Step one: pick the level before you look at a number
The most expensive mistake happens before the guide is opened. A founder decides they need a CFO, writes the job description a CFO would want, and then pays a CFO salary for work a Head of Finance would own. Almost every founder I speak to is convinced they need a CFO twelve months before they actually do, and a Head of Finance often gets dressed up in a CFO title to close the gap.[1] When founders ask which one they need, the honest answer for most, most of the time, is still a Head of Finance.[2]
So the order matters. Decide what the seat owns, decide the level, then open the guide. Reversing that order means you are shopping for a title inside a budget rather than scoping a role.
Step two: price for the next 24 months, not the last 24 weeks
Many founders err on the side of under-hiring for the first finance role, pricing it against current complexity rather than the complexity anticipated in twelve months, which often leads to re-hiring because the initial hire could not scale.[3] My rule is blunt: hire for the next 24 months, not the next 24 weeks.[4] What you want is not just capability today, but the capacity to understand what the next version of the role looks like before that conversation is forced on you.[5]
The band gap this creates is real. A first finance hire at $120k to $140k gets a senior accountant with a controller title who will execute the work well, but the founder still leads the finance function.[6] Around $180k a founder can find an excellent first finance hire capable of significantly advancing the business.[7] That is not a nicer version of the same hire. It is a different job getting done.
Step three: understand what the guide cannot see
Every published guide averages. That is its function and also its limitation. The large benchmarking providers will not accurately know what a CFO in a deep tech startup in Adelaide earns, or what a Head of Finance in a Series A Sydney fintech is worth.[8] If your business is unusual in stage, sector or structure, the average is furthest from you exactly when you most need it to be close.
Ask where any guide's numbers come from. Mine come from conversations, hundreds of them over years, with hiring managers, CFOs, candidates and finance leaders across Australia, not from formal methodology or expensive reports.[9] That is a stated method with known limits, which is more useful than a black box with a confident number.
| What a salary guide gives you | What you still have to decide yourself | |
|---|---|---|
| The level you need | Guides list bands per title | Only you can decide whether the seat owns the model or just the close. Scope the mandate first, then read the band that matches it. |
| The stage premium | Guides average across stages | A Series A hire doing three jobs is priced differently to the same title in a settled function. Price for where the business is going. |
| The full package | Guides usually quote base | Add superannuation, equity from Head of Finance upward, and the search fee. Budget the total or you will negotiate against yourself. |
| Whether the market will say yes | Guides cannot see your ad | Positioning, title and value proposition decide whether a correct salary actually attracts the right field. |
For the 2026 Australian finance bands themselves, role by role and stage by stage, the guide is here.
Step four: check the whole package, not the base
Superannuation sits on top of base at every level in Australia, and equity is material from Head of Finance upward. In current market ranges a Finance Manager sits at $140k to $170k plus super and a Financial Controller at $160k to $200k plus super, though it depends on industry, business size and complexity, and location.[10] If you budget the base and forget the on-costs, you will be negotiating against your own approved number.
Recruitment cost belongs in the same line. Story's minimum fee is 15%, with a target of 18% of total remuneration including salary and superannuation.[11] Put it in the budget at the start, so it never becomes a reason to compromise on the shortlist at the end.
Step five: fix the ad before you fix the number
Sometimes the salary is right and the positioning is wrong. I once saved a client over $25,000 in recruitment costs with a single call, by helping them adjust a Finance Manager job ad's value proposition, title and salary alignment to market conditions. Interviews were booked in four days and the candidate signed soon after.[12] Before you conclude the market has moved past your budget, check the ad is selling the role at the level you are paying for.
If you still need to get the hire approved internally, building the business case is covered here.
Common questions
How should I use a salary guide when planning a hire?
In order. First decide what the seat actually owns and therefore what level it is. Then open the guide and read the band for that level. Then price for where the business will be in twelve to twenty-four months rather than where it is today. Then add superannuation, equity where relevant and the search fee to get a true budget. Using the guide as the first step rather than the second is how founders end up shopping for a title inside a budget instead of scoping a role.
Why do founders consistently under-hire on finance?
Because they price the role against current complexity rather than the complexity anticipated in twelve months, and then have to re-hire when the first person cannot scale. The band gap makes it concrete: a first finance hire at $120k to $140k gets a senior accountant with a controller title who executes well while the founder still leads the function. Around $180k you can find someone capable of significantly advancing the business. The rule is to hire for the next 24 months, not the next 24 weeks.
What does a salary guide not tell me?
What level you need, what the role should own, and whether your specific business is anywhere near the average. Large benchmarking providers will not accurately know what a CFO in a deep tech startup in Adelaide earns or what a Head of Finance in a Series A Sydney fintech is worth. If your business is unusual in stage, sector or structure, the average is furthest from you exactly when you need it closest. Always ask where a guide's numbers came from.
What should I include in the budget beyond base salary?
Superannuation, which sits on top of base at every level in Australia, and equity, which is material from Head of Finance upward. In current market ranges a Finance Manager sits at $140k to $170k plus super and a Financial Controller at $160k to $200k plus super, depending on industry, size, complexity and location. Include the recruitment fee too: Story's minimum is 15%, with a target of 18% of total remuneration including salary and super. Budgeting it up front stops it becoming a reason to compromise later.
References
- Tom Hunter on title inflation: almost every founder he speaks to is convinced they need a CFO twelve months before they actually do, and a Head of Finance often gets dressed up in a CFO title to close the gap.
- Tom Hunter on the CFO versus Head of Finance question: the honest answer for most founders, most of the time, is still a Head of Finance.
- Tom Hunter on under-hiring: many founders price the first finance role against current complexity rather than the complexity anticipated in 12 months, which often leads to re-hiring because the initial hire could not scale.
- Tom Hunter's rule for finance hiring: hire for the next 24 months, not the next 24 weeks.
- Tom Hunter on what to look for in a finance hire: not just capability today, but the capacity to understand what the next version of the role looks like before the conversation is forced upon them.
- Tom Hunter on the Australian first finance hire: a $120k-$140k salary band typically indicates hiring a senior accountant with a controller title who will execute work well, but the founder will still lead the finance function.
- Tom Hunter on the first finance hire: around $180k, a founder can find an excellent first finance hire capable of significantly advancing the business.
- Tom Hunter on the limits of large benchmarking providers: they will not accurately know what a CFO in a deep tech startup in Adelaide earns or what a Head of Finance in a Series A Sydney fintech is worth.
- Tom Hunter on his salary guide method: no formal methodology or expensive reports, but conversations, hundreds of them over years, with hiring managers, CFOs, candidates and finance leaders across Australia.
- Tom Hunter on current Australian market ranges: $140-170k plus super for a Finance Manager and $160-200k plus super for a Financial Controller, depending on industry, business size and complexity, and location.
- Story Recruitment fee structure: a minimum fee of 15%, with a target of 18% of total remuneration including salary and superannuation.
- Story Recruitment: Tom Hunter saved a client over $25,000 in recruitment costs with a single call adjusting a Finance Manager job ad's value proposition, title and salary alignment to market conditions, leading to interviews booked in four days and a signed candidate soon after.