How Neon River helps games companies to hire a Chief Financial Officer
CFO hiring in games has its own logic. Titles can be hit-driven, live service economics can change quickly, and premium launch cycles can create uneven revenue and working capital demands. The right CFO brings clarity and pace, helping the company invest with confidence while keeping control of cash, risk, and decision-making.
Great games CFOs can operate across different business models, including premium, free-to-play, subscriptions, and licensing. They understand what drives performance at title and portfolio level, how to build forecasting discipline under uncertainty, and how to communicate with boards, investors, and partners when outcomes move quickly.
Neon River is an executive search firm specialising in leadership hiring for games and technology companies. Our searches are partner-led and research-driven. We map the market, engage passive candidates, and assess finance leaders against the realities of games, including portfolio risk, live operations cadence, launch planning, platform and partner terms, and the investor narrative behind your growth strategy.
What to look for when hiring a Chief Financial Officer for a games company.
In games, the CFO is often the chief executive officer’s closest partner and the person who turns strategy into an operating plan. The strongest candidates are highly commercial, strong at FP&A, and comfortable working day-to-day with studio, product, and go-to-market leaders. They analyse decisions through a financial lens and improve the quality of decision-making across the business.
The links below provide examples of our work in games and perspective from finance leaders in the industry. They are also the kind of material we use to align expectations and calibrate what “great” looks like for your business model, scale, and investor context.
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Placed James Watkins as CFO and COO. A combined finance and operating role in a scaled games business, supporting commercial decision-making, planning cadence, and leadership rhythm.CFO and COO
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Perspective from a games CFO with experience across Supercell and CCP Games, covering forecasting under uncertainty, trust in numbers, and how finance partners with the business when outcomes move quickly.Finance leadership perspective
What matters in CFO hiring for games companies
We help clients define the mandate in practical terms. What must be true in the first 6, 12, and 18 months, which trade-offs are acceptable, and what “good” looks like for your portfolio, business model, and stakeholder expectations.
In games, finance leadership is rarely just reporting. It is about building a decision system that links production, launches, live operations, and commercial performance to runway, investment pace, and a story the board can stand behind.
Mandate, scope, and decision rights
Pure finance leadership vs broader operational scope, and who owns decisions across portfolio, production, and commercial investment.
Title and portfolio economics
Understanding performance drivers by title, lifecycle, and segment, including retention and engagement where relevant.
Business model fluency
Premium, free-to-play, subscriptions, licensing, and platform deals, plus how revenue timing and margin vary by model.
Forecasting under uncertainty
Scenario planning and sensitivities across launches, live operations performance, partner terms, and market shifts.
Cash, capital, and investment thresholds
Runway management, production and live operations investment decisions, and discipline without under-investing in growth.
Production and delivery economics
Studio capacity, burn, outsourcing, tooling, and the financial reality of building and operating games at your scale.
Commercial governance
User acquisition and marketing governance where relevant, plus go-to-market spend, partnerships, and channel strategy.
Board and investor communication
Clear narrative, metrics, cadence, and credibility during up and down cycles, including risk and concentration.
How Neon River helps games companies hire a CFO
Our searches are partner-led, research-driven, and designed for pace. We combine mapping, direct outreach, and context-based assessment so you meet CFOs who can build confidence in decision-making while matching the cadence and uncertainty that comes with making and operating games.
We focus on whether a candidate can connect studio reality and commercial performance into one operating system, then communicate it clearly to boards, investors, and partners.
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1
Define the mandate and operating model
Scope, decision rights, success measures, and how finance partners with studio, product, commercial, and leadership teams.
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2
Research-led market mapping
Target list across games and relevant adjacent contexts, prioritising leaders with portfolio and uncertainty experience.
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3
Calibrate around your business model
We align the CFO profile to your model, including launch cycles, live operations, platform terms, and investment cadence.
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4
Assess with real operating scenarios
Launch outcomes, portfolio trade-offs, runway calls, cost base decisions, and board communication under pressure.
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5
Close and de-risk
Offer shaping, structured referencing, and onboarding priorities so the CFO lands with clarity, trust, and pace.
Research and thinking on games finance, CFO hiring and scaling mobile games organisations
CFOs in mobile games sit at the intersection of portfolio risk, UA governance, live operations investment, and board narrative. These resources reflect the kind of topics we bring into role definition and assessment, including monetisation pressure, regulation, and the discipline required to scale without losing control.
Hire a Chief Financial Officer for a games company
Partner-led executive search for games Chief Financial Officers. We find finance leaders who improve decisions, manage volatility, and build confidence.