Fractional CEO · Part-time chief executive · Portfolio CEO

Fractional CEO · what one does, what one costs, when you need one

A fractional CEO is an experienced chief executive who runs your company on agreed days a week rather than full-time, setting the strategy, leading the senior team and answering to the board and owners. The same model is also called a part-time or portfolio CEO.

Below: what one does week to week, what one costs, how the role differs from an interim CEO, and when to hire a fractional CEO. We recruit fractional, interim, part-time and permanent chief executives; every brief gets a shortlist of 3–5, each with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.

Brief us on a CEO hire →See the roles

How a brief runswhat we undertake

01Brief30-MINUTE SCOPING CALLDay 0
02Shortlist of 3–5VETTED · RATE BENCHMARK · IR35After the brief
03InterviewsYOU MEET THE SHORTLISTYour diary
04Scoped startFIRST-MONTH OUTCOMES AGREEDYou set the date
05Fractional, interim and permanentIR35 POSITION SET OUTOn every brief

Shortlist3–5

In the press

Fast Company 16 leaders on when fractional C-suite hires make sense · 24 Jun 2026
Leaders disagree on when a part-week executive makes sense and when a seat needs a full-time owner. For the chief executive seat that disagreement is sharpest, and it is the first decision behind a fractional CEO.

3–5

Shortlist · with day rate, availability and IR35 set out

Vetting · stages before a candidate reaches you

£800–£1,500

Part-time CEO day rate · per day

FD Capital, 2026

£5k–£10k

Fractional CEO, two days a week · per month

Exec Capital, 2026

15 minutes · video or phone

Book 15 minutes to hire a fractional CEO

Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with CEO candidates, their day rates and availability.

0115 minutes, video or phone
02We scope the role and the days a week
03A shortlist of 3–5 after the call
04Fractional, interim and permanent briefs

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On the board · last 3 months

Fractional CEO jobs on the board

0 Fractional CEO · 3 fractional C-suite

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Current fractional CEO and C-suite roles

Fractional Quest is a fractional recruitment agency: send a CEO brief and we come back with a shortlist of three to five vetted candidates.

01/ the role

What is a fractional CEO?

A fractional CEO is a chief executive engaged for part of the week. They do the CEO’s job (set direction, lead the senior team, manage the owners and the board, and answer for performance) within agreed days, often with more than one company in their portfolio. O*NET’s summary of the chief executive role describes the work as overall direction within guidelines set by a board, carried out through subordinate executives; the fractional version keeps that shape and changes the hours.

Fractional CEO meaning

“Fractional”, “part-time”, “portfolio” and “shared” CEO are used for the same arrangement: an ongoing seat at fewer days. The distinction that matters is with an interim CEO, who works full-time for a fixed period. A fractional CEO is also not a chair or a non-executive director. A chair runs the board; a non-executive challenges it. A fractional CEO runs the business.

The duties do not shrink with the days

A fractional CEO is usually appointed a director, and even without the title, under the Companies Act “director” includes any person occupying the position of director, by whatever name called. Companies House is plain that the general duties of a director still apply if you act as a director without being formally appointed. Part-week hours change the diary, not the duty.

Where the seat sits

In a listed company the FRC’s UK Corporate Governance Code sets out a division of responsibilities between the board and the executive; private companies are not bound by it, but the split is a useful model. Write down what the fractional CEO decides, what the board decides, and what the founder keeps. For the full-time role, see what a CEO does.

02/ scope

Fractional CEO: what one does, week to week

First, the plan

Most engagements open with a read of the business: the numbers, the senior team, the customers, the owners’ goals and the risks in the year ahead. The output is a plan the board signs off, with owners for each line, and an agreed rhythm for the days the CEO is in.

A typical week

On their days, a fractional CEO runs the leadership meeting, holds one-to-ones with direct reports, reviews the management accounts with the finance lead, meets the largest customers or partners, and prepares the board. Off their days, the senior team runs the business to the plan, with a clear route for decisions that cannot wait.

What the seat owns

Strategy and the plan; the senior team and its accountability; the relationship with owners, investors and the bank; culture and the hiring of leaders; the board pack. A part-week CEO needs a finance lead and a strong operator beside them, so that the week is covered by people who share the plan.

What it does not replace

A fractional CEO cannot be the only senior person in a business that needs daily decisions. If the team below is thin, either strengthen it first (a fractional COO often carries the operating load) or hire full-time.

03/ economics

What a fractional CEO costs

A fractional CEO costs their day rate times the days they work. Two published UK sources give bands. FD Capital puts part-time CEOs at £800 to £1,500 a day: £3,200 to £6,500 a month at one day a week, £6,400 to £13,000 at two. Exec Capital puts a two-day-a-week fractional CEO in a growth-stage business at £5,000 to £10,000 a month. Both firms recruit CEOs, so these are provider figures, not a survey.

For comparison, Exec Capital puts a full-time CEO at an SME with £5m to £50m revenue at a base of £120,000 to £250,000, and quotes Glassdoor’s UK CEO median of £168,083. Interim CEOs, who work full-time weeks, charge £1,000 to £1,800 a day in SME and mid-market roles and £1,800 to £3,500 on complex listed or PE-backed mandates (Exec Capital).

We set out each candidate’s day rate on the shortlist. Our rate calculator turns a day rate and days a week into a monthly figure, and the CEO salary guide sets out full-time pay by company size.

