Finance role
VP FP&A Search Firm
No postings. No stacks of resumes. No chasing. You interview a short list.
Financial Headhunters: Hire a VP of FP&A to build financial models that turn company data into specific business actions.
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.
- Head of FP&A
- VP Financial Planning
- 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?
A VP of FP&A must transition the finance function from reporting past results to building forward-looking projections. We look for leaders who stop explaining why a variance occurred and start identifying the specific steps needed to adjust for future cycles. This person protects the company from reactive decisions caused by gaps in historical data sets.
This role focuses on financial architecture rather than managing people who pull reports. We find candidates who design automated workflows in Anaplan, Adaptive, or Pigment to eliminate manual spreadsheets. They define the business narrative for the board by isolating specific margin issues and revenue drivers. If they cannot explain the math behind their projections, they are not qualified for the seat.
You need a leader who converts complex balance sheet data into clear summaries for non-finance stakeholders. Provide an example of a board presentation where you explained a complex balance sheet issue. This person must push back on budget owners when their spending drifts from original forecasts. A VP of FP&A identifies trade-offs between competing projects to align every dollar with your stated fiscal strategy. Ask the candidate to demonstrate how they reallocated a budget after a department exceeded its quarterly spend limit.
02
What do we check before you see anyone?
- 01We verify they built multi-year rolling forecasts that reconcile with actual cash flow statements. If they only updated existing templates, they lack the logic-building skills needed for this role.
- 02We ask how they handled board presentation cycles without assistance. They must identify exactly what metrics your specific investors track during quarterly reviews.
- 03We verify experience in tools like OneStream or Pigment. They must demonstrate how they built integrated logic that maintains accuracy as the company grows.
- 04We audit how they managed revenue recognition and cost-allocation rules. We confirm they know the math behind your specific industry accounting requirements.
- 05We ask them to describe a failed variance analysis. A strong candidate identifies where the model math broke and explains exactly how they rebuilt the calculation to prevent a recurrence.
- 06We test their communication with department heads. They must show they can build rapport while holding other leaders to the original budget parameters.
03
Where do we find them?
We target finance leaders in large, high-growth organizations who manage tight fiscal controls. We recruit directors at major firms who hit a wall in their current career path and seek total ownership of their firm's financial architecture.
Strong candidates change jobs to gain the authority to build systems from scratch rather than fixing someone else's broken models. We engage leaders tired of manual processes who want to influence strategy. They seek roles where they can run a specific financial program.
Candidates consider moving when their current employer mandates that they follow pre-existing templates instead of creating new modeling logic. We ask them to describe a time they had to audit a peer's model for calculation errors. A high-value answer identifies the specific cell-reference failure that caused the incorrect variance. If they cannot explain why the math failed, they likely copied logic they did not build. We confirm this by asking how they reconfigured the model inputs to prevent the error in future versions. This question reveals if they are capable of building the scalable financial architecture your board expects for long-term fiscal planning.
04
Which hiring mistakes should you watch for?
- 01Hiring a bookkeeper who cannot model future growth. These people create error-free historical reports but cannot simulate the impact of future business changes.
- 02Choosing candidates based on industry-specific knowledge rather than system proficiency. You can teach a candidate your business model, but you cannot teach them to architect complex systems overnight.
- 03Selecting candidates based on the volume of reports they managed. High report counts are less important than the complexity of the financial logic they designed.
05
The search in three steps
- 01DiagnosisWe define your specific reporting gaps and existing software. We only shortlist candidates who previously resolved the exact modeling problems you face today.
- 02Targeted OutreachWe engage passive candidates through private outreach. We verify their technical background and career motivations before we mention your name.
- 03Finalist ValidationWe set up meetings where candidates describe how they would solve your current business problems. We assess if their logic matches your goals.
In this family
Healthcare providers (hospitals, physician groups, ASCs, senior living, behavioral)
OpenManufacturing and distribution
OpenTechnology and SaaS
OpenPrivate equity backed portfolio companies
OpenFintech and payments
OpenHospitality, restaurants and multi-unit franchise
OpenPublic companies and IPO-bound companies
OpenProfessional services firms (law, architecture/engineering, consulting)
OpenFP&A and Strategic Finance
Open
How your VP FP&A 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
How quickly can you shortlist candidates?
We provide candidates as soon as they clear our technical and personal interviews. We move as fast as your vetting process allows.
How do you determine if a candidate is a fit?
We measure their direct experience with your software tools and their ability to solve your specific modeling hurdles. We verify their capabilities through technical questioning.
Can you handle a confidential search?
We run all initial outreach without naming your firm. We set a clear disclosure plan with you before we contact a single person.
How do we handle counteroffers during this process?
We identify their primary motivations for leaving during the first conversation. By focusing on career gaps, we filter out candidates who are only looking for a temporary raise.
How does the search fee work?
You pay nothing until you select a candidate. Our payment terms are documented in our agreement.
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 VP FP&A job and forward whoever applies. We do not send stacks of unscreened resumes, and we do not recruit outside accounting, finance, banking and insurance.
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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.
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What does the published pay data show?
$166,570 national annual median. SOC 11-3031: Financial Managers.
BLS reports VP FP&A 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