The short answer
Engaging an interim CFO directly saves the placement uplift – providers who disclose it quote 25 to 40 percent. In return the company takes on four things itself: the selection, the contract, the risk of absence and the social-security status assessment.
For a clearly bounded project with a person you already know, the direct route is often right. For a leadership role you are filling externally for the first time, the saved uplift is frequently spent elsewhere.
What the uplift pays for
Pre-selection. The difference between a fitting profile and a plausible-sounding one usually shows in week four. Whoever places regularly has seen the people in action before.
The contract. Scope, decision and approval rights, liability, confidentiality, termination, handover. A self-drafted service contract leaves open exactly the points that later become contentious.
Cover in case of absence. If a directly engaged individual drops out, there is no replacement – in the middle of a close or a transaction that is the most expensive line in the whole calculation.
The status assessment. Whoever knows the criteria and builds the contract around them reduces the risk considerably. The responsibility, though, stays with the client – more on that below.
Bogus self-employment: the point that gets underestimated
A leadership role on a fixed term naturally has features that point towards employment: reporting lines, integration into the organisation, a desk in the building, a budget and a team.
If the German pension insurance (Deutsche Rentenversicherung) later determines that the arrangement was dependent employment, the back payments hit the client, not the person engaged – retroactively, employer and employee contributions both. That is not a formality; it is the reason two competitors in the market explicitly advertise "employed, not freelance".
What helps: a scope that describes a result rather than presence; no integration into holiday or shift planning; several clients on the side of the person engaged; and, in case of doubt, a status determination procedure before the mandate runs. The criteria in detail are in contract and bogus self-employment.
The honest comparison
| Engaged directly | Through a provider | |
|---|---|---|
| Day rate | lower | higher by the uplift |
| Search effort | in-house | with the provider |
| Contract | draft yourself or have it drawn up by counsel | existing contract framework |
| Absence | own risk | cover from the network |
| Status question | own assessment | reviewed jointly; responsibility stays with the client |
| Follow-on placement | new search | from the same network |
The last row counts for more than it looks. Whoever has placed once places the next time in days rather than weeks.
When the direct route holds
- The person is known – from an earlier mandate, from the shareholder's network.
- The brief is clearly bounded and result-based: a financial model, due diligence support, a system project.
- Someone in-house can assess the contract.
- An absence would be annoying but not critical.
If any of these does not apply – and especially where it concerns finance leadership in a vacancy, a transaction or a crisis – the uplift is usually money well spent.
A note for readers outside Germany
The status risk is a German particularity that international funds regularly underestimate. Contractor arrangements that are unremarkable in the UK or the US can be reclassified here, and the liability for years of social-security contributions lands with the company. A limited company on the contractor's side softens the question but does not settle it – what counts is how the work is actually organised.
Frequently asked questions
How large is the uplift usually?
Providers who disclose it quote 25 to 40 percent between the rate of the person engaged and the price to the company. Ask explicitly in the proposal whether the quoted day rate is the final price.
Who is liable for bogus self-employment?
The back payments hit the client, retroactively and with both contribution shares. That applies whether the engagement was direct or through a provider – a well-built contract lowers the risk but does not move it.
What if the contractor operates through a limited company?
A corporate entity as counterparty defuses the question considerably but does not answer it on its own. What matters is how the work is actually organised.
Can I combine both?
Yes, and it is common: finance leadership through a provider, bounded specialist tasks directly with known experts. The only condition is clarity about who owns the results.
What happens if the person does not fit?
With a provider placement that belongs in the contract – cover in case of absence, replacement in the opening window, notice period. The point is set out in what happens if it does not work out.
Read on
- Contract and bogus self-employment – criteria, back payments, status determination.
- Interim CFO or executive search.
- Finding an interim CFO.
- Pricing.
Sources and status
The placement uplift reflects figures published by providers themselves. The remarks on status determination describe German practice in overview. Status: September 2026. This article does not replace legal advice; the status question belongs in expert hands in each individual case.