Interim, fractional and advisory CFO leadership
Driving EBITDA improvement, cash control and finance transformation in PE-backed and scaling businesses.
Erik Gruwel acts as interim, fractional or advisory CFO to translate strategy into measurable financial performance — improving EBITDA, strengthening cash discipline and building finance organisations that can support growth, integration and investor expectations.
- EBITDA improvement and cost discipline with clear ownership and execution rhythm.
- Cash control, liquidity visibility and stronger short-term performance management.
- Finance transformation across teams, systems, FP&A and operating cadence.
Selected impact
- EBITDA improved from -20% to +20% in a post-merger environment
- €500M+ platform supported through finance transformation and performance improvement
- €24M financing secured to support growth and acquisitions
Directly with Erik Gruwel. No sales layer. No generic advisory pitch.
Senior finance leadership experience across
20+ years across listed, PE-backed, founder-led and family-owned organisations — from global corporates to high-growth, integration and transformation environments.
Selected impact
- EBITDA transformation: Improved EBITDA from -20% to +20% through cost discipline and operating model redesign.
- Scale and complexity: Built and led finance organisations in businesses with significant operational and stakeholder complexity.
- Financing and growth: Secured €24M financing to support acquisitions and expansion.
- Integration: Led post-merger integration across teams, systems and financial structure.
Who CFO Excellence works with
The work is built for leaders who need finance to move performance, strengthen control and improve decision quality.
PE Firms & Operating Partners
Translate the investment thesis into sharper KPIs, disciplined reporting, stronger cash control and an execution rhythm the portfolio team can actually run.
CEOs & Founders
Build visibility, control and decision quality as complexity increases, especially when growth, ownership change or underperformance expose finance gaps.
Portfolio CFOs & Leadership Teams
Add extra senior capacity for transformation, FP&A, business control, ERP/EPM, shared services, integration or performance acceleration.
Boards, Lenders & Investors
Improve the quality of the discussion around EBITDA, cash, leverage and execution readiness with a more credible single version of the truth.
Built for businesses where finance has to change outcomes.
CFO Excellence typically supports businesses between €50m and €1bn+ revenue where performance, control or complexity require a step change. The focus is simple: improve EBITDA, strengthen cash and build a finance function that drives decisions, not just reports them.
This means sharper forecasting, stronger liquidity control, clearer value drivers and a finance organisation that can support growth, integration or exit — with credibility towards boards, lenders and investors.
Core value-creation themes
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EBITDA & Cash Performance
Improve visibility, challenge assumptions and create an operating rhythm that drives action. -
Finance Transformation
Upgrade structure, planning, controls, systems and team capability as the business scales. -
Integration & Change
Support post-merger integration, redesign and complex transition with financial discipline. -
Investor-Grade Execution
Align management, board and investor expectations with sharper metrics and clearer accountability.
Typical situations where Erik gets involved
Performance pressure
- EBITDA underperformance with limited visibility on the real commercial and operational drivers.
- Cash pressure, covenant risk or weak short-term liquidity control.
- Board or investor concern that reporting is not decision-ready.
Scale, integration and step-change complexity
- Growth outpacing the current finance team, systems or operating model.
- M&A integration across entities, processes, systems and leadership teams.
- Need to build FP&A, business control, shared services or data foundations for the next phase.
- CEO or PE sponsor wants stronger value-creation discipline without delay.
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About Erik Gruwel
Erik is a CFO and operator focused on EBITDA improvement, finance transformation and value creation in complex and high-growth environments.
He has held senior finance leadership roles across Danone, Mars, HousingAnywhere and Landal / Roompot. His experience spans listed, PE-backed, founder-led and family-owned businesses in consumer, FMCG, tech and industrial settings.
Clients bring Erik in when performance needs to move, not just be explained — whether that means improving EBITDA, stabilising cash, building a stronger finance function or increasing confidence with boards, lenders and investors.
Summary for CEOs, investors and search firms
CFO Excellence provides interim, fractional and advisory CFO leadership for businesses that need stronger financial performance, tighter cash control and better execution through change.
The work focuses on EBITDA improvement, liquidity, forecasting, finance transformation, operating cadence, post-merger integration, investor-grade reporting and building finance teams that can support scale.
See also what CFO excellence really means, the CFO decision guide and the AI in Finance flagship.