The IPO Is Not the Goal. It's the Starting Gun.

There’s a dangerous myth floating around finance teams: that the IPO is the finish line. You make it through the due diligence, you hit the valuation target, the confetti rains down... and then what?

You exhale?

Wrong.

Ask Paul Haworth, CFO of GetBusy, and Neil Tween, CFO of Owlstone Medical. For both, the real work didn’t start until after the bell rang. Their message? If you’re treating the IPO like a destination, you’re already behind.

The truth is, the IPO is just the start of the public pressure, not the end of the prep. Quarterly reporting. Investor scrutiny. Regulatory expectation. Everything you do from Day 1 post-IPO is magnified. And if you haven’t set the right foundations, you’ll be firefighting until you burn out.

Both CFOs agree: you don’t survive public life by hoping your finance team "steps up." You survive it by preparing them months in advance: by building systems, discipline, and resilience before the pressure hits.

Here’s what that looks like:

1. Start building your data room years before you think you need it. Not in a rush. Not in a panic. In slow, repeatable updates that build trust.
2. Hone your close process. In the public eye, missed reporting deadlines scream chaos. Streamline your monthly and quarterly closes now, before they become public.
3. Find the bear traps early. Talk to your auditors about complex judgements (like revenue recognition or stock compensation) before they turn into IPO-stoppers.
4. Kill the heroics. Stop rewarding all-nighters and start rewarding process discipline. Your team won’t thank you for chaos.
5. Assign ownership. Treat your annual report like a product launch: who owns what? Who signs off? The CFO isn’t just leading the charge — they’re editor-in-chief.
6. Don’t just recruit experience — build stamina. IPO prep is a marathon, not a hackathon. The real winners? Teams that pace themselves.
7. Treat advisors like teammates, not gods. Ask questions. Challenge assumptions. Just because you're paying them doesn't mean they know your business better than you do.

The IPO isn’t the prize. Staying public (and staying sane) is.

🎯 Tip: From Europe to the US, regulators expect more from public companies than private. Know your reporting obligations. Know your control requirements. And know your limits.

Watch the full webinar: IPO Readiness Toolkit: Lessons from the Trenches to hear exactly how Paul and Neil structured for success, what they’d change if they had a do-over, and how to stop the post-IPO burnout cycle.

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