Across America, directors and managers are being asked to evaluate strategic decisions and performance in light of their impact on share value, and to certify their evaluation with objective, outside counsel. Far from being controversial, the so-called value-planning framework has become mainstream, gaining a legitimacy rivaling, say, the life cycle hypothesis of the 1970's or the total quality phenomenon of the 1980's. What managers and directors need now are corporate finance practitioners — seasoned professionals who can help apply value planning's principles to meaningful dollars-and-cents issues, professionals who are willing to roll up their sleeves and fathom the precise connection between a manager's decision on the shop floor and its likely impact on share value. Unfortunately, many consultants still promote their frameworks as if they were proprietary. They are not. Consequently, the firms exaggerate nuances to distinguish their methodologies from competitors', yet ignore the preponderance of similarities. The result, too often, is to posture about semantics rather than listen to a client's specific needs. Worse, the industry suffers from calcification. Because so many consultancies began publishing their thoughts 15 years ago, assembled them in “definitive” manifestos and software programs, and belittled competing approaches, they are now bound to defend their age-old prescriptions — no matter how outdated or imperfect. We founded Finegan & Company because we believed it was time to redefine corporate finance — to build an eclectic, nuts-and-bolts consultancy which cherry picked the best the profession had to offer, listened intently to clients and others, utilized state-of-the-art technology, and infused the profession with top-flight multidisciplinary experience. We are confident we have created such a practice. If the services we offer seem more focused than the many one-stop shops promising to “reform” your management system, there is good reason. Our goal — plain and simple — is to make your financial and strategic planning departments look brilliant. No showmanship, no swagger. Just experience, responsiveness, and the most formidable intellectual and analytical firepower in the industry.
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