Most companies plan their hiring process forwards: vacancy arises → role advertised → interviews arranged.
But when it comes to January start dates, that approach doesn’t work anymore. With three-month notice periods now standard across senior finance roles, you need to flip the process on its head.
The firms that succeed in 2026 will be the ones that understand — and act on — the backwards hiring timeline.
Why Hiring Needs to Be Backwards-Planned
Finance professionals starting in January 2026 don’t just appear in the market in December. Their journey looks like this:
- September: Interviews take place.
- October: Offers made, notice periods served.
- January: Candidate starts.
If you leave interviews until November or December, the outcome is predictable: the strongest talent is already gone, and you’re competing for whoever is left.
The Risks of Forward-Only Hiring
A traditional, forward-looking hiring process leads to:
- Missed start dates — roles unfilled when the business needs them most.
- Stressful December recruitment — crammed interviews, rushed offers, poor candidate experience.
- Lost productivity — vacancies carried into Q1 slow down finance teams and affect wider performance.
The Backwards Hiring Strategy in Practice
Here’s how to put the backwards timeline into action:
- Fix your start date. If you need a January 2026 hire, work backwards from that date.
- Count back three months. That’s when you should be running final interviews and making offers.
- Brief early. September is when your recruitment partner should already be building shortlists and engaging candidates.
January 2026 feels far away. But the backwards hiring timeline makes it clear: the time to act is now.
