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Interim Chief AI officer services

Interim CAIO Services · an interim CAIO, briefed and shortlisted

Interim CAIO services put an interim chief AI officer into your business full-time for a fixed term.

The chief AI officer owns how the business adopts AI: the strategy, the use cases worth funding, the governance and the risk.

This page sets out what the service covers, when interim is the right shape, and how we come back with a shortlist of 3–5, each with rate, availability and IR35 position set out.

Submit a brief → →

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

Full-time, fixed term
Commitment

15 minutes · video or phone

Book 15 minutes to hire an interim CAIO

Tell us the scope and the days a week. We come back with Interim CAIO Services 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

01/ the role

What interim CAIO services cover

An interim CAIO works full-time for a fixed term to cover a gap, lead a change or see a transaction through, then hands over.

Interim executives are hired for immediate impact: they expect to take decisions from the first week.

The service covers the AI strategy and the portfolio of use cases, AI governance, policy and responsible use, build, buy or partner decisions on AI tools and models, and data readiness for AI, with the data lead and measuring the return on AI investment.

If you are weighing the options, the same seat is also bought as fractional CAIO services, part-time CAIO services, or a permanent hire, set out on the CAIO services hub.

What the seat does day to day is set out in the CAIO role explained; executives looking for this work can see current CAIO roles.

02/ scope

What is in scope — and what is not

In scope

The AI strategy and the portfolio of use cases; AI governance, policy and responsible use; build, buy or partner decisions on AI tools and models; data readiness for AI, with the data lead; measuring the return on AI investment.

Not in scope

Building production systems is engineering work under the CTO.

Data protection compliance remains the DPO’s remit; the CAIO works with both.

CAIO or a neighbouring seat?

The CAIO decides where AI earns its keep; the CTO builds it; the CDO makes sure the data under it is fit for purpose.

The scoping test: write down the three decisions you need the CAIO to own in the next ninety days. If you cannot, you are not ready to brief.

03/ the route

Fractional, interim or permanent?

Four taps. The answer names the route for the seat and the page that covers it.

How much of the week does the work fill?
Is there a fixed end or a programme?
Does the seat sit on the board for years?
Is the need now, or can it wait for a search?

The route · Fractional

A fractional CAIO services.

The work fills part of the week, so buy the days it needs.

A fractional CAIO services holds the seat on agreed days for as long as the seat is needed, and works for other clients on the rest.

The fractional CAIO services routeTalk it through

04/ comparison

Four ways to buy a CAIO fractional, interim, part-time or permanent

The same CAIO seat can be filled four ways. The difference is commitment, contract and how long you need it.

FractionalInterimPart-timePermanent
CommitmentDays a week, ongoingFull-time, fixed termSet days each weekFull-time, open-ended
Usual contractContract for services, often via the executive’s companyDay-rate contract for the mandateOften pro-rata employment; sometimes a contractorEmployment contract
Clients at onceA small portfolioOneOneOne
Best whenYou need CAIO judgement every week, not every dayYou need full-time cover or a change led nowYou want the same person on the same days for the long termThe seat is full-time work for years
ExitNotice period, or convert to permanentHand-over at the end of the mandateEmployment noticeResignation or redundancy

05/ timing

When interim CAIO services are the right call

Three situations where the interim shape beats the alternatives.

Scenario 01

Programme

A first AI programme

The board has funded AI adoption and needs someone to run it.

An interim CAIO leads it full-time through the first wave of use cases.

Scenario 02

Governance

Policy and risk

AI use has outrun policy.

An interim CAIO puts governance, approvals and training in place quickly.

Scenario 03

Bridge

Before a permanent hire

An interim CAIO defines what the permanent role should be, then helps recruit it.

06/ vetting

How we vet the shortlist

Five stages: qualification, mandate fit, reference deep-dive, shortlist and analysis, kick-off.

  1. 01

    Qualification screen

    Verify Interim CAIO Services 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

07/ how it runs

How an interim CAIO engagement runs from brief to hand-over

Brief.

You tell us the scope, the start date and the length of the mandate, and what success looks like in the first ninety days.

A clear brief names the decisions the CAIO will own.

Shortlist.

We come back with 3–5 interim chief AI officers against the brief, each with day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, assessed through our five-stage vetting.

Mandate.

The interim CAIO starts with a written mandate and a review point.

Interim executives are judged on the outcome of the mandate, and the good ones plan their hand-over from the first week.

Hand-over.

When the mandate ends the interim CAIO hands over to the permanent appointment, often having helped to choose them.

08/ before you sign

Before you buy interim CAIO services three checks

Standing.

Check professional standing and references before you sign: the UK regulator’s guidance for organisations using AI; see the ICO’s guidance on AI and data protection.

Status.

Agree how the engagement will run in practice, because that decides its IR35 status; HMRC’s guidance for clients sets out who makes the status determination.

Scope.

Write down what is out of scope.

Building production systems is engineering work under the CTO.

Data protection compliance remains the DPO’s remit; the CAIO works with both.

09/ questions

Interim CAIO services FAQ

The questions people ask before bringing in an interim CAIO.

The CAIO seat’s full scope: the AI strategy and the portfolio of use cases; AI governance, policy and responsible use; build, buy or partner decisions on AI tools and models; data readiness for AI, with the data lead; measuring the return on AI investment. Building production systems is engineering work under the CTO. Data protection compliance remains the DPO’s remit; the CAIO works with both.
It depends on scope, sector and days. We do not publish a band for this seat because no source we can verify publishes one; each candidate on our shortlist states their own rate, so you compare like with like.
An interim CAIO works full-time for a fixed term, usually to cover a gap or lead a change. A fractional CAIO works a standing number of days each week, often for several clients, for as long as the business needs it.
Staff using AI tools with no policy, pilots that never reach production, a board asking for an AI plan, or customers asking how their data is used in AI. Interim is the right shape when the work is full-time and time-bound.
It depends on how the engagement runs in practice — control, substitution and whether the CAIO is part and parcel of your organisation. For medium and large private-sector clients, the client makes the status determination. Each candidate on our shortlist states their IR35 position.
You brief us on the scope, the days and the start date. We come back with a shortlist of 3–5 interim chief AI officers, each with day rate or salary, availability and IR35 position set out, assessed through our five-stage vetting.

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

10/ related

Keep exploring

Adjacent roles and reading.

/caio-servicesAll CAIO services

Fractional, interim, part-time and permanent, side by side.

/fractional-caio-servicesFractional CAIO Services

An ongoing weekly commitment.

/part-time-caio-servicesPart-Time CAIO Services

Set days each week.

/what-does-a-chief-ai-officer-doThe CAIO role explained

What the seat does day to day.

/vettingHow we vet

The five-stage process behind every shortlist.

Executive servicesCAIO services hubThe CAIO seat, fractionalIR35 guide

For hiring managers

Bring the brief. We bring the shortlist.

Sign up now →Book a call

  1. A shortlist of 3–5, each with day rate, availability and IR35 position
  2. Fractional, interim, part-time, temporary or permanent — and non-executive directors
  3. Every candidate through our five-stage vetting
  4. Your briefs and their candidates, in one room
Fractional Quest logo — how to brief interim CAIO services, interim CAIO services