How to Hire a Fractional CMO
What a fractional CMO is, what one costs, when to hire one, and how to engage a fractional chief marketing officer for a scale-up or portfolio company.
What a fractional CMO is
A fractional CMO is an experienced chief marketing officer who leads the commercial function part time, at a defined cadence, instead of as a full-time hire. It gives a venture or private-equity-backed company senior marketing leadership: brand, demand, positioning, and revenue ownership, without the cost or commitment of a permanent C-level appointment.
When to hire a fractional CMO
- The company needs senior marketing leadership but not a full-time CMO yet
- A founder is still owning marketing and it has stopped scaling
- Positioning and the demand engine need a reset before a permanent hire
- A portfolio company needs commercial leadership across a defined cadence
What a fractional CMO costs
- Priced on a defined monthly cadence, not a full salary plus equity
- Far below the loaded cost of a permanent CMO and their team
- Scales up or down with the work and the stage of the company
- Outcome-linked where the mandate and metrics make that sensible
How to engage one
- Agree the cadence, the scope, and the metrics up front
- Give direct access to the founder or CEO and the revenue numbers
- Expect leadership of the function, not advice from the sideline
- Plan for a handover to a permanent CMO once the function is built
https://niklaslindahl.com/for-recruiters/how-to-hire-a-fractional-cmo