Hiring · from the Hysaab family

We knew what good finance people look like. So we built the way to find them.

Ibtidah is where our expertise went next: finance recruitment that tests whether a candidate truly knows the work, with AI doing the reading and the questioning, and experienced finance people making every call.

Visit ibtidah.ae →How it works
100%of applications read in full, not keyword-filtered
1 testof real finance work before any interview
3 to 5verified people on the shortlist you receive
ibtidahExecutive finance recruitmentCFOs, finance directors, heads of tax, controllers and the accountants who keep the books honest. Placed by people who have done the job.
Why we went into recruitment

A CV can be written. A phone call can be rehearsed. The work cannot be faked.

Ibtidah is operated by Oblique, the team behind Hysaab. Separate product, separate subscription, same standard of evidence.
The ordinary wayA resume and a call.

Most recruiters judge finance experience from a CV and a short phone screen. Both can be shaped: a title inflated, a system name dropped in, a close described that someone else ran. The hiring manager finds out in month three.

  • EvidenceClaimed, not shown.
  • JudgementA generalist recruiter, on volume.
  • OutcomeThirty interviews to find one.
The Ibtidah wayThe work, then a person who knows it.

Every candidate works through real finance scenarios and is questioned on their answers by AI that does not tire or skim. Then a finance professional reads the evidence and decides. Humans stay in the loop on every judgement, and the same rigour we put into a ledger goes into a hire.

  • EvidenceDemonstrated in a test, transcripts attached.
  • JudgementA finance professional who has run the close.
  • OutcomeThree to five people worth your hour.
Start a search at ibtidah.ae →
How a search runs

Five stages. AI does the reading; people make the calls.

Every stage is logged, so you can see why each person was advanced or not.
01The role, written by finance people HumanWe start from what the job actually requires: the close, the systems, the tax regime, the reporting. Not a template of keywords.
02Every application read in full AIAI reads each CV, cover note and portfolio the same careful way, and maps the claimed experience against the role. Nothing is filtered on a keyword or a school name.
03A working test, not a phone call AICandidates work through real finance scenarios: reconcile a statement, spot the input VAT that would not survive an audit, explain what moved in a management pack. The AI probes the answers with follow-up questions.
04A finance professional reviews the evidence HumanSomeone who has run a close reads the transcripts and the work, checks the judgement behind the answers, and decides who moves forward. Experience is verified, not assumed.
05A shortlist you can defend HumanThree to five people, each with the evidence of what they did in the test and why our reviewer believes them. You interview the people, not the pile.
Who Ibtidah places

Finance roles, mid to senior, across the Gulf.

Every search is scoped and reviewed by a finance professional, and every candidate is tested on the work the role actually contains. The list below is where the method has been proven.

Chief financial officersStrategy, capital, board reporting and the discipline to keep the numbers honest under pressure.
Finance directors and controllersThe close, controls, consolidation and a team that can run without heroics.
Heads of taxUAE corporate tax, VAT and transfer pricing, tested on real cases rather than recited rules.
Accountants and senior accountantsCoding, reconciliations, accruals and the judgement to ask when something does not fit.
FP&A and reportingManagement packs that explain what moved and why, traced to the ledger.
Audit and internal auditPeople who read evidence for a living and can defend a finding.
Ibtidah by Oblique

Hiring lives at ibtidah.ae.

Ibtidah has its own site, its own team and its own subscription. Hysaab customers are welcome, and nothing from your books is shared with the recruitment side. If you are hiring into finance, start there.

Go to ibtidah.ae →Ask us first
ibtidah by oblique
Founding cohort

Close the month in days. Take your evenings back.

76 of 100 founding seats are taken. Doors open 28 October, with founder pricing locked in for as long as you stay. Work email only; a real person reads every entry.

Join the waitlist →Book a demo