Chief operating officers · the role
What does a COO do?
The short answer · updated
A chief operating officer (COO) runs the day-to-day operations of a company so the chief executive can focus on strategy, investors and the board. The COO turns the agreed plan into processes, teams, systems and targets, and keeps delivery, suppliers and operational risk under control. The scope varies from company to company and is set by the CEO.
What a COO is responsible for
The FRC’s guidance on the UK Corporate Governance Code makes the chief executive responsible for proposing the strategy and delivering it once the board has agreed it. Where a company has a COO, the chief executive usually hands much of that delivery to them. The COO is the executive who makes the plan happen, week by week.
The remit differs between companies, because it is usually defined by what the CEO keeps. The common core is below.
- Operations. Running the functions that make and deliver the product or service: production, service delivery, fulfilment, customer operations.
- Process and systems. Designing how work gets done, choosing the systems that support it, and removing the steps that slow it down.
- Planning and performance. Turning the strategy into an operating plan, budgets and targets, and running the rhythm of reviews that tracks them.
- Organisation design. Shaping teams, reporting lines and roles as the company grows.
- Suppliers. Managing the supply chain, outsourcing partners and major contracts.
- Operational risk. Health and safety, business continuity, cyber resilience and compliance in the operating functions.
- Change. Leading integrations, restructures, system roll-outs and other programmes that cut across functions.
Who a COO reports to: the CEO, and the board
A COO almost always reports to the chief executive. The CEO sets the COO’s remit, and the two agree who owns what: a common split is the CEO outward-facing (investors, the board, key customers, strategy) and the COO inward-facing (operations, delivery, the operating plan).
Some COOs are executive directors with a seat on the board; many are not. A COO on the board takes part in board decisions and owes the directors’ duties. A COO who is not a director presents to the board on operations, usually alongside the CEO and the finance lead, but has no vote.
The board, and the chair on its behalf, sees the COO’s work through the operating plan, performance reports and risk reports. In a regulated financial firm, the chief operations role can be a senior management function in its own right (the FCA lists Chief Operations as SMF24), which brings personal accountability and requires regulatory approval before appointment.
The COO’s duties: people, safety, cyber and supply chains
A COO who is a director owes the general duties in sections 171 to 177 of the Companies Act 2006. Companies House guidance says those duties also apply to someone who acts as a director without being formally appointed, so a COO who in practice directs the company should take them seriously either way.
Much of what the board is accountable for runs through the COO’s functions. The HSE’s Leading health and safety at work sets out the leadership actions expected of directors and board members on health and safety. The government’s Cyber Governance Code of Practice asks boards of medium and large organisations to agree senior ownership of cyber risk, assess risk from suppliers, and keep a tested plan to respond to and recover from an incident; the NCSC’s Cyber Security Toolkit for Boards explains how.
Supply chains carry legal duties too. Under section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act 2015, certain organisations must publish a modern slavery statement each year on the steps they have taken to keep modern slavery out of their business and supply chains; the government’s practical guide explains what it should cover. The COO usually owns the supplier checks behind it.
Organisation design is shared work. The CIPD describes it as aligning the shape and structure of an organisation with its strategy, and notes that it sits in different departments in different organisations. In many growing companies it sits with the COO and the people lead together.
Fractional and interim COOs vs a permanent COO
A permanent COO is employed full-time with no fixed end date. It suits a company whose operations are large or complex enough to need a senior leader every day.
An interim COO works full-time for a fixed period: a turnaround, an integration after an acquisition, a system roll-out, or cover while the permanent search runs. See our interim COO page.
A fractional or part-time COO works part of the week. It suits a founder-led company that has outgrown informal operations but cannot yet justify, or fund, a full-time COO. Our pages on how to hire a fractional COO and hire a part-time COO set out how that works.
A fractional or interim COO working through their own company may fall within the off-payroll working rules (IR35). Status turns on how the engagement runs in practice, and a medium or large client makes the determination. Our IR35 guide sets out the tests.
What a COO costs
A permanent COO costs a salary plus employer costs, benefits and often a bonus or equity. An interim COO is usually paid a day rate for every working day of the assignment. A fractional COO is paid a day rate, or a monthly amount, for the days worked each week or month, so the cost follows the time the company needs.
Our fractional COO cost page sets out day rates against interim and full-time costs, each figure with its source. We set out pay or day rate for every candidate on the shortlist.
What a COO earns
COO pay depends on the size and complexity of the operation, the sector, and whether the role carries a board seat. A COO in a small, founder-led company and a COO running a large group’s operations do very different jobs, and are paid accordingly.
We do not publish a pay band here. Our COO salary page sets out full-time COO pay and fractional day rates, each figure with its source.
How to hire a COO
Start by writing down the split with the CEO: which functions the COO will own, which decisions they can make alone, and what the first year must deliver. Agree it before the search, not after the appointment.
Then choose the form: permanent, interim, part-time or fractional. Test every candidate against the same operating problem, take references from people who worked for them, not only above them, and check directorships before an appointment to the board.
We recruit fractional, interim, part-time, temporary and permanent executives, and non-executive directors. For a COO brief we send a shortlist of 3–5, each with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position set out, after our five-stage vetting. To hire a COO on a permanent basis, see our COO headhunter page; for part of the week, see how to hire a fractional COO.
Questions people ask
What is the difference between a CEO and a COO?
The CEO leads the company and answers to the board for its results; the COO runs the operations that produce them and usually reports to the CEO. A common split is the CEO facing outward (strategy, investors, the board) and the COO facing inward (delivery, process, the operating plan).
Is a COO the second in command?
Often, but not always. In some companies the COO is the CEO’s deputy and likely successor; in others the COO is one of several senior executives with a defined operational remit. The job description and the reporting lines say which.
Does every company need a COO?
No. Many companies run well without one, with the CEO or a head of operations covering the work. A COO becomes useful when operations are complex enough to take the CEO’s attention away from strategy, investors and the board.
What is the difference between a COO and an operations director?
Scope and seniority. An operations director usually runs the operating functions; a COO usually has a wider remit across the business, and sometimes a board seat. Titles vary, so compare the responsibilities. See interim operations director roles.
Can a COO work part-time?
Yes. A fractional or part-time COO works part of the week, usually for a growing company. See how to hire a part-time COO.
How much does it cost to hire a COO?
It depends on whether the role is permanent, interim or fractional, and on the size of the operation. Our fractional COO cost and COO salary pages set out sourced figures. We set out pay or day rate for every candidate on the shortlist.
How do I hire a COO?
Agree the split of responsibilities with the CEO, choose between permanent, interim, part-time and fractional, and test every candidate against the same operating problem. Our fractional COO page sets out the process; we send a shortlist of 3–5, each with pay or day rate, availability and IR35 position set out.
