Fractional leadership
Fractional executives
A fractional executive is a senior leader who works in your company part-time rather than as a full-time hire. It suits the ordinary situation of a growing business: the work genuinely needs that seniority, but not forty hours of it.
The gap fractional fills
Between the point where you need real financial leadership and the point where you can justify a full-time CFO, there is a stretch of years. Companies usually cross it by giving the work to someone who is not equipped for it, or by hiring too senior too early and burning the salary.
Fractional removes the choice. You buy the judgment at the level required, in the quantity actually needed.
Seats we fill fractionally
- CEO — through a transition, a turnaround, or an owner's step back.
- COO — when operations have outgrown the founder's attention.
- CFO — reporting, forecasting and the financial discipline a buyer or lender expects.
- CHRO and HR leadership — structure, policy and the retention work that follows.
- Other CxO seats — if the role exists, it can be filled fractionally.
- Buyers and sellers — senior commercial roles on the same basis.
Straight answers
Questions people ask about fractional executives.
What is a fractional executive?
A fractional executive is an experienced leader who works in your company part-time — commonly a day or two a week, or for a defined period — instead of being hired full-time. They hold real responsibility and make decisions, which is what separates fractional leadership from consulting.
When should a company hire a fractional executive?
When the work clearly requires that level of seniority but not a full-time salary, which is the normal state for most companies between roughly ten and a hundred employees. The other common trigger is a transition — a departure, a fundraise, or preparation for a sale.
How is a fractional executive different from a consultant?
A consultant recommends; a fractional executive occupies the seat and is accountable for the outcome. They sit in your leadership meetings, manage your people, and own the results rather than delivering a report about them.
How much does a fractional executive cost?
Materially less than the equivalent full-time salary, because you are paying for a portion of their time rather than all of it. The comparison worth making is against the cost of the work not being done at all, which is the actual alternative for most companies considering it.
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