How to hire a part-time CFO · part-time or fractional · PE-backed and portfolio companies

Hire a part-time CFO · how, and on what terms

To hire a part-time CFO, decide how many days a week the finance seat needs and on what basis: employed on a pro-rata contract, or engaged through the CFO’s own company.

Then write a brief around the decisions the CFO will own, test every candidate on your own numbers, and check the qualification and directorships before you make an offer.

We recruit fractional, interim, part-time, temporary and permanent executives, and non-executive directors.

On every brief we send a shortlist of 3–5, each with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, after five-stage vetting.

Brief us on a part-time CFO →See the roles

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

In the press

Fast Company 16 leaders on when fractional C-suite hires make sense · 24 Jun 2026
Executives disagree on when a part-week executive is the right call: many back one for a defined mandate, others want a full-time owner for work that needs one every day. A useful test before you settle the days.

3–5

Shortlist · with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 set out

Vetting · stages before a candidate reaches you

£700–£1,400

Fractional CFO day rate · typical band, average about £1,050

FD Capital, 2026

£176,500

Full-time CFO salary · median, Chief Financial Officer

Robert Half, 2026

15 minutes · video or phone

Book 15 minutes to hire a part-time CFO

Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with Part-time CFO 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

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On the board · last 3 months

Part-time CFO roles jobs on the board

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Current part-time CFO and finance leadership roles

Fractional Quest is a fractional recruitment agency: send a Part-time CFO brief and we come back with a shortlist of three to five vetted candidates.

01/ the role

Hire a part-time CFO: the full seat, on fewer days

A part-time CFO holds the seat a full-time CFO holds: the forecast, the cash, the board pack and the conversation with lenders and investors.

The difference is the calendar, a set number of days each week with one company.

Most people looking for a part time CFO for hire have a trigger in mind: a raise, a lender asking for better numbers, a sale, or a founder spending too many evenings on the spreadsheet.

Name that trigger in the brief, because it decides who fits.

What the days have to cover

Board meetings, the month-end review and lender or investor reporting fall on fixed dates.

Set the CFO’s days around them, not the other way round.

The ledger, the close and payroll usually stay with a bookkeeper, accountant or financial controller.

The part-time CFO reviews that work and turns it into decisions.

Responsibility stays with the board

Bringing in a part-time CFO does not move the legal duty.

Companies House guidance says directors who hire a professional such as an accountant are still legally responsible for the company’s records, accounts and performance.

If the CFO joins the board, the seven general duties of a director under the Companies Act 2006 come with the seat.

Companies House notes they also apply to someone who acts as a director without being formally appointed.

02/ scope

How to hire a part-time CFO: five steps

1. Name the trigger and count the days

Write one paragraph on why now, and list what should exist after six months: a rolling cash forecast, a monthly board pack, a model the lender accepts.

Then count the days that work needs each week.

2. Choose the contract

A search for “hire part time CFO” turns up two different contracts: an employee on set days, paid pro rata, and a CFO engaged through their own company on a day rate.

The section on part-time or fractional below sets out what each means for you.

3. Write the brief

Set out the days, any fixed on-site days, the finance team already in place, the systems, who the CFO reports to and whether they join the board.

Our CFO job description gives a structure to start from.

4. Test the work, not the title

Give every candidate the same tasks: read last quarter’s management accounts, rework your cash forecast and set out a plan for the trigger you named.

Score the answers against criteria agreed in advance, with a panel rather than one interviewer.

Ask how they have held a seat on fewer days before: what they delegated, what they kept and how the board reached them between days.

Our CFO interview questions set out more to ask.

5. Check, then agree the terms

Verify the qualification at source, through ICAEW membership verification or the ACCA member directory.

Then search the candidate’s past directorships on the Companies House register and take references yourself from a chair, investor or auditor.

If you employ the CFO, the written statement of employment particulars is due on the first day and must set out pay, hours and days of work.

If they work through their own company, agree the IR35 position before they start.

What we do on a part-time brief

We send a shortlist of 3–5, each with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.

Every candidate goes through our five-stage vetting first.

03/ comparison

Part-time, fractional, interim or full-time?

Four ways to fill the finance seat. Choose by the days the work needs, for how long, and on which contract.

Part-time (employed)Fractional (contracted)InterimFull-time

TimeSet days each week, one companyAgreed days a week, often alongside other clientsFull-time, for a fixed termFull-time, open-ended

ContractEmployment, pay and leave pro rataServices, through the CFO’s own companyUsually services, sometimes a fixed-term contractEmployment

Published payA pro-rata share of a full-time salary; set out on each shortlist£700–£1,400 a day typical (FD Capital, 2026)£1,000–£1,500 a day, SME and mid-market (FD Capital, 2026)£176,500 median salary (Robert Half, 2026), plus employer NI and benefits

IR35On payrollDecided by how the engagement runsDecided by how the engagement runsOn payroll

04/ vetting

How we vet part-time CFOs

What we undertake on every brief, before a candidate reaches you.

