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Interim CFO · hiring brief

How to Hire an Interim CFO

How to Hire an Interim CFO: set the finance transition the interim covers, give them authority over reporting and controls, check credentials, settle the IR35 position and agree the handover.

Brief us on this role →See CFO roles

Reviewed by Fractional Quest · updated 28 October 2026 · 5 sources linked below

  • 3–5on every shortlist
  • 5stages of vetting
  • IR35set out on every brief
How to Hire an Interim CFO: a finance leader reviewing a board pack with a finance manager (illustration)

On the board · last 90 days

Which CFO roles are on the board?

Interim CFO roles first, then the seat in any engagement and the wider function when the board runs short.

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In the press

The brief

How to Hire an Interim CFO: what must the role own?

Name the event: departure, raise, sale, refinancing or turnaround.

  • 01TransitionName the event: departure, raise, sale, refinancing or turnaround.
  • 02ReportingSet board, lender and investor reporting they own.
  • 03ControlsSay which payments and approvals they hold.
  • 04HandoverAgree what the permanent CFO receives.

Role reference: ICAEW on the CFO role in strategy. ICAEW describes the CFO’s role in strategy as well as reporting, which an interim CFO holds through the transition.

How to hire

How to hire an interim CFO: the order of work

Write the transition, settle IR35, then search.

Interim CFOs often work through their own company. In most cases the client decides IR35 status, so agree how the engagement will run before the contract.

Check qualifications directly with the professional body’s register and take references from a chair or investor, not only a former colleague.

The working pattern

What changes when the CFO is interim?

An interim CFO holds the finance seat full-time for a defined transition: a departure, a raise, a sale, a turnaround or a systems change.

The illustrative brief: a refinancing after the CFO left. The CFO has left during a refinancing; the lender wants a named finance lead.

The appointment owns: The interim CFO leads the refinancing, lender reporting and the monthly close.

Another owner retains: The board keeps the refinancing decision; the financial controller keeps the close process.

The case is illustrative; it does not describe a Fractional Quest placement.

From brief to start

How do you hire an interim CFO, step by step?

The first three steps are ours; the last four are what has to be true before the first day. We don’t promise a shortlist by a date.

  1. Day 0
    01
    The 15-minute call
    What the CFO must own, the working pattern, the start date and the budget.
    You and us
  2. Week 1
    02
    Scope agreed in writing
    The outcome the seat exists for, the days, and how the engagement will run for IR35.
    Us
  3. Weeks 1–3
    03
    Search, references, shortlist
    We approach people who aren’t looking, verify tenure, take references ourselves and return three to five.
    Us
  4. Week 4
    04
    Outcome
    Agree the outcome, review date and end date.
    You
  5. Before day one · 2
    05
    Mandates
    Change bank and approval mandates on day one.
    You
  6. Before day one · 3
    06
    Access
    Provide accounts, forecasts, facility agreements and board packs.
    You
  7. Before day one · 4
    07
    Log
    Keep a decision log for the successor.
    You

Assessment

How should you assess CFO candidates?

Put the same work and evidence in front of each candidate before comparing answers.

  1. Qualification
    Confirm professional membership with the body’s own register.
  2. Comparable event
    Ask for a raise, sale or refinancing they led.
  3. Controls
    Test how they take over payment authority safely.
  4. Handover
    Ask what they left a permanent CFO.

Acas recommends a consistent, fair selection process: choosing who to interview.

Vetting

What happens before anyone reaches your shortlist?

Five stages before a candidate reaches a shortlist of three to five.

  1. Pedigree screen
    Tenure
    We verify prior tenure in the seat, at the scale and stage you need. No consultant presenting as an executive.
  2. Mandate fit
    Fit
    Fit to your stage, sector and the problem the seat exists to solve, not a CV keyword.
  3. Reference deep-dive
    Verify
    We take references ourselves, from recent clients and boards: what they delivered, not what they titled it.
  4. Shortlist
    Shortlist
    Three to five candidates, each with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.
  5. Kick-off
    Start
    Scope, first-month outcomes and the contract agreed before day one.

The full process is on how we vet.

The right pattern

Does this hiring pattern fit the work?

Test the amount of the week, the expected end and the continuity needed before writing the contract.

Questions

How to Hire an Interim CFO: questions, answered

Interim CFOs are often available within weeks because they move between assignments. We do not promise a date; the brief and your availability to interview set the pace.

Read next

Related hiring and role pages

Sources

Where does every reference on this page come from?

  • icaew.com
  • HMRC
  • legislation.gov.uk
  1. 1
    ICAEW on the CFO role in strategy icaew.com
  2. 2
    Rates and thresholds for employers 2026 to 2027 HMRC
    Employer National Insurance at 15% above £5,000 a year.
  3. 3
    Understanding off-payroll working (IR35) HMRC
    Status depends on how the engagement runs; medium and large clients make the determination.
  4. 4
    Check employment status for tax (CEST) HMRC
    HMRC’s own status check for each engagement.
  5. 5
    Employment Agencies Act 1973 legislation.gov.uk
    The law a recruitment agency works under; no fee to a work-seeker.

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