Hire a Fractional Finance Director · Fractional FD Jobs UK
Fractional Finance Director Jobs · Hire a fractional FD, or hire a finance director
Hire a fractional Finance Director at 1–3 days a week — fractional FD services for SMEs and growth businesses. Part-time FD roles across the UK without the full-time commitment.
How a brief runswhat we undertake
- 01Brief30-MINUTE SCOPING CALLDay 0
- 02Shortlist of 3–5VETTED · RATE BENCHMARK · IR35After the brief
- 03InterviewsYOU MEET THE SHORTLISTYour diary
- 04Scoped startFIRST-MONTH OUTCOMES AGREEDYou set the date
- 05Fractional, interim and permanentIR35 POSITION SET OUTOn every brief
Shortlist3–5
15 minutes · video or phone
Book 15 minutes to hire a fractional FD
Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with FD candidates, their day rates and availability.
- 0115 minutes, video or phone
- 02We scope the role and the days a week
- 03A shortlist of 3–5 after the call
- 04Fractional, interim and permanent briefs
Pick a day that suits · live availability
Live roles · last 3 months
Live Fractional Finance Director jobs
Live Fractional Finance Director Job Opportunities
Fractional recruitment works differently from a permanent search — shorter, scoped by days a week, and priced on the engagement. Send a FD brief and we come back with a shortlist of three to five vetted candidates.
01/ the role
What is a Fractional Finance Director?
A fractional Finance Director (FD) is a senior finance leader who works with SMEs and growth businesses part-time — Exec Capital describes the engagement as 1–3 days a week — providing hands-on senior finance ownership without the cost or commitment of a full-time hire. They own board reporting, cashflow management, fundraising support, and finance team development.
FD vs CFO positioning: Finance Director is the standard senior finance title in UK SMEs, emphasizing hands-on as well as strategic capability. At larger scale/PE/listed level, the same model is usually called a fractional CFO. In SMEs the titles are largely interchangeable — the model is identical; scale and remit set the label.
02/ scope
What a Fractional FD Actually Does
Core responsibilities: Board & management reporting, cashflow forecasting & working-capital management, budgeting and 3-statement modelling, fundraising/investor reporting/debt facilities, margin & profitability analysis, audit & compliance coordination.
Finance function build: Finance systems & controls implementation, process optimization, finance-team mentoring (supporting FC/Finance Manager step-up), PE value-creation & exit preparation. Engagements are ongoing and scale with business complexity.
How to hire a fractional Finance Director
To hire a fractional Finance Director, start with the brief: turnover, sector, and the days per week you need. Check for an ACA, ACCA or CIMA qualification and a track record across fundraising, finance function build and board reporting, then agree days, rate and IR35 position in writing. Brief us and we come back with a shortlist of 3–5.
03/ rates by stage
FD rates by engagement type
Exec Capital publishes £500–£1,400/day typical, up to £1,800/day at CFO/PE-backed/listed level — rates scale with complexity and seniority
04/ timing
When to hire a fractional Finance Director
Common scenarios where part-time senior finance leadership delivers maximum value for SMEs and growth businesses
Scenario 01
Growing SME
growth stage — need board-level finance capability without full-time hire
Scenario 02
Fundraising active
readiness — investor deck, financial model, due diligence preparation
Scenario 03
Finance function build
& controls — implementing finance systems, mentoring FC/Finance Manager
Scenario 04
Board reporting gaps
information — monthly board packs, KPI dashboards, variance analysis
05/ vetting
How vetting and shortlisting work
Our structured 5-stage process for matching Finance Directors with SMEs needing senior finance leadership
- 01
Qualification screen
Verify FD tenure, sector context and stage fit.
SOURCING - 02
Mandate fit
Match to your situation — stage, board dynamics, timing.
MATCHING - 03
Reference deep-dive
We take references ourselves, from recent past clients — real outcomes, not titles.
VERIFY - 04
Shortlist
Three to five candidates with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.
