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Interim Chief financial officer services · Finance director

Interim CFO Services · Interim Finance Director Services

Interim CFO services put an interim chief financial officer into your business full-time for a fixed term.

The CFO owns the numbers the board decides against: cash, capital, forecast and the finance function that produces them.

This page sets out what the service covers, when interim is the right shape, what the market publishes on rates, and how we come back with a shortlist of 3–5, each with rate, availability and IR35 position set out.

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How a brief runswhat we undertake

  1. 01Brief30-MINUTE SCOPING CALLDay 0
  2. 02Shortlist of 3–5VETTED · RATE BENCHMARK · IR35After the brief
  3. 03InterviewsYOU MEET THE SHORTLISTYour diary
  4. 04Scoped startFIRST-MONTH OUTCOMES AGREEDYou set the date
  5. 05Fractional, interim and permanentIR35 POSITION SET OUTOn every brief

Shortlist3–5

£650–£1,500
Interim day rate · FD Capital 2026
Full-time, fixed term
Commitment

15 minutes · video or phone

Book 15 minutes to hire an interim CFO

Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with Interim CFO Services candidates, their day rates and availability.

  1. 0115 minutes, video or phone
  2. 02We scope the role and the days a week
  3. 03A shortlist of 3–5 after the call
  4. 04Fractional, interim and permanent briefs
Prefer email? Use the booking page →

Pick a day that suits · live availability

01/ the role

What interim CFO services cover

An interim CFO works full-time for a fixed term to cover a gap, lead a change or see a transaction through, then hands over.

Interim executives are hired for immediate impact: they expect to take decisions from the first week.

The service covers the cash forecast and runway model the board actually decides against, fundraising, debt facilities and lender or investor relationships, unit economics, pricing and margin by product and channel, and board and investor reporting that survives scrutiny and controls, audit readiness and the shape of the finance team.

If you are weighing the options, the same seat is also bought as fractional CFO services, part-time CFO services, outsourced CFO services, or permanent CFO search.

What the seat does day to day is set out in the CFO role explained; executives looking for this work can see current CFO roles; the full cost picture is on the CFO cost guide.

02/ scope

What is in scope — and what is not

In scope

The cash forecast and runway model the board actually decides against; fundraising, debt facilities and lender or investor relationships; unit economics, pricing and margin by product and channel; board and investor reporting that survives scrutiny; controls, audit readiness and the shape of the finance team.

Not in scope

Bookkeeping, payroll, VAT returns and statutory accounts preparation sit with your bookkeeper or accountant.

A CFO absorbed into that work has been mis-scoped and is the most expensive way to buy it.

CFO or a neighbouring seat?

A CFO answers "what happens if we do this"; a financial controller answers "what happened last month".

In the UK the same seat is often sold as finance director at smaller revenue.

The scoping test: write down the three decisions you need the CFO to own in the next ninety days. If you cannot, you are not ready to brief.

03/ the route

Fractional, interim or permanent?

Four taps. The answer names the route for the seat and the page that covers it.

How much of the week does the work fill?
Is there a fixed end or a programme?
Does the seat sit on the board for years?
Is the need now, or can it wait for a search?

The route · Fractional

A fractional CFO services.

The work fills part of the week, so buy the days it needs.

A fractional CFO services holds the seat on agreed days for as long as the seat is needed, and works for other clients on the rest.

The fractional CFO services routeTalk it through

04/ rates by stage

CFO rates what the published benchmarks say

Every figure is the named source’s own published band. Fractional Quest publishes no fees: each candidate on a shortlist states their own rate. Interim day rates apply to full-time weeks for the length of the mandate.

BenchmarkPublished figureSource
Fractional CFO day rate£700–£1,400FD Capital 2026
Interim CFO day rate£650–£1,500FD Capital 2026
Permanent CFO salary (25th–75th percentile)£132,500–£220,500Robert Half 2026

05/ comparison

Four ways to buy a CFO fractional, interim, part-time or permanent

The same CFO seat can be filled four ways. The difference is commitment, contract and how long you need it.

FractionalInterimPart-timePermanent
CommitmentDays a week, ongoingFull-time, fixed termSet days each weekFull-time, open-ended
Usual contractContract for services, often via the executive’s companyDay-rate contract for the mandateOften pro-rata employment; sometimes a contractorEmployment contract
Clients at onceA small portfolioOneOneOne
Best whenYou need CFO judgement every week, not every dayYou need full-time cover or a change led nowYou want the same person on the same days for the long termThe seat is full-time work for years
ExitNotice period, or convert to permanentHand-over at the end of the mandateEmployment noticeResignation or redundancy

06/ timing

When interim CFO services are the right call

Three situations where the interim shape beats the alternatives.