04/ comparison

Fractional CEO vs interim CEO vs part-time vs full-time

A fractional CEO works agreed days a week for as long as the business needs senior leadership but not five days of it. An interim CEO works full-time for a fixed term, through a vacancy, a crisis or a transaction. A part-time CEO on your payroll is the employed version of the fractional seat; a full-time CEO is the permanent owner.

FractionalInterimPart-time (employed)Full-time

TimeAgreed days a week, often alongside other companiesFull-time, for a fixed termFixed days a week, for you aloneEvery working day, open-ended

Usual reasonA founder-led business professionalising, or a seat that needs judgement more than hoursA sudden departure, a turnaround or a saleA long-term seat at reduced hoursThe business needs a daily chief executive

Usually engagedThrough their own company; IR35 turns on how it runsThrough their own company, by the dayEmployment contractEmployment contract

Published pay£800–£1,500 a day (FD Capital); £5,000–£10,000 a month at two days (Exec Capital)£1,000–£1,800 a day, SME and mid-market (Exec Capital); all-discipline average assignment 10.0 months (IIM 2026)Salary pro rata£120,000–£250,000 base at an SME (Exec Capital)

05/ timing

When to hire a fractional CEO

Three situations where a part-week chief executive fits, and one where it does not.

Scenario 01

The founder has outgrown running it alone

Professional leadership, founder still in

The founder built the business and wants to stay close to product or customers. A fractional CEO runs the team and the plan; the founder moves to chair, a board seat or the work they do best.

Scenario 02

Ownership is changing

Leadership through a sale or buy-out

A sale, a first private equity investment or a management buy-out needs an experienced chief executive for the transition, without a permanent appointment made before the new owners are in.

Scenario 03

Between permanent chief executives

Time to search properly

When the CEO leaves and the business can run on fewer senior days, a fractional CEO keeps it moving while the board recruits the permanent successor without rushing.

Scenario 04

A crisis that needs a CEO every day

Hire interim instead

A turnaround, a cash crisis or a lender in the room needs a full-time chief executive. Look at an interim CEO.

06/ vetting

How we vet fractional CEOs

What we undertake on every brief, before a candidate reaches you.

01
Qualification screen
Verify CEO tenure, sector context and stage fit.
SOURCING
02
Mandate fit
Match to your situation — stage, board dynamics, timing.
MATCHING
03
Reference deep-dive
We take references ourselves, from recent past clients — real outcomes, not titles.
VERIFY
04
Shortlist
Three to five candidates with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.
SHORTLIST OF 3–5

07/ hiring, in short

How to hire a fractional CEO the short version

Agree the mandate with the board and owners first: what the CEO decides alone, what the board reserves, what the founder keeps, and how many days that takes. The full process, and the current roles on our board, are on our page to hire a fractional CEO; candidates can browse fractional CEO jobs there too.

Look for a record of running businesses at your stage and of working to a board. The IoD’s Chartered Director programme (certificate, diploma, then an experience-based assessment) is one marker of board competence; references from chairs and investors are a better one. For the CEO role in full, our CEO job description and CEO interview questions help frame the brief.

Settle IR35 before the start date. A fractional CEO working through their own company may fall under the off-payroll working rules. Status turns on how the engagement runs in practice: a medium or large client makes the determination, while for a small private-sector client the worker’s own company decides (HMRC’s guidance for clients sets the size tests). Our IR35 guide sets out the tests.

On every brief we send a shortlist of 3–5, each with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, after five-stage vetting. If the seat should be a full-time interim, see interim CEO jobs.

08/ questions

Fractional CEO FAQ

The questions people ask before bringing in a fractional CEO.

A chief executive engaged for agreed days a week rather than full-time, often with more than one company in their portfolio. They set the strategy, lead the senior team and answer to the board and owners, within those days. Part-time and portfolio CEO describe the same model.

They agree a plan with the board, then run the business to it on their days: the leadership meeting, one-to-ones with direct reports, the management accounts, the largest customer and investor relationships, and the board pack. The senior team runs the business to that plan on the other days.

A fractional CEO works agreed days a week on an ongoing basis. An interim CEO works full-time for a fixed term, through a vacancy, a crisis or a transaction. Exec Capital puts interim CEOs at £1,000 to £1,800 a day in SME and mid-market roles. See interim CEO jobs.

When a founder has outgrown running the business alone, when ownership is changing, or when the board needs time to find a permanent chief executive and the business can run on fewer senior days. Not in a crisis that needs a CEO every day: hire an interim then.

The day rate times the days. FD Capital puts part-time CEOs at £800 to £1,500 a day, or £6,400 to £13,000 a month at two days a week; Exec Capital puts a two-day-a-week fractional CEO at £5,000 to £10,000 a month. Both are recruiters’ figures. We set out each candidate’s day rate on the shortlist.

Agree the mandate and the days with the board and owners, look for a record of running businesses at your stage, take references from chairs and investors, and settle IR35 before the start. Our page to hire a fractional CEO sets out the full process; we send a shortlist of 3–5.

Mostly, yes: both describe a chief executive on fewer days. In practice “part-time” often means employed on your payroll for those days, and “fractional” means engaged through their own company, often alongside other clients. The work is the same.

Usually, and the duties apply either way. Under the Companies Act a director includes anyone occupying the position of director, by whatever name called, and Companies House says the general duties apply even to someone acting as a director without formal appointment.

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Bring the brief. We architect the team.

A shortlist of 3–5 with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, after five-stage vetting.

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