Fractional CMO for
Startups and SaaS companies
Not an agency.
Not a consultant.
A marketing leader.
A fractional CMO is a senior marketing leader who works inside your business part-time. I operate as part of your leadership team—setting strategy, making decisions, directing the marketing team or vendors, and owning the outcomes.
This is a good fit if:
Marketing feels reactive or disconnected from what the business needs
You have people executing marketing, but no one is leading the work
You’re not hitting growth goals and can’t pinpoint why
You’re about to scale and need confidence that marketing can keep up
Hiring a full-time CMO feels premature, but doing nothing isn’t an option
What I bring to the table
Strategy that ties to revenue
I build your marketing strategy around what will drive pipeline, not what looks good in a deck. Positioning, messaging, channel selection, and campaign planning all connect back to growth goals.
Your budget works harder
I look at where every dollar is going and whether it's earning its place. If something isn't performing, I cut it. If a channel needs more investment, I make the case with data.
Execution, not just advice
I don't hand you a deck and wish you luck. I run the campaigns, manage the marketing team, and make decisions that move things forward. If it's in the plan, I'm doing it or making sure it gets done.
Measurement that matters
I build reports around pipeline, qualified leads, and revenue—numbers your leadership team and board want to see. You'll always know what's working and where we're adjusting.
How it works
A single-day intensive where I dig into the biggest marketing problem you’re facing and come back with a clear picture of what's working, what isn't, and what to do next. You walk away with a plan you can act on immediately.
Learn more about the Strategy Intensive.
CMO for a Day (Strategy Intensive)
Fractional CMO engagement
Monthly engagements vary based on your needs, where you're starting, and what needs to be built.
The engagement typically spans positioning, demand generation, content, sales enablement, team leadership, and reporting. But what we focus on depends on what I find, not a predetermined scope. I build the strategy, run the function, and stay accountable for results.
Frequently Asked Questions
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A fractional CMO leads your marketing function part-time. That means setting the strategy, deciding where to focus, managing your team or vendors, and being accountable for whether marketing is driving growth. It's the same role as a full-time CMO—the difference is the time commitment and cost structure. I wrote more about what this looks like in practice in The ROI of a Fractional CMO.
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An agency executes tactics: they'll run your ads, post your content, and manage your SEO. But they don't set strategy or lead your team. A fractional CMO owns the marketing function.
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The strategic work is the same. The difference is structure. A full-time CMO costs $300K+ in total compensation and takes 4-6 months to recruit. A fractional CMO is working inside your business within weeks, at a fraction of that cost, with the flexibility to scale up or down as your needs change. For companies in the $0-10M range, fractional is often the smarter move because you get senior leadership without overcommitting before you're ready. I break this down in detail in Fractional vs. Full-Time CMO.
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The first few weeks are diagnostic. I look at your data, your channels, your team, your competitive position, and how marketing connects (or doesn't) to your pipeline. Then I bring a prioritized plan to your leadership team—what's working, what we're cutting, and what we're building first.
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That's common, and it's fine. I can work directly with your leadership team, bring in contractors to fill specific gaps, or help you make your first marketing hire. Part of the work is figuring out what setup makes sense for your stage and budget—not building a team you're not ready for.
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If marketing decisions are falling to someone whose actual job is something else—CEO, CRO, VP of Sales—that's usually the signal. Other signs: pipeline is unpredictable, you've tried agencies or freelancers without lasting results, or you have a marketing person who's executing, but nobody is setting direction. I wrote about the most common signals in 7 Signs Your Business Is Ready for a Marketing Leader.