Burt Copeland

This transcript has been edited for clarity and readability. Filler words and repetitions have been removed, and formatting has been adjusted for flow while preserving the original meaning and conversational tone.

Henry Harrison:
I’m very glad to have the CEO, owner, and founder of New Life CFO on the Henry Harrison Podcast—Entrepreneurs, Business, and Finance.

We’ve become friends, I’ve seen him speak, and we’ve even discussed how he might help my company. He’s a terrific guy.

Hello, Bert Copeland.

Bert Copeland:
Henry, thanks a ton for having me. It’s great to be here.

What New Life CFO Does

Henry Harrison:
You’ve built a strong company with a team of around 16 people. The name New Life CFO gives some insight, but explain what you do.

Bert Copeland:
We provide outsourced CFO services—what many call fractional CFO.

About two-thirds of our work is:

• CFO-level strategy

And about one-third is:

• Accounting

• Controller services

• Assistant controllers

On one side, we’re driving strategy. On the other, we ensure the financials are accurate so decisions can be made with confidence.

Because even the best CFO can’t make good decisions with bad data.

Who They Serve

Henry Harrison:
A lot of entrepreneurs need this but can’t afford a full-time CFO. What size companies do you typically work with?

Bert Copeland:
On the accounting side:

• $1M to $25M in revenue

On the CFO side:

• Typically $5M to $80M

There needs to be enough scale so we’re not overhead—we should be an investment that improves:

• Performance

• Cash flow

• EBITDA

If we ever look like overhead, the client should fire us.

The Entrepreneur Gap

Henry Harrison:
You end up helping in many areas because financials touch everything.

Bert Copeland:
Exactly.

Entrepreneurs are usually excellent at:

• Product

• Sales

• Market execution

But financial management often isn’t their strength.

Our role is to help them understand:

• What their numbers are saying

• What actions to take

We have a saying:
Financials are a reflection of your people, decisions, behaviors, processes, and systems.

If you want to change your numbers, you have to change those inputs.

Real-World Example: Profit Leaks

Bert Copeland:
We worked with a software company running at about 3.5% profitability—they should have been closer to 10%.

We asked four questions:

1. Is the product below average?

2. Are the people below average?

3. Is leadership below average?

4. If not, then processes must be broken

The issue turned out to be missed change orders.

Each technician was skipping ~2 hours/week of billable work. Across 50 employees, that was:

• ~100 hours/week

• At $250–$300/hour

That incremental revenue dropped almost entirely to the bottom line.

Fixing that one process more than doubled profitability.

Forecasting & Projections

Henry Harrison:
Projections are hard for entrepreneurs.

Bert Copeland:
They are—but the mistake is chasing precision instead of usefulness.

We use a “cone of performance” approach:

• Best-case projection

• Minimum acceptable performance

This creates a range.

If performance:

• Tracks upward → good

• Flattens → warning

• Declines → pivot immediately

Another key metric is revenue per head:

• If it rises too high → team is overloaded → hire

• If it drops → efficiency issue or overstaffing

This helps guide hiring and layoffs with data instead of emotion.

Bert’s Personal Story

Henry Harrison:
You’ve lived this firsthand.

Bert Copeland:
I was CFO and later president of a construction company.

We grew from $7M to a $30M run rate—then 2008 hit.

Revenue dropped 86% in one month:

• From ~$2.2M to $325K

My break-even was $800K.

I was losing ~$500K/month.

I nearly lost everything—about $6–7M in net worth.

We eventually turned it around, and 2009 became my best year ever.

But that experience changed everything.

The Origin of “New Life”

Bert Copeland:
During that time, I had two questions:

• What am I supposed to learn?

• Where do I go next?

The answer I felt was:

• “Use the gifts you’ve been given.”

• “Take me with you.”

That led to a new direction—and ultimately New Life CFO.

It’s both:

• A calling

• An accountability statement

Our mission reflects that:

• Use our gifts

• Serve others

• Operate in a “carefrontational” way (caring but willing to challenge)

Experience Matters

Henry Harrison:
Your team has real operating experience.

Bert Copeland:
That’s intentional.

Our CFOs have:

• Run divisions

• Been COOs

• Owned companies

And importantly—we look for people who’ve struggled at some point.

That creates:

• Empathy

• Humility

• Better partnerships

Business Exit & Value Creation

Bert Copeland:
We also help business owners prepare for exit.

We start with:

1. What does your next life look like?

2. How much money do you need?

3. What is your business worth today?

4. What does it need to be worth?

Then we build a plan to bridge that gap.

How to Engage

Henry Harrison:
What’s the best way to get started?

Bert Copeland:
Reach out via:

• Website

• Email

• Phone

We’ll spend an hour or more understanding your situation.

If we’re not the right fit, we’ll connect you with someone who is.

Our philosophy is simple:
If we serve you well, we’ll be served.

Early Career & Background

Henry Harrison:
You originally wanted to be a surgeon.

Bert Copeland:
Yes—but my grades said otherwise.

I pivoted into accounting and became a CPA.

I spent time in:

• Audit (which I didn’t love)

• Turnarounds and restructurings (which I did love)

That shaped my career path.

Final Thoughts

Henry Harrison:
This has been a great conversation.

Bert Copeland:
I appreciate the opportunity, Henry.

Henry Harrison:
Thanks for joining us on the Henry Harrison Podcast. I know the audience will find this valuable.

Talk to you soon.

Bert Copeland:
Thanks, Henry.