WHY SMALL BUSINESSES NEED A FRACTIONAL CHIEF GROWTH OFFICER (CGO)
Any sustainable business must have pragmatic spending in place to maximize profitability. One of the largest expenses are the employee salaries and the relative expenses of taxes, health benefits and pension or 401k matches. Senior executives naturally make more income because they are the driving force behind strategy and execution for the company’s current & future potential.
While expenses must be closely monitored, companies can’t be cheap. Talented executives can make or break a company; they are the all-star quarterback for the business. For example, a company with mediocre products but with excellent executive talent will outperform a company with great products with a mediocre executive team. This is largely due to the strategic partnerships the executive team can bring to the table and driving execution with the cross-functional teams. To use a sports analogy, look at what Tom Brady achieved with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers who earned a Super Bowl championship with a mediocre organization.
What is a fractional executive
Fractional, (aka part-time or outsourced), corporate executives offer world-class strategic support and leadership to small and medium sized businesses ($5M – $50M in revenue) who never had access to this caliber of talent before. Fractional means part time but for long term commitments, typically 12+ months. For example a Fractional Chief Growth Officer (FCGO) provides your company with not only strategic leadership but also accountability for driving your revenue targets. Consultants, in contrast, are typically full time but for short term commitments, or project based.
How does a FCGO unlock value for your small business?
First and foremost, a corporately trained executive brings a wealth of best-in-class training that no small company can match. Large corporations have the resources for university grade in-house training programs, often hire consultants to provide subject matter expertise training, hire highly paid inspirational speakers, mind-challenging off site team building events, and lastly, well structured board room strategy presentations. Assuming the fractional executive you choose is a selfless coach and mentor (that’s a hint), this knowledge transfer to your small to medium business (SMB) employees is incredibly valuable.
What is particularly valuable with this arrangement is it allows your SMB company the opportunity for succession planning. Now, that might sound like corporate speak but consider this; you have a rising star who has all the attributes of a leader but simply lacks experience. A FCGO can establish the GTM (go to market) strategy, create the compensation plans for the sales team, set the revenue targets and mentor your young star employee (i.e. Director of Sales) along the way. Then when the time is right, the FCGO hands over the responsibilities to the Director who is now well positioned for a big promotion and set up for success creating a win-win-win scenario. This process works well in the corporate world and now your small company has an opportunity to leverage this same best practice, which was only until recently possible with this new radical idea of fractional executives.
I can offer your company a competitive advantage that was previously unobtainable just a few short years ago. Having worked for multi billion dollar publicly traded companies during my career, I know what it takes to strategically plan, analyze the competitive landscape, lead and train an all star sales team with a growth mindset and ultimately launch products to market with a winning formula and maximum impact.
The cost of doing nothing
As the left handed poet, Mike Tyson, once said, “everybody has a strategy until you get punched in the mouth.”
The point is a bad strategy, or no strategy, will lead your business into trouble.
If you are a small or medium sized business you cannot afford NOT to hire a fractional executive into your company. Because if you don’t, then your competition will, leaving your company at a dangerous disadvantage. Fractional executives bring a new perspective, time tested strategies, and thought leadership that you likely never considered.
Imagine if you could hire Tom Brady for half of the cost of his current salary; what NFL team wouldn’t make that investment? I’m certainly not saying I’m as tall or handsome as Tom Brady but my successful track record speaks for itself and I’m confident that my skill set within the consumer products space will greatly benefit your B2B company and brand.
Allow me to fill this executive sales, strategy and growth role within your business to help you achieve the next level of revenue for a fraction of the cost of hiring an in-house executive. Please reach out and let’s discuss how I can help your business grow revenue.