How long does charity director recruitment take?

How long does charity director recruitment take?

It takes from six to twelve weeks to go from the initial request to an offer being accepted, and four to six months to get from the initial request to the new director starting work, since most charity directors give three months’ notice; boards plan according to the first of these figures and then end up losing a quarter’s time waiting for the second.

It is in the gap between the two figures that the bulk of the damage occurs. When a chief executive informs the board that the fundraising director will be in post by June, having launched the search in March, he is giving the offer date and not the start date. The following sections set out realistic timeframes by position, the factors that extend them, and the rare cases in which they are shortened.

Two numbers, not one

The recruitment timeline—comprising the brief, the mapping, the approaches, the assessment, the panel, and the decision—is the figure that the recruiter quotes, and it is the only stage over which either of you has control.

The notice period is part of the time to desk, and for directors in the charity sector this is generally three months. It also covers the days between the making of a verbal offer and the signing of the contract, a period which may seem unimportant but usually lasts two weeks as the job description is finalised and the start date is arranged around a family holiday. When speaking to the board mention both figures from the beginning, putting the second one in bold, and then the discussion about progress in week nine is much simpler.

How long each director role takes

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The finance director is the slowest in the group for two reasons. Firstly, the pool of suitable candidates is smaller since a charity finance director must have both appropriate accountancy experience and be fluent in restricted funds, SORP reporting and the audit cycle, and the evaluation process usually includes a technical stage which is something that is not required in other director searches. Secondly, boards tend to plan finance appointments to coincide with the audit or the year end, thereby taking away weeks of availability from the panel at the most inappropriate time.

The position of fundraising director is the most competitive since capable candidates are regularly approached, have multiple interviews going on simultaneously, and leave processes when they come to a halt. More often than any other area, fundraising candidates lose hope after a week has passed without any contact following their first interview.

The person in charge of communications and marketing is the one who takes the longest time among the permanent positions; there are more candidates available, since those coming from agencies and the commercial sector are in fact suitable, and the notice periods are usually one or two months rather than three.

What lengthens the timeline

The main causes of delays are six in number and among them only one is due to the recruiter.

Setting a salary band below the market rate is the most不利 thing to do, since you only realise it at the offer stage after having already spent ten weeks. It is necessary to carry out benchmarking before the search starts rather than after a candidate has declined. The ACEVO Pay and Equalities Survey 2025, which is based on data from 703 charity chief executives, can act as a good guide to the level appropriate for people above your directors, and a specialist recruiter should be able to inform you of what comparable director positions actually paid over the previous twelve months.

The availability of panels comes second; if a panel meets when it is convenient rather than on the pre-booked dates, this adds two to three weeks between the longlist and the first interview, and an equivalent amount before the final round. In cases where director appointments have to be noted or approved at a board meeting, the board’s calendar determines the minimum timeframe—a quarterly cycle alone can add six weeks.

For the month of August and the two weeks before and after Christmas, senior charity recruitment comes to a standstill. The interview panels break up, the candidates go on holiday and the referees can no longer be contacted. A search that is started in mid-July is typically similar to one that is started in September.

The fourth of the pre-employment checks is in fact one that is frequently undervalued. In the case of a post which involves regulated activity with children or adults at risk, an enhanced DBS check is necessary. The Disclosure and Barring Service issues monthly reports on police performance, and the time taken for enhanced checks has been averaging about fourteen days, ten to twenty working days being a reasonable range to plan on. If an application is referred to a police force that has a backlog the time involved can be much longer. The check should be initiated on the day the offer is accepted, not on the day the contract is returned.

The fifth item in the list is references. A director cannot provide a line manager’s reference until they have told their present employer that they are looking for a new position, which implies that your reference process begins after the offer has been made and not before. It is important to agree in advance what you will accept temporarily, and you must never make your start date depend on a reference for which you have not yet asked.

