EDUCATION
B.S. in Natural Resource Economics,
U.C. Berkeley, 1987. Highest honors.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
David Stern CFO,  2009-present
We provide financial experience that small businesses need to survive and prosper, without the need to hire a full-time CFO. We work with entrepreneurs and members of their finance team to improve financial performance through the systematic application of proven tools and techniques. Emphasis is on client training and long-term skill development.

CFO, Greenberg Brand Strategy, 2011 – present

CFO,  Aeris, 2009 – present

CFO, 1 Columbia Design {Sole Proprietorship}, 2001 – present

CFO Consultant, Henry C. Levy & Co. CPA, 2007-08
Responsible for all facets of client management of small business clients: business development, goal setting, accounting systems oversight, financial analysis and planning, coordination with the in-house tax department.

Principal, Small Business Logic, Inc., 2001-2007
8-person CFO, QuickBooks consulting, and bookkeeping firm.

CFO Consultant, Smith Grant & Kliegman CPAs, 1999-2001
Responsible for all facets of client management of small business clients: business development, goal setting, accounting systems oversight, financial analysis and planning, coordination with tax department.

Principal, Bookkeeping Plus, 1996-1999
Bookkeeping practice and QuickBooks consulting.

Special Services, Home Depot, 1996–1997.
Staffed the Special Services desk: handled custom orders for building materials and contractor services.

Manager, Appliance Recycling Centers of America (NoCal), 1994– 1996.
Opened and managed the Northern California division of this national appliance repair, reuse, and recycling company. Revenue streams included retail appliance sales, scrap metal sales, and public utility service contracts for hazardous waste removal and safe disposal.

Manager of Information Services, Urban Ore Inc., 1986–1987, 1992–1994.
Started as a grunt (cleaning up the yard), became a salesperson, then Manager of Information Services (communications, data analysis, helped research and write education pieces, designed and set up the cash register system, researched compensation plans).

SPEAKING/INSTRUCTIONAL ENGAGEMENTS
San Francisco Renaissance Center
Oakland Business Development Corporation
Alameda County Small Business Development Center

PATH TO CFO
David’s interest in small business began in 1986. He was finishing a degree in economics at U.C. Berkeley and got a part-time job at a local reuse and recycling company. There David learned to buy low and sell high, take care of his customers, and do work he believed in. In this and other jobs he gravitated toward the numbers, and  in 1997 David devoted himself full-time to small business finance.