Scenario 01

Gap

The CFO has left

A resignation or exit leaves the board without its finance lead mid-year.

An interim CFO holds the seat full-time, keeps the audit and the lenders on track, and hands over to the permanent appointment.

Scenario 02

Transaction

A sale or a raise

An exit, acquisition or funding round needs a CFO who has run the process before and can give it full-time attention until completion.

Scenario 03

Turnaround

Cash or covenant

Runway is short or a covenant is tight.

An interim CFO takes control of the thirteen-week cash flow and the lender conversation immediately.

07/ vetting

How we vet the shortlist

Five stages: qualification, mandate fit, reference deep-dive, shortlist and analysis, kick-off.

  1. 01

    Qualification screen

    Verify Interim CFO Services tenure, sector context and stage fit.

    SOURCING
  2. 02

    Mandate fit

    Match to your situation — stage, board dynamics, timing.

    MATCHING
  3. 03

    Reference deep-dive

    We take references ourselves, from recent past clients — real outcomes, not titles.

    VERIFY
  4. 04

    Shortlist

    Three to five candidates with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.

    SHORTLIST OF 3–5

08/ how it runs

How an interim CFO engagement runs from brief to hand-over

Brief.

You tell us the scope, the start date and the length of the mandate, and what success looks like in the first ninety days.

A clear brief names the decisions the CFO will own.

Shortlist.

We come back with 3–5 interim chief financial officers against the brief, each with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, assessed through our five-stage vetting.

Mandate.

The interim CFO starts with a written mandate and a review point.

Interim executives are judged on the outcome of the mandate, and the good ones plan their hand-over from the first week.

Hand-over.

When the mandate ends the interim CFO hands over to the permanent appointment, often having helped to choose them.

09/ before you sign

Before you buy interim CFO services three checks

Standing.

Check professional standing and references before you sign: check a finance leader’s professional standing before you sign; see ICAEW’s directory of chartered accountants.

Status.

Agree how the engagement will run in practice, because that decides its IR35 status; HMRC’s guidance for clients sets out who makes the status determination.

Scope.

Write down what is out of scope.

Bookkeeping, payroll, VAT returns and statutory accounts preparation sit with your bookkeeper or accountant.

A CFO absorbed into that work has been mis-scoped and is the most expensive way to buy it.

10/ questions

Interim CFO services FAQ

The questions people ask before bringing in an interim CFO.

The CFO seat’s full scope: the cash forecast and runway model the board actually decides against; fundraising, debt facilities and lender or investor relationships; unit economics, pricing and margin by product and channel; board and investor reporting that survives scrutiny; controls, audit readiness and the shape of the finance team. Bookkeeping, payroll, VAT returns and statutory accounts preparation sit with your bookkeeper or accountant. A CFO absorbed into that work has been mis-scoped and is the most expensive way to buy it.
FD Capital 2026 publishes a UK interim CFO day rate of £650–£1,500. The total depends on the days committed and the length of the mandate. Fractional Quest publishes no fees of its own; each candidate on our shortlist states their rate.
An interim CFO works full-time for a fixed term, usually to cover a gap or lead a change. A fractional CFO works a standing number of days each week, often for several clients, for as long as the business needs it.
A raise or refinance on the horizon, a lender asking for a plan, revenue that has outgrown the accountant, or a board that no longer trusts the forecast. Interim is the right shape when the work is full-time and time-bound.
It depends on how the engagement runs in practice — control, substitution and whether the CFO is part and parcel of your organisation. For medium and large private-sector clients, the client makes the status determination. Each candidate on our shortlist states their IR35 position.
You brief us on the scope, the days and the start date. We come back with a shortlist of 3–5 interim chief financial officers, each with day rate or salary, availability and IR35 position set out, assessed through our five-stage vetting.

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.

Book a call →Submit a brief

11/ related

Keep exploring

Adjacent roles and reading.

/cfo-servicesAll CFO services

Fractional, interim, part-time and permanent, side by side.

/fractional-cfo-servicesFractional CFO Services

An ongoing weekly commitment.

/part-time-cfo-servicesPart-Time CFO Services

Set days each week.

/what-does-a-cfo-doThe CFO role explained

What the seat does day to day.

/vettingHow we vet

The five-stage process behind every shortlist.

Executive servicesCFO services hubThe CFO seat, fractionalThe CFO seat, interimIR35 guide

For hiring managers

Bring the brief. We bring the shortlist.

Sign up now →Book a call

  1. A shortlist of 3–5, each with day rate, availability and IR35 position
  2. Fractional, interim, part-time, temporary or permanent — and non-executive directors
  3. Every candidate through our five-stage vetting
  4. Your briefs and their candidates, in one room
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