Some finance roles are about spreadsheets and forecasts. Others ask for something more: a genuine feel for the organisation's soul alongside its balance sheet. Portsmouth Cathedral's search for a head of finance was firmly the latter, and it's exactly the kind of assignment Charisma relishes.

Portsmouth Cathedral sits at the heart of Old Portsmouth, a historic and vibrant place of worship serving both its local community and the wider Diocese. But behind the stained glass and choir stalls is a busy, forward-facing organisation, one juggling heritage, sustainability, and community engagement alongside a full calendar of cultural, charitable, and civic activity. Running an institution like this takes more than tradition. It takes sound financial leadership and governance that can flex with the times while protecting what makes the Cathedral special.

That's where Charisma came in. The Cathedral needed a part-time head of finance, a senior leadership appointment tasked with driving financial sustainability, strengthening governance, and supporting long-term resilience across the organisation.

A brief with more layers than it first appeared

On paper, this looked like a fairly standard senior finance search. In practice, it was anything but.

The role was part-time, set at 0.5 FTE, with a flexible and annualised working pattern designed to suit the ebb and flow of Cathedral life. That alone narrowed the pool considerably. Senior finance professionals capable of taking on genuine leadership responsibility at reduced hours are not easy to find, and fewer still are looking for exactly that arrangement at exactly the right moment.

Then came the second layer. This wasn't simply a finance appointment for any organisation. It was a finance appointment for a Cathedral, and the successful candidate needed a genuine empathy with the Christian faith alongside their technical credentials. Strategic financial acumen was non-negotiable, but so was an understanding of, and comfort with, the environment they'd be operating in. Get either half of that equation wrong and the placement wouldn't stick.

It's this kind of brief, technically demanding and culturally specific, where a targeted search approach earns its keep.

Casting wide, then narrowing with care

Charisma's campaign drew strong interest from high-quality candidates across both the charity and commercial sectors. That breadth mattered. Charity sector candidates often bring a natural feel for mission-driven organisations, while commercial candidates can bring a different rigour and pace. Portsmouth Cathedral deserved the chance to consider the best of both worlds rather than being confined to one talent pool.

From that response, Charisma ran a rigorous selection process before presenting a shortlist of four high-calibre candidates. Each candidate demonstrated a clear affinity with the Cathedral's mission, as well as the skills needed, proof that the search had been targeted rather than simply wide.

Three of the four were selected to progress to interview stage with the client, a strong conversion rate that speaks to how carefully the shortlist had been curated in the first place.

Feedback from the Cathedral highlighted the strength, depth, and suitability of the shortlist, reflecting the effectiveness of the targeted search approach.

The right appointment, for the right reasons

The process ended in a successful appointment, with the Cathedral securing a candidate who brought both strategic financial leadership and a collaborative, values-driven approach to the role. In other words, someone who could hold their own on governance and financial strategy while genuinely fitting the culture they were joining.

That combination, technical strength paired with cultural alignment, was always the real test of this assignment. It's one thing to find a strong finance leader. It's another to find one who will thrive inside an organisation as distinctive as a working Cathedral, balancing spiritual purpose with practical, everyday operations.

What this assignment says about how Charisma works

This search is a good example of what sets Charisma apart on niche, senior appointments. It would have been easy to focus purely on technical qualifications and hope cultural fit fell into place. Instead, Charisma treated both elements as equally important from the outset, shaping the search, the assessment process, and the final shortlist around them together.

That consultative partnership approach, working closely with the client to understand not just the role but the organisation behind it, is what allowed Charisma to deliver a shortlist the Cathedral could trust and, ultimately, an appointment built to last. It's a reminder that senior recruitment isn't just about filling a vacancy. It's about finding someone who will genuinely support an organisation's long-term financial sustainability and its wider organisational development.

Portsmouth Cathedral now has a head of finance equipped to steer it through the years ahead, someone who understands both the numbers and the mission behind them. For Charisma, it's another example of what's possible when technical expertise and cultural understanding are given equal weight throughout the search.

If you're looking to make a senior appointment where technical skill needs to sit alongside genuine cultural fit, Charisma would love to help. Get in touch with Charisma to start the conversation.