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Fractional leadership services · Fractional executives · Fractional C-suite

Fractional leadership · hire a fractional executive, or a whole fractional C-suite

Fractional leadership services give a business a senior executive, such as a CFO, CMO or CTO, for part of the week, usually one to three days, without a full-time appointment. To hire a fractional executive, choose the seat, scope the days and the outcomes, then decide whether fractional, interim or permanent fits the job.

We recruit fractional, interim, part-time, temporary and permanent executives, and non-executive directors. On every brief we send a shortlist of 3–5, each with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, after five-stage vetting.

Brief us on a fractional executive →See live roles

How a brief runswhat we undertake

  1. 01Brief30-MINUTE SCOPING CALLDay 0
  2. 02Shortlist of 3–5VETTED · RATE BENCHMARK · IR35After the brief
  3. 03InterviewsYOU MEET THE SHORTLISTYour diary
  4. 04Scoped startFIRST-MONTH OUTCOMES AGREEDYou set the date
  5. 05Fractional, interim and permanentIR35 POSITION SET OUTOn every brief

Shortlist3–5

In the press

  • Financial Times The executives going ‘fractional’, not freelance (paywall)

    Describes senior people who choose to be embedded at leadership level in several companies at once. That is the fractional executive this page helps you hire, and the kind of role it points candidates to.

  • Fast Company 16 leaders on when fractional C-suite hires make sense · 24 Jun 2026

    Executives disagree on when a fractional C-suite hire makes sense: many back it for a defined mandate, others want full-time ownership where a role needs it daily. A useful test before you choose the route.

3–5
Shortlist · with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 set out
5
Vetting · stages before a candidate reaches you

15 minutes · video or phone

Book 15 minutes to hire a fractional executive

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

  1. 0115 minutes, video or phone
  2. 02We scope the role and the days a week
  3. 03A shortlist of 3–5 after the call
  4. 04Fractional, interim and permanent briefs
Prefer email? Use the booking page →

Pick a day that suits · live availability

Live roles · last 3 months

Live Fractional executive jobs

9 live
Browse all live UK roles →

Live fractional leadership roles

Fractional recruitment works differently from a permanent search — shorter, scoped by days a week, and priced on the engagement. Send a Fractional Executive brief and we come back with a shortlist of three to five vetted candidates.

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01/ the role

Fractional leadership services: what they are, and which seats

Fractional leadership services put an experienced executive into a senior seat for a set part of the week, usually one to three days, for as long as the business needs them. The fractional executive owns the function, sits in the leadership meetings and answers for results, as a full-time executive would. The difference is time: the business buys the judgement it needs without paying for five days it cannot fill.

Which seats are filled this way

Most C-suite seats can be filled fractionally. In finance, a fractional CFO handles the board pack, funding and forecasts. The same model covers marketing (a fractional CMO), technology (a fractional CTO), operations (a fractional COO), people (a fractional CHRO) and revenue (a fractional CRO). A fractional CEO is a different brief: it usually steadies a business through a transition or runs it for an owner or investor.

When fractional leadership fits

It fits when the business needs senior judgement but not a full week of it: a company that has outgrown its founder doing finance or marketing, a business preparing to raise money or sell, or a team that needs a leader to set direction while a manager runs the day-to-day. It fits less well when the seat needs someone present every day, or when the business needs a whole department rebuilt at speed; then an interim or permanent hire is the better route.

02/ scope

How to hire a fractional executive

1. Choose the seat by the problem

Start from the constraint, not the title. If the numbers are late or the lender wants a finance counterpart, it is a finance seat. If demand is weak or the brand is unclear, marketing. If delivery keeps slipping, operations. Write down what the executive will own, who they report to, and what should be different in six months.

2. Scope the days and the outcomes

Set the days a week, which days, and what happens between them: who the executive manages, what they can sign off, and how quickly they answer a question on a day they are not in. Fractional leaders usually work for more than one business, so agree availability in writing. The British Business Bank’s guide to hiring and retaining staff makes the point that induction matters for a good start; for a fractional executive, that means access to people, data and the board from the first week.

