The C-Level Hiring Guide, No. 1

Should you hire a CFO?

Fifteen pages on when the seat is due, which of the three CFO jobs your stage needs, and what to check before you sign.

Most early-stage biotechs do not need a CFO. They need a financial manager. The strategic CFO becomes due when financing decisions move from supporting the CEO to co-leading with the CEO. Hire three years too early and you pay twice. A year too late and the CEO carries the round alone.

• 01Where are you now, and what is the goal. Two writing fields.
• 02Three patterns I see: too early, too late, outgrown.
• 03The three CFO jobs and the timeline from the round to the exit.
• 04The T-18 countdown: from search start to money in the bank.
• 05Fractional, interim or permanent. Easy, advanced or pro.
• 06The six pools a CFO comes from, and the one test question for each.
• 07Five interview questions a non-finance person can ask.
• 08Need fit, the offer, the first 30, 60 and 90 days, and the checks to run.

Free. No form, no follow-up sequence. If the guide raises a question, I answer it on the call.