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Part-time CFO · hiring brief

Part-Time CFO for Hire

Part-Time CFO for Hire: set the finance decisions the CFO owns on their days, who covers cash and approvals between them, and whether the role is employed part-time or engaged fractionally.

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
Part-Time CFO for Hire: 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?

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

Roles

See every role on the board →

Every fractional role in the UK is on the fractional jobs board.

In the press

The brief

Part-Time CFO for Hire: what must the role own?

Name reporting, cash, funding and board responsibilities.

  • 01Finance remitName reporting, cash, funding and board responsibilities.
  • 02DaysAgree days around the month-end and board cycle.
  • 03CoverName who approves payments between days.
  • 04ContractDecide employed part-time or fractional.

Role reference: Acas part-time workers guidance. Acas explains how part-time employees are treated relative to full-time colleagues, which applies if the part-time CFO is employed.

For hire

Part-time CFO for hire: employed or fractional?

How to hire part-time CFOs starts with the contract.

Employed part-time gives continuity and employment rights; fractional gives flexibility and usually works through the CFO’s own company. The IR35 position follows how the engagement runs.

The working pattern

What changes when the CFO is part-time?

A part-time CFO for hire works fewer days but keeps continuing responsibility for finance. Employed part-time and fractional are different contracts; choose one deliberately.

The illustrative brief: a profitable business with a bookkeeper. Management accounts are late and the bank wants forecasts.

The appointment owns: The part-time CFO owns the forecast, lender reporting and month-end review, two days a week.

Another owner retains: The bookkeeper runs transactions; the MD approves large payments between days.

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

From brief to start

How do you hire a part-time 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
    Contract
    Agree contract type, days and reporting.
    You
  5. Before day one · 2
    05
    Access
    Provide accounts, bank and forecasts.
    You
  6. Before day one · 3
    06
    Mandates
    Set approval mandates.
    You
  7. Before day one · 4
    07
    Calendar
    Fix month-end and board dates.
    You

Your figures

What does part of a CFO’s week cost?

Rate × days × weeks, against a loaded full-time package. Move the sliders; the numbers redraw.

  • CFO band £700–£1,400 (FD Capital 2026)
Year-one cost, fractional
£144,900
3 days a week · 46 weeks · day fees, before tax · our arithmetic
Fractional executive£144,900
Full-time CFO, loaded£202,225£919 a day over 220 days · our arithmetic
Fractional costs less in year one by£57,325

Our arithmetic. £176,500 Robert Half 2026 median salary + employer NI at 15% above £5,000 (HMRC) = £202,225. Excludes pension, bonus and any search fee.

Assessment

How should you assess CFO candidates?

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

  1. Qualification
    Check membership on the professional body’s register.
  2. Forecasting
    Ask for a forecast they built and how it held.
  3. Cover
    Test the payment approval path on days off.
  4. Board
    Ask how they presented to a board or lender.

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

Part-Time CFO for Hire: questions, answered

A brief to hire a part-time CFO begins with finance remit: Name reporting, cash, funding and board responsibilities. Then a stated working pattern and the evidence you will ask every candidate to show.

Read next

Related hiring and role pages

Sources

Where does every reference on this page come from?

  • acas.org.uk
  • HMRC
  • legislation.gov.uk
  1. 1
    Acas part-time workers guidance acas.org.uk
  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.

For hiring managers

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  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