FINANCE.
GOVERNANCE.
CAPITAL. SCALE.
Make the appointment that holds up under pressure.
When capital tightens and scrutiny increases, leadership gaps become expensive.
We help appoint senior finance leaders and deal-literate board members for lower mid-market sustainable and investor-backed businesses at moments of scale, capital and succession.
Our process is structured and evidence-led, but human in how we assess judgement, alignment and resilience. The result is an appointment that stands up to board scrutiny, investor questions and operational reality.
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CFO and senior finance leadership appointments
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Finance and deal-literate Chair and NED appointments
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Evaluation and succession support at key transitions
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Structured, evidence-led assessment
When finance is tested, confidence is tested.
Growth brings complexity. Capital brings scrutiny. Succession brings risk.
At key inflexion points, finance stops being a support function and becomes a signal of control, judgement and readiness.
A missed forecast. A new investor. A refinancing. An expansion. An exit discussion. In these moments, boards and funders are not reading reports. They are assessing headroom, discipline and alignment.
The cost of a weak appointment is not just delay. It is lost confidence and value.
Trusted by values-led organisations
Appointments that stand up to scrutiny.
We specialise in CFO, senior finance leadership and finance-led governance appointments for lower mid-market, sustainable and investor-backed businesses.
Each search begins with context, not a job description. We define the role against the business model, capital structure and board dynamic.
Our approach is structured and evidence-led:
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Research-led longlists, not recycled networks
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Behavioural and scenario-based evaluation
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Explicit referencing and documented decision criteria
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Partner-led delivery from start to finish
The result is an appointment that can be explained, defended and trusted when scrutiny increases.
Snapshot
96%
Search mandate success rate
68 NPS
Highly recommended by candidates
85%
Appointments in place after 12m
14
Pro-bono searches for non-profits
1/2
Profits shared with colleagues and clients
Built for stewardship, not churn.
Philanthrope is structured as a cooperative executive search firm. Governance is shared. Incentives are aligned with long-term outcomes.
Our performance-linked fee model reinforces accountability beyond placement.
We reinvest retained profits through Philanthrope Capital into early-stage sustainable enterprises and the wider leadership ecosystem.
This structure exists for a reason: leadership decisions shape trajectory. How they are made shapes confidence.
We are built for repeat partnership at moments that matter.
