Beyond the Balance Sheet: Finances that Transform People

Nothing is fully written, and much is built along the way. It’s a fast-paced journey, but deeply rewarding when things start to align.

At Teamcubation, besides facing all the typical challenges of a growing startup, we have an additional one: our core material is people. We don’t develop a physical product or a digital service; we develop experience in people, especially those taking their first steps in the professional world.

That changes everything. Every financial decision we make impacts not only the numbers or the cash flow, but also the trajectory of those learning and working with us. Our model involves investing in training, mentoring, and on-the-job learning, even before the final client receives value from that developed talent. Financially, that means managing human investments before revenues, and doing so sustainably.

The Challenges of Combining Finance and Purpose

The first big challenge is aligning the financial strategy with the company’s purpose. In a traditional business, the focus is usually on profitability, efficiency, and resource optimization. At Teamcubation, our focus is on creating real opportunities for professional growth, and that forces us to look at finance through a broader and more human lens.

Another major challenge is balancing growth and sustainability. Scaling operations without losing the essence of our model, which is the quality of the experience we deliver, requires precision: thoughtful investment decisions, tight cash flow control, and close monitoring of key indicators. In a startup, time and financial resources are the most valuable assets, and managing them wisely is what makes the difference between moving forward or getting stuck.

Some Learnings and Takeaways

After two years leading finance at Teamcubation, a few lessons keep coming back:

• Finances should also reflect purpose. It’s not only about measuring margins and profitability, but about understanding how every peso invested contributes to creating more value in people.
• Investing in experience is investing in human capital. The return may not show immediately, but it’s visible in client relationships, reputation, and long-term stability.
• Financial processes must adapt to the startup’s rhythm. You can’t always have a perfect structure; what matters is agility, transparency, and alignment with strategic decisions.
• Control and flexibility are not opposites. It’s possible to have financial discipline without losing responsiveness. In fact, that balance is crucial for survival and growth.

Today, looking back, I can say we have managed to scale sales, expand geographically, and multiply the number of people we are training, all while staying true to what matters most: behind every number, there is a story of growth.

Ultimately, managing finances in a company that develops experience is about balancing reason and purpose. And when that balance is achieved, both economic and human results reinforce each other.