Fractional leaders are on the rise. Many organizations are turning to contract or part-time leaders to gain the benefits and experience without the overhead. If you are looking for your next leader for Customer Support or Success, you may want to consider a fractional candidate first.
Cost
Cost is the easiest factor here. Hiring a CXO can run you $200,000+ on the low end for someone experienced, after you consider bonuses and benefits. Moving this role to contract can alleviate some of those costs right away. By not having to offer a full salary package or the benefits and employer costs, you maintain some flexibility to throttle hours as needed while making sure your needs are met.
Innovation
Today’s business environment is fast, flexible, and demands innovation. Fractional leaders know this and have more exposure to different perspectives than a normal, career customer leader. This comes from working with numerous clients and industries. They know there is not a one-size fits all model for customer operations, but have seen different paths to success. This makes them impervious to “the way we’ve always done it” approach and fast to find solutions that work for your organization.
The Outside Perspective
Fractional leaders are on your team and will work hard to see you succeed. They do not carry the baggage that an internal hire or full-time employee may. There is a lot of value in thinking outside your company’s box, especially if you are getting ready for rapid growth or a transition. You may have heard “what got us here won’t get us to the next level.” Bringing in the outside perspective gives you a chance to break with tradition and shed some of the baggage that could hold you back in making the next big step.
Identifying What You Don’t Know
Customer Experience is not always intuitive or second nature, especially at a leadership level. It is very easy to get lost in the day-to-day and lose sight of the bigger picture. A fractional leader knows how to quickly understand where you are, point out blind spots, and help your organization get back on track. Sometimes issues feel like features, and many times, you can’t imagine things going any other way. When you get to that point, where something just feels harder than it should be or just off, having someone with experience to help identify the pain point is what you need. When was the last time you really did a deep dive into your processes to find places of improvement? Your fractional leader does this regularly.
Help Develop Your Vision and Value
You and your team have been honing the same pitch deck for a year. You know the script and the questions by heart. You hear many of the same questions and have developed solid answers to every detractor. It feels like expertise, but it is comfort. Fractional leaders are primed to add value fast, and one place they can do that is by giving you quick, clear, and honest feedback about what image your organization portrays and help identify new strategies to capture new business. Whether it is identifying new target markets, pain points, or value propositions, fractional leaders offer unique insight into where you can go. Your vision is important. A fractional customer leader can help bring it into focus.
Fractional customer leaders help you identify your immediate gaps and can execute quickly for impact. They bring a unique perspective and skillset to organizations. Most of all, they thrive in the ambiguous. They are astute in getting up to speed fast and are laser-focused on tactical projects with a flexible future in mind. Whatever a fractional leader builds, it should be designed to stand on its own, because their work does not hinge on their presence.
Fractional Doesn’t Mean Forever
Sometimes you need someone for a short period of time, sometimes you need someone for the long-term. Finding the right fit for your organization is harder than ever. A fractional leader can easily be identified as the perfect fit after some time together. There is nothing against converting your fractional leader to a full-time hire. Who better to hire than someone who knows your organization, your customers, and has already demonstrated value? Sometimes, a bad fit is identified quickly. If that is the case, you are not obligated to keep them on. Fractional leaders offer the most flexibility in times where the future feels uncertain, but is approaching fast.
Connect with us today about working with us in a fractional leadership capacity!
Email Josh at [email protected]