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Ellen Wood
President and CEO
vcfo
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Bio:
Texas-based vcfo, co-founded by Ellen Wood, is the premier provider for strategic financial consulting and administrative infrastructure support services for early stage and emerging companies. Founded in 1996, vcfo focuses on the development and execution of financing strategies, establishing financial and administrative systems, and putting in place best practices to support continued growth and profitability.
With offices in Austin and Dallas, vcfo?s staff, client base, and pricing structure make it possible for small and emerging mid-market companies to obtain unparalleled strategic and tactical financial experience, expertise, and support on an affordable as needed basis.
Community involvement:
Board Member and Finance Council Chair for The Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce
Board Member and Treasurer for The Lone Star Council of The Boy Scouts of America
Advisory Board Member for Texas Capital Bank
Corporate participant in Partners in Education for several Austin area schools
President Elect for Texchange Austin
Active member and volunteer at Northwest Hills United Methodist Church
Past Board Member and Officer of Financial Executives Institute, Austin Chapter.
vcfo is also partner level founding underwriter for the Austin Entrepreneur's Foundation. vcfo provides discounted or probono services to several Austin area non profits in an effort to give back to the community. Additionally, several vcfo associates serve on boards of local charities and vcfo further supports their efforts through regular monetary contributions.
Person most admired:
My Dad, Burton Eubanks. When I look back now at his life, I am amazed that someone who married at 19 and had me, his first child at 24, had his act together so very well so early in life. His integrity and professionalism, as well as his great love for and loyalty to his family and friends have been an inspiration to me and remain the standard I strive toward.
Favorite book:
As the parent of a teenage boy, my most recent favorites have a teen parent theme and include ?The Five Love Languages of Teenagers,? and ?Purpose Driven Youth Ministry.? An intriguing work related book I?ll mention here is ?The Art of War.? There is a lot to learn from history in the area of business strategy.
What I enjoy most about my work:
I really enjoy both working with my colleagues here at vcfo, and solving problems for our client companies. I?m very fortunate to have a tremendous staff and many interesting client companies in our portfolio. Rarely are two days the same and the variety of challenges keeps the interest level high.
Greatest accomplishment:
I don?t think I can take credit for my family, but my husband, our son, and our extended family are without question the most important thing in my life.
Greatest challenge:
The greatest challenge I face as a business person in a service related industry is hiring top talent. Over the years the process has evolved to a subtle amalgamation of intuition in combination with very high standards and a targeted interviewing process.
Advances I envision in my field over the next 10 years:
The vastly enhanced methods of real time communication available are outstanding and enable more work to be done with less staff and with remote or outsourced staff. We?re also seeing some lower level transaction work being outsourced to offshore facilities. A sharp focus on integrity in the Accounting Industry will also continue to generate practice changes.
Strategies to maintain balance in my life:
Despite my best efforts, I do not have the magic answer in this area. Other people tell me I do a good job of compartmentalizing work and family, but I rarely meet my own standards in this area. It remains a constant struggle for me. If anything, take comfort in the fact that you are not alone if this is a stress area for you.
Advice for emerging entrepreneurs:
Enjoy what you do. Make sure there is in fact a market for what you do, that clients will pay you to do it, and that you have quantified financially (in advance) the ramifications of your proposed endeavor. Most importantly, do not ever sacrifice your personal integrity. There is no financial gain that is worth that compromise.
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