Austin Smiley
Chief Financial Officer | Construction, Trades, Home Services, Trucking, Logistics & Manufacturing
Introduced through Obsidian Thorne
Executive Summary
Austin Smiley is an experienced financial executive with more than a decade of experience helping businesses improve profitability, strengthen cash flow, and accelerate growth. His background includes fractional CFO leadership, corporate financial management, operational turnarounds, strategic planning, and financial oversight of multimillion-dollar operations.
Austin works directly with founders and executive teams to identify where profits are being lost, improve financial visibility, strengthen operational performance, and implement practical strategies that produce measurable results. His experience spans construction, service businesses, manufacturing, and complex corporate operations.
Proven Financial Results
in 10 Months
Improved EBITDA
Increased Revenue
Supported
Selected results from Austin’s prior advisory and financial leadership engagements. Individual results vary by company.
Selected Client Success Stories
Trucking & Logistics Company | $2M Balance Sheet Variance Identified & Cost Savings Uncovered
During a trucking company financial turnaround engagement, Austin uncovered an approximately $2 million balance sheet variance and helped clarify the company’s true debt position by reviewing roughly $8 million in recorded liabilities and identifying millions in erroneous, personal, or misclassified entries. His 15-month operating analysis exposed a business spending $1.30 to $1.44 for every $1.00 of revenue, pinpointing critical labor and insurance cost pressures. He also identified a potential $10,500 in monthly insurance savings and developed financial targets and a practical roadmap toward sustainable profitability.
Construction Company | 284% EBITDA Improvement
Helped a construction company increase average monthly EBITDA from $52,000 to $202,000 in just ten months through improved financial visibility, operational adjustments, and profitability management.
Construction Company | Financial Turnaround
Led the financial turnaround of a construction business losing $77,000 per month. Within seven months, the company returned to profitability, subsequently generating $92,000 and $119,000 in EBITDA in consecutive months.
Construction Company | 98% EBITDA Growth
Helped a construction client improve year-over-year EBITDA by 98%, increasing EBITDA from approximately $170,000 to $335,000.
Government Contractor | $550K EBITDA Improvement
Delivered a $550,000 month-over-month EBITDA improvement through enhanced financial visibility and targeted operational adjustments.
Landscaping Company | Revenue Expansion
Supported the expansion of a landscaping business from $5 million to $12 million in revenue, including two acquisitions and the financial planning necessary to support continued growth.
Construction Company | Revenue and Margin Growth
Helped a construction company achieve 109% year-to-date revenue growth while improving gross margins to 9%–15%.
Financial Leadership & Corporate Experience
Austin’s experience extends beyond advisory engagements into financial leadership roles supporting large, complex organizations. His background includes managing financial operations for a $250 million aerospace manufacturing site, overseeing a $152 million budget across 20 divisions, and leading budgeting, forecasting, and financial analysis for a $75 million global IT department.
His broader corporate experience includes financial planning, analysis, and cost management involving portfolios of up to $840 million, as well as financial modeling and oversight of an $800 million portfolio. He brings institutional financial discipline to growing businesses that need sophisticated leadership without the cost of a full-time CFO.
What Austin Helps Business Owners Solve
Profitability & Margin Leakage: Identify where money is being lost through pricing, labor, overhead, job costing, and inefficient operations.
Cash Flow & Working Capital: Improve cash flow forecasting, financial discipline, and visibility into upcoming obligations.
Financial Reporting & Accountability: Implement dashboards, financial KPIs, and reporting systems that give owners reliable insight into business performance.
Growth & Expansion: Build financial models, evaluate acquisitions, support capital raising, and develop strategies for scaling revenue profitably.
Operational Turnarounds: Diagnose declining financial performance, identify immediate improvement opportunities, and implement corrective financial strategies.
Industry-Focused CFO Leadership
Austin’s financial approach is particularly relevant to construction, trades, home services, manufacturing, logistics, and transportation businesses where labor costs, pricing, operational efficiency, and cash flow directly influence profitability.
He helps leadership teams better understand project and service profitability, manage cost structures, strengthen forecasting, and align financial decisions with operational performance.
Education & Professional Background
Austin holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Business Administration with a concentration in Finance from Illinois Wesleyan University, graduating Cum Laude.
His professional background includes financial leadership and advisory roles with Smiley Strategy, GKN Aerospace, Cardone Ventures, Aon, Guaranteed Rate, and other major organizations.
Explore What Experienced CFO Leadership Could Mean for Your Business
Whether your company is experiencing margin pressure, inconsistent cash flow, rapid growth, or simply needs stronger financial leadership, Austin can help identify opportunities to improve financial performance.
Austin is available for select fractional CFO engagements through Obsidian Thorne. To request a confidential introductory conversation, please complete the contact form on this page.
