Finance role
Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Search Firm
No postings. No stacks of resumes. No chasing. You interview a short list.
Financial Headhunters: You pay nothing until you extend an official offer to a candidate we introduce. We confirm all payment terms in writing before we begin our search.
This is what we do all day: recruit accounting, finance, banking and insurance professionals.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
Need someone now? Call 305-306-4829.
We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
- Chief Finance Officer
- Head of Finance
- Finance Chief
- No upfront fee
- Pay only if you hire
- Accounting, finance, banking and insurance
- We reach people who aren’t on job boards
- Replacement terms on standard searches
01
What does this hire really come down to?
Your firm needs a leader who treats financial statements as operating data rather than tax compliance paperwork. Many applicants describe high-level strategy but fail when tasked with fixing a broken ledger, managing a credit facility under pressure, or correcting manual data errors across separate ERP modules. We test candidates on the specific mechanical burdens your business carries today.
The role requires translating raw database output into specific commercial insights. A successful CFO owns the cash forecasting process by checking that the model accounts for actual business volatility instead of optimistic sales projections. We prioritize candidates who personally managed audit schedules and lender conversations during uncertain periods to prove they can defend the firm's position under direct inquiry.
Your incoming CFO must possess the technical range to grow with your current structure. This means a leader who implements internal controls without creating administrative friction, and one who knows how to shorten cash conversion cycles when liquidity is tight. We select candidates who design financial frameworks to prevent future bottlenecks before they happen.
02
What do we check before you see anyone?
- 01We audit their history of managing cash flow statements by asking how they maintained liquidity during a specific revenue decline rather than how they presented the data.
- 02We examine their history with ERP systems to identify if they configured reporting dashboards themselves or if they relied on external consultants to pull data.
- 03We test their knowledge of bank covenants by asking how they drafted reporting certificates when financial headroom was compressed and lender scrutiny increased.
- 04We confirm their direct involvement in transaction work by asking who actually reconciled opening balance sheets rather than who simply attended the board meetings.
- 05We assess their ability to update internal controls by asking for evidence of specific month-end close tasks they re-engineered to reduce time.
- 06We observe how they translate financial results into plain language for owners to identify if they rely on accounting jargon instead of direct commercial explanations.
03
Where do we find them?
We recruit from finance teams in private-equity portfolio companies and middle-market firms. These environments match your reality regarding cash, owner pressure, and the requirement for rapid reporting. We search for individuals currently managing equivalent accounting and debt complexities.
Effective candidates are often currently employed and seeking a new problem to solve. They change jobs when their current company hits a growth plateau or when they finish a specific project like a system migration. We call them directly to explain the financial responsibilities of your specific business.
A primary driver for these candidates is the transition from a rigid, highly siloed corporate reporting environment into your middle-market business where they own the entire financial outcome. We identify this motivation by asking them what specific part of their current month-end close they find most frustrating. An answer detailing their inability to change the underlying ERP reporting logic confirms they want the autonomy your firm offers. We then ask what specific control they would change in your current setup within the first thirty days. How do you distinguish between a generic improvement and a concrete adjustment based on the financial constraints described?
04
Which hiring mistakes should you watch for?
- 01Hiring a CFO who relies on external consultants to write memos for technical accounting questions.
- 02Assuming that a title at a large organization implies the ability to build a reporting structure from scratch without support.
- 03Ignoring a candidate's lack of intimacy with ERP configurations, which leads to a CFO who cannot extract data without an IT department's help.
05
The search in three steps
- 01CalibrationWe define your current financial constraints, specific reporting needs, and team dependencies rather than looking for an idealized resume.
- 02OutreachWe engage professionals currently working in similar environments and qualify their interest by discussing your specific financial hurdles.
- 03VettingWe test their technical responses through direct questions about past cash crises, covenant negotiations, and audit management to confirm they perform the work themselves.
06
Which resource answers your next question?
In this family
Construction contractors (GCs, CMs, subcontractors)
OpenReal estate developers, owners, REITs and homebuilders
OpenHealthcare providers (hospitals, physician groups, ASCs, senior living, behavioral)
OpenManufacturing and distribution
OpenTechnology and SaaS
OpenPrivate equity backed portfolio companies
OpenFintech and payments
OpenNonprofits and foundations
OpenGovernment contractors
OpenHospitality, restaurants and multi-unit franchise
OpenPublic companies and IPO-bound companies
OpenProfessional services firms (law, architecture/engineering, consulting)
OpenCFO, Construction Company
OpenCFO, Private Equity Portfolio Company
OpenCFO, Community Bank
OpenCFO, Credit Union
OpenCFO, Nonprofit Organization
OpenCFO, Family Office
OpenFinance Leadership
Open
How your Chief Financial Officer (CFO) search runs
How does The Six-Step Search work?