3. Decide the route: fractional, interim, permanent or a NED

A fractional executive works part of the week, often through their own company. An interim executive works full-time for a fixed term, usually to fill a gap or run a project; see interim executive recruitment. A permanent executive is an employee, full-time or on part-time hours (the CIPD’s flexible working factsheet sets out the part-time and other arrangements employers use). A non-executive director advises and challenges from the board rather than running a function; see non-executive director recruitment. Each has a different employment status, and a person can have a different status in tax law.

4. Check the person and the engagement

Take references from people the candidate has reported to, and check their past directorships on the Companies House register, which also lets you search for disqualified directors. If the executive works through their own company, the off-payroll working rules (IR35) may apply. Status is decided by how the engagement runs, contract by contract. A medium or large client makes the determination; HMRC’s Check Employment Status for Tax tool can help. Our IR35 guide sets out the tests.

What we do on a fractional executive brief

We send a shortlist of 3–5 candidates, each with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position set out. Every candidate goes through our five-stage vetting first: qualification, mandate fit, references, shortlist and kick-off.

03/ rates by stage

Published UK day rates by seat

Every figure is published by the named source — nothing here is derived, averaged across sources or interpolated. Where two sources publish different bands for the same seat, both are shown rather than blended. ⚠ Read the engagement type in the row label: most bands are fractional, but the CIO and HR Director rows are INTERIM rates and the CDO and General Counsel rows are CONTRACT rates, because that is what the published benchmark covers. Bands are day rates unless the row says otherwise.

SeatPublished bandSource
CTO£1,000–£1,600Leadership Services
CFO£700–£1,400 (~£1,050)FD Capital (181)
CMO£750–£1,400Connectd (279)
COO£800–£1,400Connectd (279)
CIO (interim)£800–£2,000Exec Capital (203)
CISO£1,200–£2,000Optima Europe (193)
CISO (virtual)£1,200–£2,500Cypro (191)
CPO — Chief Product Officer£800–£1,500Hyperact, 2024 (270)
CDO — Chief Data Officer (contract)£788–£1,013 (median £844)PayMetric Labs (290)
HR Director (interim)£500–£1,800Exec Capital (292)
CEO£800–£1,500FD Capital (53)
General Counsel (contract, London)£800–£1,100Robert Walters (197)

04/ comparison

Fractional vs interim vs permanent vs non-executive

Four ways to bring a senior leader in. Choose by how much of the week the seat needs and what the person will own.

Fractional executiveInterim executivePermanent executiveNon-executive director
TimePart of the week, usually one to three daysFull-time, for a fixed termFull-time or part-time hours, open-endedBoard meetings, committees and preparation
OwnsA function, and its resultsA function or a project, until it is handed overA function, and building its teamChallenge and oversight, not a function
Usually engagedThrough their own company, on a set number of daysThrough their own company or an umbrella companyAs an employeeAs an appointed director of the company
SuitsA business that needs senior judgement, not a full weekAn empty seat, a turnaround or a fixed projectA seat that needs an owner every dayA board that needs outside experience and challenge

05/ vetting

How we vet fractional executives

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

  1. 01

    Qualification screen

    Verify Fractional Executive tenure, sector context and stage fit.

    SOURCING
  2. 02

    Mandate fit

    Match to your situation — stage, board dynamics, timing.

    MATCHING
  3. 03

    Reference deep-dive

    We take references ourselves, from recent past clients — real outcomes, not titles.

    VERIFY
  4. 04

    Shortlist

    Three to five candidates with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.

    SHORTLIST OF 3–5

06/ fractional c-suite

Fractional C-suite: building a team of fractional executives

A fractional C-suite is two or more fractional executives covering the senior seats a business cannot yet fill full-time: often a CFO and a CMO first, then operations, technology or people as the business grows. Each owns a function; together they give the founder a leadership team without five full-time salaries at once. Our team architect helps you work out which seats to fill first.

The team needs one rhythm. Put the fractional executives on the same leadership meeting, give them shared targets, and agree who decides when two functions pull in different directions. Usually that is the founder or CEO. Stagger their days so someone senior is in most of the week, and make sure each knows what the others own.

