Fractional finance director vs fractional CFO
In the UK, fractional finance director and fractional CFO usually describe the same person: a senior finance leader working a few days a month instead of full time. Where they differ is scope. An FD engagement is typically inward-facing – controls, month-end, management accounts, cash. A CFO engagement adds the outward-facing work: strategy, pricing, unit economics, fundraising, lender and investor conversations. Ask what the person will own, not what the title says.
- UK usage
- FD and CFO are used interchangeably
- FD focus
- Controls, month-end, reporting, cash
- CFO focus
- Adds strategy, pricing, funding, investors
- What to check
- Scope and deliverables, not the job title
15+ years in finance: 100+ financial models built, €40m+ raised for clients, Forbes contributor and lecturer.
British companies advertise for a finance director. American ones advertise for a CFO. Most of the time they are describing the same job, and in the fractional market the two titles are used almost interchangeably. That is fine until you are comparing two proposals and cannot tell what you are actually buying.
The honest distinction
In larger organisations there is a real hierarchy: the FD runs the finance function, the CFO sits on the board and owns strategy, capital and investor relations. In a founder-led business between £1M and £50M, one person does both. So the useful question is not which title, but which half of the work you need first.
You need the FD half if month-end is late or unreliable, you do not trust the management accounts, cash is a surprise, controls are informal and nobody owns the finance calendar.
You need the CFO half if the books are fine and the decisions are not: pricing, product and channel margin, hiring plans, a raise, a bank facility, a covenant to defend or an exit to prepare.
What a fractional engagement covers here
- Monthly management accounts – P&L, cash flow and balance sheet, in GBP with multi-currency where needed
- A rolling 13-week cash forecast with a fixed weekly update slot
- Contribution margin by product, channel or client, fully loaded
- Board and lender reporting that survives questioning
- A monthly decision call, plus access between calls
Where the titles genuinely diverge
Two areas are worth asking about explicitly. First, fundraising and lender work: not every FD has sat opposite an investment committee. Second, commercial modelling: building a model that a VC or a bank will interrogate is a different skill from producing accurate accounts. If either is on your horizon in the next twelve months, test for it in the conversation.
How to compare proposals
Ignore the title on the proposal. Ask for the deliverables list, the cadence, who does the work (the person on the call or a junior behind them), and what happens in the first 30 days. Then ask what they would not do – anyone who claims to also own bookkeeping, tax filing and payroll is describing a different service.
Related questions
Is a fractional FD cheaper than a fractional CFO?
Not reliably. Both are billed as a monthly retainer set by complexity and cadence, so a narrow CFO engagement can cost less than a broad FD one.
We already have an accountant. Do we need an FD or a CFO?
Neither replaces your accountant. They keep filings and compliance; the FD or CFO owns management reporting, forecasting and decisions.
Which title do you use?
We say fractional CFO, and the scope covers both halves: the reporting and controls layer as well as strategy, margin and funding work.
Do you work with UK companies?
Yes. Riga is two hours ahead of London, so the whole UK working day overlaps, and we report in GBP.
Written from our own CFO engagements: how we scope retainers, what we deliver in the first 30 days, and what founders actually ask on diagnostic calls. Third-party studies are cited only when we can link them.
- How we scope engagements – our published scoping factors
A free 30-minute call with a senior CFO. No sales pitch – just a clear read on where your money is and what to do next.