Counter-offers come sixth and are more frequently received at director level than the boards anticipate. A charity which has just lost its fundraising director to you is facing an income problem and has fortnight to deal with it. The reason given is that the candidate has been properly involved with your mission during the entire process rather than having been convinced by the offer at the end.

What genuinely shortens it

• The dates for the panels are booked before the search begins, with a designated replacement for each panel member.
• The decision rule reached during the briefing means that a split panel won’t result in an additional two weeks.
• Instead having three separate rounds, there is just one assessment day, which the candidates favour and which eliminates a fortnight.
• A temporary cover is in place, thereby eliminating the pressure that causes boards to appoint the least suitable candidate among those present.
• A recruiter knows the organisation since the first briefing is the most gradual stage in any new relationship.

The fact that a shortlist is obtained more quickly does not reduce the cost; if the appointment fails then the weeks you have saved will have been wasted because a shortlist delivered in ten days is no more than a database search.

Working backwards from the date you need someone

Instead set the plan from the date the person is required to be at their desk, not from the date you would like to begin recruiting. In the case of a fundraising director who has to be in post at the start of a financial year in April, the calculation goes in the opposite direction: three months’ notice brings you to an offer in January, ten weeks of recruitment lead to an agreement being reached by the end of October, and two weeks to appoint a recruiter and to book the panel dates bring you to mid-October.

The discussion regarding an April start takes place in early autumn; boards which start in January for an April start are not engaging in recruitment planning but are preparing an interim plan.

When fast is a warning sign

The fact that a director is appointed three weeks after the usual time period indicates one of three possibilities: that an internal candidate was always intended to be chosen, that the recruiter had a specific person in mind without carrying out any market research, or that the salary offered was so much higher than the standard level that the first contact agreed to the appointment. It’s important to be aware of the first two scenarios before the board gives its approval. If a recruiter promises to provide a shortlist within a week, find out which organisations they plan to approach and pay attention to whether the answer includes any names.

Interim cover while you recruit

An interim director is generally able to begin within two weeks, although in some cases it will be within a few days, and this is the appropriate solution in instances where the gap is operational not strategic—for example, when an audit has to be completed, a bid has a deadline, or the team has no manager. Day rates are greater than those of the salaried version, and this is the price one pays for having speed and for retaining the option to keep searching properly.

Fix the end date of the temporary arrangement on the day that it begins. If a temporary appointment lasts into its ninth month it will be deemed to be a permanent position, and the subsequent permanent search will not draw in a serious external candidate.

Talking to us about a director appointment

For more than 25 years the Maine Charity arm of the Maine Group has provided services to not-for-profit organisations in the areas of fundraising and philanthropy, finance, human resources, executive assistance and the appointment of senior leaders, on a permanent, temporary or interim basis; the firm has also been recruiting for companies in London since 1987.

The first thing to do if you need a director to be in post by a certain date is to start from that date and together work out whether or not the date is valid. You can reach us on 020 7734 7341.

Frequently asked questions

What time does it take to hire a charity fundraising director?

It takes between eight and twelve weeks to go from brief to acceptance of the offer, and between five and six months to the first day when a three-month notice period is included. Since fundraising candidates have several conversations going on at the same time, having gaps of over a week between stages results in you losing candidates.

What is the reason it takes so long to fill a position for a charity director?

The recruitment process generally takes between six and twelve weeks, the remainder of the time being taken up by notice periods, the availability of panel members in relation to the board’s calendar, holiday periods, and the pre-employment checks, which include an enhanced DBS when the position involves regulated activity.

Is it possible to recruit a director of charities in under a month?

It is often possible to arrange an interim appointment within two weeks; if a permanent appointment can be made in less than a month then the position must have been held by a single person, and it is important to establish this before the board approves it.

What is the notice period for a director of a charity?

Three months is the norm at director level, with one or two months more common in communications and marketing roles. Ask about it at first interview rather than at offer stage, because it changes your start date by a quarter.