The board sets the direction; the fractional C-suite runs the functions. The IoD describes the role of the board as setting strategy and structure, delegating to management and holding it to account. If a fractional executive is appointed a director, the seven general duties of a company director under the Companies Act 2006 apply in full, and GOV.UK says they also apply to someone who acts as a director without being formally appointed. The IoD’s guide to setting up a board recommends a mix of executive and independent non-executive directors; a non-executive chair or NED can sit alongside a fractional team.

Day rates differ by seat. Our published day rates page sets out the sourced bands, and every shortlist we send carries each candidate’s pay or day rate.

07/ fractional leadership roles

Fractional leadership roles: for executives looking for their next seat

Fractional leadership roles are posted on our fractional jobs board, across finance, marketing, technology, operations, people and revenue. For roles outside Britain, see fractional jobs in Europe and worldwide.

A fractional executive often works for more than one client, so be clear with each client about your days and response times. If you work through your own company, IR35 applies contract by contract: a medium or large client makes the status determination and should give you a status determination statement, while for a small client outside the public sector your own company decides (HMRC). If a client asks you to join its board, read the duties of a company director first.

08/ questions

Fractional leadership services FAQ

The questions people ask before bringing in a fractional executive.

Fractional leadership services give a business an experienced executive, such as a CFO, CMO, CTO or COO, for part of the week, usually one to three days, instead of a full-time appointment. The executive owns the function and its results. See the hubs for a fractional CFO, a fractional CMO or a fractional CTO.

Choose the seat by the problem you need solved, scope the days and the outcomes, and decide whether fractional, interim or permanent fits. Take references, check past directorships on the Companies House register, and settle IR35 status before the start date. We send a shortlist of 3–5, each with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.

It depends on the seat, the days a week and the executive’s experience. Our day rates page sets out sourced bands by seat, and the rate calculator multiplies a day rate by the days you need. On every brief we set out each candidate’s pay or day rate on the shortlist.

Two or more fractional executives covering the senior seats a business cannot yet fill full-time, such as a CFO and a CMO. Each owns a function, they meet as one leadership team, and they answer to the founder or CEO and the board. We recruit each seat separately or together.

On our fractional jobs board, which lists fractional leadership roles across the C-suite.

It helps to have held the same seat full-time first, so clients can see what you have run. Decide which functions and sectors you will cover, how many days you can give each client, and whether you will work through your own company; if you do, IR35 applies contract by contract (HMRC). Then look at the roles on our jobs board.

Fractional when you need senior judgement for part of the week. Interim when the seat is empty or a project needs full-time cover for a fixed term (see interim executive recruitment). Permanent when the seat needs an owner every day. For challenge from the board rather than a function, appoint a non-executive director.

Neither by default. Status is decided by how the engagement runs, contract by contract. If the executive works through their own company, a medium or large client makes the determination; for a small client outside the public sector, the executive’s company decides (HMRC). HMRC’s CEST tool can help.

Yes. A fractional CFO or COO is often appointed a director. The duties of a company director then apply in full, whatever the days a week, and legally the IoD notes there is no distinction between executive and non-executive directors’ duties (IoD).

Book 15 minutes · shortlist of 3–5

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.

Book a call →Submit a brief

09/ related

Keep exploring

Adjacent roles and reading.

/team-architect

Team Architect

Design your fractional leadership team

/rates

Fractional Executive Day Rates

Sourced day-rate bands by seat

/interim-executive-recruitment

Interim Executive Recruitment

Full-time cover for a fixed term

/non-executive-director-recruitment

Non-Executive Director Recruitment

Board-level challenge and oversight

/where-to-find-fractional-executives

Where to Find Fractional Executives

Sourcing fractional leaders

/how-to-become-a-fractional-executive

How to Become a Fractional Executive

The routes in, qualifications and experience

/what-is-fractional-work

What Is Fractional Work?

What fractional means in a job title

How we vet candidatesFractional jobs boardIR35 guideRate calculator
Fractional Quest logo — how to hire a fractional executive, fractional leadership services