The credentials, and what they are worth
In Australia a CA or CPA is close to assumed on a CFO brief. Its absence needs a story; its presence does not win anything. An MBA helps for a pivot into general management or where a board wants a particular pedigree, and a CFA belongs on the investment, treasury and corporate finance tracks rather than the operational CFO path.
None of them prepare you for the work. An accounting degree does not prepare finance professionals for the difficult realities of the job, beyond spreadsheets, compliance frameworks or audit checklists.[1] That gap is not a criticism of the qualification. It is just where the qualification stops.
Technical skills that get tested
At CFO level the technical bar is assumed rather than examined, but it is examined the moment something looks thin. The concrete list is statutory reporting and audit, cash and working capital, forecasting and financial modelling, capital structure and fundraising, systems and controls, and tax and compliance oversight.
Systems capability is now part of the technical bar rather than a bonus. A 12-day month-end close is usually the result of manual data pulls from three different systems, reconciliation in Excel and reformatting for board reports.[2] A CFO who has fixed that somewhere is buying the business months of time.
| Skill area | What a shortlist is actually checking | |
|---|---|---|
| Reporting and audit | Statutory accounts, audit management, controls | Assumed. It only becomes a talking point when there is a gap, or when the business is heading toward a raise or a listing. |
| Forecasting and modelling | Budget, rolling forecast, scenario work | Whether the forecast has ever been believed by a board and survived contact with actuals. |
| Capital | Raising, debt, cap table, investor reporting | Have you been in the room on a raise. This is the most common gap in otherwise strong first-time CFO candidates. |
| Systems | ERP, close process, automation | Evidence you have shortened a close or replaced a manual process, not a list of tools you have logged into. |
| Leadership | Hiring, structure, developing the team | Whether the function you built outlasted you, and whether people you hired have been promoted. |
| Stakeholder skill | CEO, board, operations, investors | The one that decides it. Technical ability becomes irrelevant if the CEO does not trust or enjoy working with you. |
The capabilities that decide it
The CFO role transcends financial reporting. It covers strategic advice, challenging decisions and critical business input, and if the CEO does not instinctively trust or enjoy working with the CFO, technical ability becomes irrelevant.[3] That is the single most useful sentence I can give anyone preparing for a CFO process.
It plays out in real hires. I had a conversation with a CFO about a Head of Finance hire who left within nine months despite strong qualifications, because they could not win the CEO's trust or build rapport with Operations.[4] Technical skill gets candidates in the door for senior finance roles. Stakeholder skill keeps you in the role.[5]
Numbers matter, but trust matters more, because without it even the best reporting will not get used.[6] When trust does exist, finance stops being a blocker or a silo and becomes a partner the business leans on for clear advice and commercial support.[7]
For the full remit these skills are being screened against, I set out what a CFO actually does day to day here.
How they are tested in a process
Communication is tested through storytelling, not through a competency question. At final stage, candidates who can deliver the story through a case study presentation or a real discussion about board packs make a significant difference.[8] Practise presenting a board pack to someone allowed to interrupt you, because that is the actual exercise.
Judgement is tested through ambiguity. CFO and first finance hire roles are AI-resistant precisely because they require investor communication, building financial infrastructure across the business, and operating with judgement under ambiguity, unlike more junior finance roles.[9] A panel will hand you an incomplete picture on purpose.
What a first CFO brief looks like in practice
The searches I run are for first CFO appointments at Australian VC-backed businesses, typically 50-plus heads and $10 million-plus ARR.[10] These are commercial executive leadership roles partnering directly with the CEO on strategy, capital decisions and the business's next steps.[11]
For a Series B business founders should expect to pay $325-375k plus equity for a proper executive hire, someone who has typically raised capital, hired a team and sat in a board meeting before.[12] Those three experiences are the practical qualification list for this market, and they are worth more than any additional letters after your name.
If you are short on one of those three, I set out the route to a first CFO seat and how people close the exposure gap here.
Common questions
What qualifications does a CFO need in Australia?
A CA or CPA is close to assumed on most CFO briefs, so its absence needs explaining. An MBA is useful for a pivot into general management or where a board wants a particular pedigree, and a CFA belongs on investment, treasury and corporate finance tracks rather than the operational CFO path. None of them prepare you for the job itself: an accounting degree does not get you ready for the realities beyond spreadsheets, compliance frameworks and audit checklists.
What technical skills does a CFO need?
Statutory reporting and audit management, cash and working capital, forecasting and financial modelling, capital structure and fundraising, systems and controls, and tax and compliance oversight. Systems capability now sits inside that bar rather than beside it. A 12-day month-end close usually comes from manual data pulls across three systems, reconciliation in Excel and reformatting for board reports, so a CFO who has genuinely fixed that has a strong story.
What soft skills matter most for a CFO?
The relationship with the CEO, above everything else. The role transcends financial reporting into strategic advice, challenging decisions and critical business input, and if the CEO does not instinctively trust or enjoy working with the CFO, technical ability becomes irrelevant. I have seen a Head of Finance with strong qualifications leave within nine months because they could not win the CEO's trust or build rapport with Operations.
What experience do founders expect from a first CFO hire?
Three things come up on nearly every brief: prior experience raising capital, hiring and leading a team, and sitting in board meetings. For a Series B business in Australia, founders should expect to pay $325-375k plus equity for that profile. Those experiences function as the real qualification list in this market, and they carry more weight on a shortlist than additional credentials.
References
- Tom Hunter on formal study: an accounting degree does not prepare finance professionals for the difficult realities of the job, beyond spreadsheets, compliance frameworks or audit checklists.
- Tom Hunter on close cycles: for many finance functions a 12-day month-end close is due to manual data pulls from three different systems, reconciliation in Excel and reformatting for board reports.
- Tom Hunter on the CFO remit: the role transcends financial reporting into strategic advice, challenging decisions and critical business input, and if the CEO does not instinctively trust or enjoy working with the CFO, technical ability becomes irrelevant.
- Tom Hunter, recounting a conversation with a CFO about a Head of Finance hire who left within nine months despite strong qualifications, because they could not win the CEO's trust or build rapport with Operations.
- Tom Hunter on senior finance hiring: technical skill gets candidates in the door, but stakeholder skill keeps you in the role by enabling trust and rapport.
- Tom Hunter on finance leadership: numbers matter, but trust matters more, because without it even the best reporting will not get used.
- Tom Hunter on trust in finance: when it is built, finance transforms from a blocker or silo into a partner the business actively leans on for clear advice and commercial support.
- Tom Hunter on final-stage interviews: candidates who can deliver the story through case study presentations or discussions about board packs make a significant difference.
- Tom Hunter on why CFO and first finance hire roles are AI-resistant: they require investor communication, building financial infrastructure across the business, and operating with judgement and ambiguity, unlike more junior finance roles.
- Story Recruitment's ideal client for a first CFO hire: a business with 50-plus heads and $10 million-plus ARR.
- Tom Hunter on the CFO roles Story Recruitment works on: commercial executive leadership positions partnering directly with the CEO on strategy, capital decisions and the next steps for the business.
- Tom Hunter on Series B CFO pay: founders should expect $325-375k plus equity for a proper executive hire, who has typically raised capital, hired a team, and sat in a board meeting before.