"A CFO (chief financial officer i.e.) won't sit down and talk if offered less than 3,000 euros in net amount per month," says Mihaela Damian, managing partner of executive search company Stanton Chase. For instance, whereas two years ago, 2,000 euros were regarded as a reasonable salary for a CFO, the negotiations are now starting from 3,000 euros.
Chief financial officers are among the highest paid executives in companies, as they are generally considered the second highest-ranking officials in many industries after the CEO or general manager.
The net salary of a CFO may reach 7,000-10,000 euros depending on the size or development stage of the business, but is approximately 30-40% lower than a CEO's pay, which can easily exceed 10,000 euros per month.
Despite having gone up fast lately, the salary market is still extremely inconsistent and fluctuating. "We have candidates in CFO and commercial manager positions for which a salary of 5,000-6,000 euros is an ordinary thing. On the other hand, we have general manager positions for which 5,000 euros are a common salary," Damian says.
The trend of the salary market over the last few years has somewhat tempered the expectations of the employers, so that executive search consultants have less trouble setting certain salary levels. "Clients come with a specific budget when they are recruiting. The first reaction when they find out what the expectations of the employees are is something like 'crazy market'. After looking around, they realise this is how the market is and agree to pay higher salaries than initially budgeted," Damian explains.
The battle over people is also putting pressure on executive search companies, which end up vying over the same people, so that candidates get two or three job offers at a time. "When they have four offers on the table at the same time, which are not significantly different, most candidates choose the highest salary. No one is willing to sacrifice even a cent or an hour of their professional life for their career. Everybody talks about career but no one actually understands what it really means."
There is a generation of top managers who have risen fast in their profession and have had an interesting career, and very high salaries as a result. "Such executives are unable to get used to a job on a different level and either stay with the same company or become entrepreneurs or consultants," Damian says, using as an example a 28-33 year old manager who earns 7,000-10,000 euros as chief financial officer or chief operating officer.
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