Financial controller recruitment for startups and scale-ups
Hiring a financial controller? Story Recruitment places the first finance hire and the first CFO in VC-backed businesses, and Tom Hunter runs every search himself.
Hiring a financial controller? Start with your email.
Tom calls you back, usually within one business day. Or call 02 9099 7619.
Is a financial controller the right hire?
For most Australian VC-backed startups at 10 to 20 heads, a hands-on financial controller is the right first finance hire, with an outsourced bookkeeper underneath. Hire a head of finance first instead when the business is complex early, such as deep tech, lending or robotics. A controller owns the integrity of the numbers:
- A reliable month-end close and reporting the board and investors can trust
- Financial controls and compliance
- The outsourced bookkeeper and accountant, rather than doing the bookkeeping
What to pay a financial controller
Roughly $160k to $200k plus super in 2026. In high-growth tech and fintech the band is often quoted as $160k to $180k plus equity. The spread inside it is almost entirely about scope: what the controller is asked to carry and who sits underneath them. The full financial controller salary guide has the detail.
Want the band for your stage and city? Tom will send it.
Tom calls you back, usually within one business day. Or call 02 9099 7619.
Financial Controller salaries in Australian startups: the data
Our Startup Finance Salary Database holds 256 sourced salary figures from 104 funded Australian startups: pay bands from the companies' own job ads, and salaries reported for the same role at the same company. Every figure links to its source.
- Financial Controller salaries (11 figures)
- Finance salaries in tech startups (170 figures)
- Finance salaries in deep tech startups (37 figures)
- Finance salaries in fintech startups (30 figures)
What the search costs
Our fee is published, which most firms do not do. On a financial controller package of $180,000 total remuneration, 18% is $32,400, paid in three instalments.
| What it means for you | Our terms | |
|---|---|---|
| Fee | A known cost, set against the package you agree with the hire. | 18% of total remuneration, including super. |
| When you pay | Payments track work delivered, not only the outcome. | A third at the start, a third at shortlist and interviews, a third about ten days after written acceptance. |
| If it does not work out | The risk of a failed hire does not sit only with you. | A free replacement search within the first six months. |
| Who runs it | One person from brief to offer. | Tom Hunter, personally, on every search. |
How the search runs
Brief to signed contract averages about three weeks on Tom's searches. Senior finance people are usually employed and on notice, so plan the start date around that.
The brief
Tom sits with you and writes down the real story of the business: what this person walks into on day one and what they have to build. That brief becomes the scorecard.
The search
The role goes to market as a story post, alongside market mapping and direct approaches to people who are not looking.
The shortlist
A small number of people Tom has met and assessed against the brief, each with a clear trade-off. Then three interviews: getting to know each other, a case study on a real problem in your business, and a culture conversation.
The offer
References with permission, then a signed contract. Tom stays in touch through the notice period and the first months in the seat.
What clients and candidates say
“I worked with Tom on the recruitment of a senior accountant and was very impressed with his professionalism and expertise. He advised on structuring the right job title aligned with salary, provided a strong shortlist of candidates, and offered clear recommendations that supported the decision-making process.”
“From getting a shortlist super quickly to match our need through to supporting the hiring and onboarding process and post start follow up has been exceptional.”
Common questions
What does financial controller recruitment cost?
Our retained fee is 18% of total remuneration including super, paid in thirds: at the start, at shortlist, and about ten days after written acceptance. On a $180,000 package that is $32,400. If the hire does not work out in the first six months, we run the replacement search free.
Financial controller or head of finance?
Hire a controller when the priority is building and running the function: a reliable close, clean compliance and reporting you can trust. Move to a head of finance when the priority shifts to what you do with those numbers: the model, the reporting frameworks and the systems that support a raise.
Should a financial controller do the bookkeeping too?
No, and expecting it is a red flag. The model that works in a business of ten to fifty people is a controller handling the higher-end work with an outsourced bookkeeper covering accounts payable, reconciliations and payroll.
When should a startup hire its first financial controller?
Typically at roughly 10 to 20 headcount, often around a big seed or Series A round. The common triggers are three to six months after a seed round closes, or the bookkeeper and accountant setup breaking.
Read next
Tell Tom about the role
The stage, the scope and the timeline. You will get an honest read on the level, the market and the cost before you commit, and if the hire you need is a different one, Tom will say so.
Prefer to talk first? Call 02 9099 7619 or email info@storyrecruitment.com.au.