01
Qualification screen
Verify Part-time CFO 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

05/ part-time CFO or fractional CFO

Part-time CFO or fractional CFO: employed pro rata, or contracted

Part-time CFO or fractional CFO is a question of contract more than of seat.

A part-time CFO is usually your employee on set days; a fractional CFO usually works through their own company, often for several clients at once.

Employed part-time, the CFO is protected by the Part-time Workers Regulations 2000.

Acas explains they must not be treated less favourably than a full-time comparator, with pay and leave given pro rata, in proportion to the hours worked.

As arithmetic of ours, not a published part-time rate: Robert Half’s 2026 median for a full-time Chief Financial Officer is £176,500, and two days a week pro rata on that is £70,600 a year.

Employer National Insurance is added on top, at 15% above £5,000 a year in 2026/27 (HMRC).

Contracted, the CFO invoices a day rate and the off-payroll working rules (IR35) may apply.

A medium or large client makes the status determination; for a small client outside the public sector, the CFO’s own company decides.

Status turns on how the engagement runs in practice, contract by contract, and HMRC’s CEST tool gives its view on a specific engagement.

Our IR35 guide sets out the tests.

For a CFO paid by the day, the nearest published band is FD Capital’s fractional CFO rate: £700–£1,400 a day, averaging about £1,050.

To go the contracted way, hire a fractional CFO; fractional CFO cost sets out the published figures.

06/ PE-backed and portfolio companies

Hire a part-time CFO for a PE-backed or portfolio company

To hire a part-time CFO for a PE-backed or portfolio company, start with what the investor needs from the numbers.

The British Business Bank explains that a private equity firm takes a large or controlling stake, works closely with the management team and will expect board seats.

Searches such as “hire part-time CFO for portfolio companies” and “hire part-time CFO for PE-backed” businesses come from both sides of that table: the management team, and the investor’s own portfolio team.

An investor that wants to hire part-time CFOs across several holdings may want the same reporting pack from each.

The British Business Bank’s private equity checklist warns that PE funds often change a business’s structure, strategy and management, and plan their exit from the start.

A CFO in that seat needs to have reported to an investor board and worked to an exit timetable.

So test for it: a monthly pack to the investor’s timetable, lender covenant reporting if the deal carries debt, a cash forecast the board can act on and a view of what a buyer will ask for.

Agree in the brief whether the CFO reports to the CEO, the chair or the board.

FD Capital publishes £1,200–£1,600 a day for PE and VC specialists and CFOs with fundraising track records, above its typical fractional band.

If acquisitions, refinancing or a sale fill the week, part-time may not be enough: an interim CFO covers a fixed term, and a CFO headhunter searches for a permanent one.

07/ questions

Hiring a part-time CFO FAQ

The questions people ask before bringing in a part-time CFO.

Name the trigger and the days a week the work needs, choose the contract (employed pro rata or engaged through the CFO’s company), and write a brief. Test every candidate on your own accounts and forecast, verify the qualification at the institute, check directorships and take references yourself.

FD Capital publishes £700–£1,400 a day for a fractional CFO, averaging about £1,050. Employed part-time, pay is pro rata: Robert Half’s 2026 full-time median is £176,500, so two days a week comes to £70,600 on our arithmetic, plus employer National Insurance. On every brief we set out each candidate’s pay or day rate on the shortlist.

Five: name the trigger and count the days, choose the contract, write the brief, test the work rather than the title, then check the qualification, directorships and references and agree the terms. Counting the days first is the step most often skipped.

Mostly the contract. A part-time CFO is usually an employee on set days, with pay and leave pro rata under the Part-time Workers Regulations; a fractional CFO usually invoices a day rate through their own company, often for several clients, and the off-payroll rules (IR35) may apply.

Agree with the investor what reporting it needs and who the CFO reports to, then test candidates on an investor pack, covenant reporting and an exit timetable. FD Capital publishes £1,200–£1,600 a day for PE and VC specialists; if the deal work fills the week, consider an interim or full-time CFO instead.

In proportion, yes. Acas explains that part-time employees must not be treated less favourably than a full-time comparator on pay, leave, pensions, training or promotion, with pay and leave given pro rata.

Only if the CFO works through their own company; an employee is on payroll. Where it applies, status depends on how the engagement runs, and a medium or large client makes the determination (HMRC). We set out each candidate’s IR35 position on the shortlist.

Through your investors, auditors and non-executives, and through a recruiter who sets out pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position on the shortlist. For CFOs looking for this kind of seat, the roles are on part-time CFO jobs, which lists the part-time CFO roles on the board.

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.

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