In this Simple CFO Case Files episode, Christina Gutierrez sits down again with CFO Michael Glaspie to break open a case that starts with the most common story they hear: a young wholesaler making $300,000 a year top line with bone-dry bank accounts. He could see the money coming in but couldn't tell his financials left from right, and he was beyond stressed. Michael walks through how he diagnosed three root problems, employees, marketing, and profit margin, using lead-versus-lag thinking to trace each back to sales. He covers the brutal employee turnover burning $24,000 a year, the closing-table renegotiations that were gutting the wholesaler's deals, and the double-close fix that solved it. Over nine months the client doubled his top line, then doubled it again to over $1.2 million. If you're making money but feel broke, this one is a playbook. Timeline Summary [2:31] – The first look: $300K a year top line with financials you couldn't read left, right, or sideways [2:50] – The compliance red flag of deducting owner distributions as payroll [3:29] – He had QuickBooks, but it wasn't accurate and he couldn't read it [3:41] – Why the cash flow statement, not the P&L, shows what's actually in the bank [4:11] – Beyond stressed: a young single owner whose whole vision was lifestyle-driven [5:13] – Diagnosing the problem by breaking down expense, COGS, and revenue analysis [5:32] – The three root issues: employees, marketing, and inconsistent profit margins [6:48] – Why a CFO diagnoses the acquisition and marketing side, not just the expenses [7:07] – The accounting pyramid: bookkeeper as base, tax accountant above, CFO at the peak [8:07] – Lead measures versus lag measures and why sales are led by marketing and scripts [9:17] – The first fix: tackling employees, since they were running most of the sales [9:38] – The staggering turnover, 18 people rotated in nine months [10:13] – Running the numbers to show around $24,000 burned on hiring that year [10:36] – Fixing the hiring process with screening, interviewing, and Predictive Index [12:59] – The pushback on cutting his lifestyle spending down to necessities [13:41] – Turning the cuts into a 30-day challenge with milestones to make it a game [16:15] – Seeing better sales reps in seats within about three months [16:35] – Moving to marketing and focusing on conversion rate before increasing budget [16:57] – Digging into why the deals themselves were so variable [17:23] – The problem: sellers renegotiating at the closing table after seeing big assignment fees [18:21] – The double-close fix and pairing him with a transactional lender [19:07] – Doubling top line revenue in nine months from start to finish [20:15] – Doubling again the next 12 months to over $1.2 million [20:59] – How the Simple CFO dashboard and Profit First kept the lifestyle spending in check [23:02] – The one lesson: focus on the one thing with the biggest impact for the least time 5 Key Takeaways Your Deposits Aren't Your Profit — A $300K top line with empty bank accounts is the classic trap. Big deposits feel like money, but without accurate books and a cash flow statement, you have no idea what you're actually keeping.A CFO Diagnoses The Root, Not Just Expenses — A bookkeeper keeps the data accurate and a tax accountant reports it, but a CFO traces problems to their lead measures. Here, three issues all tracked back to sales.Employee Turnover Quietly Bleeds You — Rotating 18 people in nine months burned around $24,000 in hiring costs, plus weeks of ramp time with no revenue. Fixing the hiring process with real screening came first.Change Works In Baby Steps — The client fought cutting his lifestyle until it became a 30-day challenge with rising milestones. People stick with incremental wins far better than an overnight overhaul.The Double Close Saved The Margins — Sellers were renegotiating at the closing table after seeing huge assignment fees. Switching from wholesale to double closing with a transactional lender protected the profit and doubled revenue. Links & Resources Simple CFO — https://simplecfo.comProfit First for Real Estate Investing Free Workbooks — https://pfreiworkbook.comProfit First for Real Estate Investing by David Richter — https://profitfirstrei.com Enjoyed This Episode? If Michael's breakdown of tracing every problem back to one lead measure made you rethink where you're spending your energy, that's the shift worth making this week. Share this episode with a wholesaler who's making deposits but still feels broke, and follow the show and leave a rating and review so more investors can find these Case Files.