SHORTLIST OF 3–5
06/ the engagement
Engaging a fractional FD — scope, cadence and checks
A fractional FD takes the Finance Director seat for an agreed number of days, usually alongside other clients, and does the job rather than advising on it from outside. That is the difference from your external accountant, who works on the year already filed. It is also different from a part-time finance director, who is normally employed on a reduced-hours contract; a fractional FD usually invoices through their own company, which is a different employment status with different obligations on each side. And if the seat needs someone full-time for a fixed term — cover for a departure, a transaction or a turnaround — you are hiring an interim finance director instead.
Settle the scope before the days. ICAEW's finance function framework groups finance work into accounting, compliance, management and control, strategy and risk, and funding. A fractional FD normally owns the planning, strategy and funding work and oversees the accounting and compliance beneath it; if the real gap is the close and the controls, a fractional financial controller may be the better first hire.
Then check the person. Confirm a chartered qualification at source through ICAEW membership verification or the ACCA member directory, and read their directorship history on Companies House.
Finally, the contract. Where the FD works through their own company, medium and large private-sector clients make the IR35 status determination and issue a status determination statement; for small clients it stays with the FD's company. Status turns on how the engagement runs in practice, so test it with HMRC's CEST tool. We set out the IR35 position on every brief and do not promise an outcome.
07/ services
What fractional finance director services should cover
Fractional finance director services vary more than the title suggests. Some are delivered by a firm, with the named FD overseeing a team; others are one individual in the seat. Either way, write down what you are buying. The British Business Bank's guide to small business finance management is a useful baseline: monthly management accounts with your KPIs, profit and loss, cash position and balance sheet.
On top of that baseline, a fractional FD should own a rolling cash flow forecast (the British Business Bank's cash flow forecast guide shows the mechanics), the annual budget, the board pack, and the numbers a lender or investor will ask for — the business plan, forecasts and financials set out in getting your business ready for finance.
One thing no service transfers: the board's legal duty. GOV.UK is plain that directors can hire people to manage records and accounts day to day but remain legally responsible for the company's records, accounts and performance. A good fractional FD makes that duty easier to discharge; it does not move it.
We do not sell FD services ourselves. Brief us and we come back with a shortlist of 3–5 independent fractional FDs, each through our five-stage vetting. If the brief is really about fundraising or a transaction, compare fractional CFO candidates too.
08/ the portfolio model
Portfolio finance director — one FD, several businesses
A portfolio finance director holds the finance seat at several businesses at once, each for an agreed share of the week. It is the same arrangement as a fractional FD seen from the other side: the portfolio describes the FD's career, and "fractional" describes what each client buys. For the business, the practical questions are how many other clients the FD carries, which days are yours, and how they will answer a lender or auditor between those days. Put the answers in the engagement letter.
For finance leaders, fractional FD roles and part time FD jobs are the building blocks of a portfolio. The live board on this page lists current fractional finance director jobs from our jobs feed, with a rate shown only where the posting states one. Before adding a second or third client, clear any conflicts with each board, and check how each engagement is set up — through your own company or on a reduced-hours contract — because employment status follows how each one actually runs.
09/ part-time fd services
Part-time FD services — hiring part time finance directors
Part-time FD services come in two shapes. Some firms supply part time finance directors from a team and put one named FD in charge, and some describe themselves as a partnership for fractional FDs, sharing cover and a brand; others are one individual invoicing through their own company. Either way you are hiring a part time financial director for the same work — management accounts, the cash forecast, the board pack and the lenders — so compare the named person, not the firm. A fractional finance director for SMEs usually starts with the cash forecast and the monthly close, because those are what a lender or investor asks for first.
If you would rather hire part time FD support as an employee on fixed days, see part-time finance director jobs, which covers how to hire part time finance director roles on a reduced-hours contract. If the seat needs someone full-time and permanent, we take permanent briefs too. Whichever it is, you get a shortlist of 3–5, each with day rate or pay, availability and IR35 position set out, after five-stage vetting.
10/ questions
Fractional FD FAQ
The questions people ask before bringing in a fractional FD.
Book 15 minutes · shortlist of 3–5
Bring the brief. We architect the team.
A shortlist of 3–5 with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, after five-stage vetting.
