What a Finance Director typically owns
- Board reporting and strategic planning
- Funding, banking and investor relationships
- Function leadership and transformation
- Commercial and M&A decision support
Typical profile
Qualified, with board-level or senior finance leadership experience.
Every shortlisted Finance Director is assessed against the Gravitate Baseline, with the role's technical must-haves agreed in the brief.
Salary guide 2026/27
Qualified hires, permanent base salary excluding bonus and benefits, South West excluding Bristol. Compiled October 2026. How we built these bands.
Get a salary benchmark and a hiring plan.
30 minutes, no obligation. Silver Search has no upfront fee.
Eliot: I set up and ran a South West qualified finance recruitment operation from Exeter from 2017 to 2022, then founded Gravitate in June 2022.
Book a callGetting a Finance Director hire right
Confidentiality
Some FD searches need to start while an incumbent is still in post, or before the team knows. If so, consider an anonymised brief and direct approaches rather than a public advert.
Leadership assessment
Include the MD, chair or investors at final stage, and ask for a short presentation on a real issue for your business. You're assessing judgement and board presence, not just technical depth.
Search depth and package
Strong FD candidates may not be actively applying, so consider a full market map (Platinum Search). Packages can include bonus, pension, car or equity elements, and notice periods may be longer, so plan around them.
Got a finance role to fill?
A 30-minute call: the role, a salary benchmark, a realistic timeline and which search option fits.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to hire a Finance Director in the South West?
We run a structured two-stage interview process that targets shortlist to offer within two weeks. Sourcing and screening happen before the shortlist, and the timeline relies on prompt interview slots and decisions on your side. The start date then depends on the candidate's notice period, so allow for that in your plan.
What salary should I offer a Finance Director in Devon or the South West?
Our Gravitate South West salary guide 2026/27 puts a qualified Finance Director at £90k–£135k base in an SME and £110k–£160k in a larger or group business, excluding bonus and benefits. Sector, scope and qualification move it within that range, so we benchmark every role on the first call.
How much does it cost to recruit a Finance Director?
Fees are agreed per role and depend on whether you choose Platinum, Gold or Silver Search. Silver Search has no upfront fee. Book a call and we'll share our terms.
Which areas do you cover?
Exeter, Devon, Cornwall, Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and Bath. We don't actively cover Bristol.