The fractional vs. full-time decision usually gets made by default rather than design. A startup brings in a part-time bookkeeper, the close process breaks under volume, and a full-time accountant gets hired in a reactive scramble; or a scaling company hires a full-time staff accountant six months before the transaction volume justifies it, and the hire spends half their day looking for work.
The decision has a reasonably clean answer at each growth stage – if you know what thresholds to look for.
Fractional accounting works best when transaction volume is predictable but not yet at the level that demands a dedicated person managing a full close process five days a week. For pre-revenue startups and companies under $3M in annual revenue, a 15–25 hour per week arrangement with a senior accountant typically covers what the business needs: bank reconciliations, expense categorization, payroll processing, and investor-ready monthly reporting.
The AICPA estimates that roughly 40% of small businesses are underserved by their current accounting function – a gap that often reflects companies stretching a solo bookkeeper or part-time staff past their natural limit. A fractional senior accountant, properly scoped, covers most of that gap without full-time overhead.
MAVI's fractional model places senior accounting professionals from key talent markets on a defined hours-per-week basis, with no minimum commitment and no placement fees. Clients at this stage typically start at 20–25 hours per week and scale to full-time as revenue and complexity increase.
The trigger for full-time accounting is almost always a combination of two factors: close complexity and audit-readiness pressure. When the monthly close takes more than two to three days, or when the company is preparing for a Series B, a PE transaction, or board-level financial scrutiny, a fractional arrangement creates bottlenecks that a full-time hire resolves.
Companies with multi-entity structures, subscription revenue requiring ASC 606 compliance, or lease portfolios under ASC 842 generally need full-time capacity. These aren't functions that scale cleanly to part-time hours – they require consistent ownership and institutional knowledge that builds over time.
MAVI places full-time global accountants within five days of engagement. At 50–70% below US market rates, the full-time global model makes it financially viable to hire at the right level earlier rather than waiting until the strain is obvious. Clients like Budderfly and MotherDuck have moved from fractional to full-time MAVI placements as their accounting complexity grew, without changing platforms or restarting the vetting process.
Some companies run both: a fractional Controller for financial leadership and a full-time staff accountant or AP/AR specialist handling daily transactional work. MAVI supports this structure directly. Because both placements come from the same pre-vetted talent pool, the team operates with consistent quality standards and shared familiarity with the client's systems.
Start fractional if the close is clean and light. Move to full-time when the close gets complicated, the audit window approaches, or transaction volume stops being predictable. If cost is the concern, the offshore full-time model through MAVI makes that transition earlier than most finance leaders expect. Book a call to learn more.
When the monthly close takes more than two to three days, when the company has multi-entity structures or ASC 606 revenue recognition complexity, or when preparing for a Series B, PE transaction, or external audit.
MAVI's fractional placements are priced by hours-per-week commitment, with full-time placements running 50–70% below US equivalent salaries. A full-time global Senior Accountant through MAVI costs significantly less than a domestic fractional arrangement at the same seniority level.
Yes. MAVI clients frequently begin with fractional placements and transition to full-time as accounting complexity grows. Both models draw from the same pre-vetted talent pool, so scaling up doesn't require restarting the vetting or onboarding process.
AP/AR, payroll, bank reconciliation, monthly reporting, and management accounting all work well fractionally. Multi-entity consolidation, audit-ready close processes, and revenue recognition compliance typically require full-time ownership.