One sequence, from a well-defined seat to a shortlist you can judge.
Search Calibration
We start with a call about the seat, the books, the owners and the people the hire will work with. We learn what the role must fix in the first year and what would make a candidate wrong even if the resume looks right.
You get: A written search brief: scope, must-haves, deal-breakers and the pay range, agreed with you.
Market Mapping
We map the companies and institutions where the right people already work: similar size, similar ownership, similar complexity, in your market and in others.
You get: The target list of companies and institutions we will search, reviewed with you before outreach.
Professional Contact Intelligence
We find direct ways to reach the people on the map. Most are employed and not reading job boards, so reaching them takes real research.
You get: Direct routes to people who are not on job boards, researched for your search.
Persistent Personalized Outreach
We call and write to people individually and follow up. Interest varies, so we discuss the actual opportunity rather than promising a particular response.
You get: One-to-one conversations about your actual role, followed up, never a mass email blast.
Live Candidate Qualification
We speak with every candidate before you do. We check scope, systems, reporting lines, compensation expectations, location and why they would move.
You get: Only candidates we have spoken with, checked on scope, systems, pay, location and motive.
Candidate Intelligence and Process Support
You receive a short written brief on each finalist covering what they have done, where they are thin and what they want. Then we help with interviews, references and the offer.
You get: A short written brief on each finalist, plus help with interviews, references, counteroffer risk and the offer.
Questions people ask
What is the typical search duration?
We reject artificial timelines in favor of candidate quality. We provide a shortlist once we vet individuals against your specific operating constraints.
How do you judge if a candidate will fit our ownership team?
We look for a candidate who communicates clearly with owners and operates within your specific financial culture. We identify if their decision-making style matches your team.
How do we handle a candidate being swayed by a counteroffer?
We screen for counteroffer risks early in our initial conversations. If a candidate remains conflicted, we stop the process and move to other qualified prospects.
What steps do you take to maintain search privacy?
We determine the disclosure approach before we start any outreach. We conduct searches discreetly until you are ready to surface the role.
How is the invoice handled when selecting your next CFO?
You pay a fee only if you choose to hire a CFO candidate we represent. We include all financial details in our written agreement.
What is the fee for a Chief Financial Officer (CFO) search?
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. The fee and terms are agreed in writing before we start.
How soon will I see a Chief Financial Officer (CFO) shortlist?
It depends on the seat, the location and the pay. We give you an honest read after the calibration call and we do not promise dates we cannot control.
What is your guarantee?
We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
What don't you do?
We do not post your Chief Financial Officer (CFO) job and forward whoever applies. We do not send stacks of unscreened resumes, and we do not recruit outside accounting, finance, banking and insurance.
Start a search
Tell us about the seat.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
Keep reading
- Finance Leadership
- Division / Business Unit CFO
- Portfolio Company CFO (PE-backed)
- Chief Accounting Officer
- Corporate Controller
- Controller
- Division Controller
- CFO, Construction Company
- CFO, Private Equity Portfolio Company
- CFO, Community Bank
- CFO, Credit Union
- CFO, Nonprofit Organization
- CFO, Family Office
- CFO / COO (combined role)
Related reading
- Hiring a Finance Leadership team
- Positions we recruit in this family
- Credentials and licenses: what they prove
- How long a search takes and why
- Interview questions for Chief Financial Officer (CFO)
- Do you need a controller or a CFO?
- Handling counteroffers in a finance search
- Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Recruiters for Healthcare providers (hospitals, physician groups, ASCs, senior living, behavioral)
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What does the published pay data show?
$166,570 national annual median. SOC 11-3031: Financial Managers.
BLS reports Chief Financial Officer (CFO) within a broader occupation. It does not publish separate wages for this exact title, credentials, seniority or industry. Compare the listed SOC duties with your actual role before using this range.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. Released 2026-05-15. This is not a separately measured salary for this exact title.
Read the full salary guide