Most people see the benefits of a fresh set of eyes, a focused leadership team, and an expert resource. Companies respond to market conditions, and are now going through the process of determining: which staff are essential, what will work look like moving forward, are physical offices worth the risks and costs, and evaluating how they can cut costs with minimal negative impact to their business. In response to the need for rapid change, companies are considering fractional leadership options to help them reduce costs while maintaining the level of knowledge required to achieve their goals.
What is a Fractional Sales Leader?
A Fractional Sales Leader is a part-time, contracted member of your SVP/C-suite team - you get a fraction of a leader’s time at a fraction of the price of a full-time hire. They bring vast experience, knowledge, and expertise to the role and help companies build and execute on the sales strategy while supporting the larger team. The function of the role is similar to that of a full-time sales leader, and they can add structure, processes, tools, and methodologies to help drive success. The role provides the needed guidance of a full-time CSO/VP without the salary, benefits, or bonus burden of a full-time resource.
As opposed to a consultant hire, a fractional hire will become invested in the success of the organization and develops a personal and emotional relationship with the brand and its employees. Because of the nature of the role, a fractional sales leader will interact with team members, and the engagement is vastly different from other types of contracted consultant hires and are vested in the success of the business and the individual team members.
What is the difference between a Fractional vs. Interim Leader?
Interim leaders tend to have a fixed-term, 40 hour a week contract to ensure that it’s “business as usual” while a role is vacant or the permanent individual is out on long-term leave. Interim leaders stabilize the business to the status quo and manage staff to free up the time of the other function leaders. In short, they are filling a management headcount gap.
Fractional leaders tend to have a contracted term that is based on milestone achievement (or triggers). They are focused on creating strategy, driving execution, and managing staff. Fractional leaders are focused on moving the business forward and are a part of the team until a full-time resource is warranted. In short, they are filling a functional strategy need, applying only the time that is appropriate to the company's need.
What are the benefits of a Fractional Sales Leader?
A fractional leader brings objectivity, a fresh, outsider's perspective, and is able to leverage their experience and subject matter expertise to a business to help them achieve success. As companies look to evolve, these leaders have the unique ability to guide a business and challenge the status quo on how things are being done and to evaluate and implement new ways of working. As companies hire, replace, and augment their teams and continue down a growth path, the skill set requirements for any leader will change; this model allows you to seamlessly adapt without causing a disruption to the business. In most cases, fractional sales leaders allocate a certain number of hours per week and are able to flex up and flex down their time based on the requirements, the economy, the success of the business, and cashflow. This type of flexibility allows a business to get the support they need while mitigating the risk associated with uncontrollable events such as a pandemic or a poor economy.
Six tips to maximizing the effectiveness of working with a fractional sales leader
If a company can receive the benefits of a strong leader at a fraction of the cost, why wouldn’t they opt for this type of solution? The answer is relatively simple: it’s a new concept and way of working, and they are not sure how to get the most out of the relationship. The below lists some basic tips on how to get the most value from the relationship:
Analyze which roles are required on a full-time resource and which functions of the business can be managed on a fractional basis. Most companies receive a greater benefit from the knowledge, experience, and drive of their leaders than they do from hours logged. Consider the size of the business, the size of the team to be managed, the complexity of solution, and the maturity of the organization when determining if this solution is the right fit for your organization. Most SME businesses do not need a large full-time executive team but will benefit from the right individuals allocating a portion of their time to business.
Integrate the fractional leaders completely into the team. Treat the early engagement as an induction to the business, introduce them to the larger team, and send an email announcing their arrival and how they will add value to the business. Make them a part of your “we”/“us” culture.
Define the goals and objectives on the front end of the engagement. This should include regular reporting guidelines, feedback mechanisms, and how best to communicate. The use of a success framework helps align priorities and benchmarks; the goal is to keep the role focused on what they have been brought in to do.
Include your fractional leaders in the management and department meetings and give them full access to the larger team. These resources have a history of working to make their teams and companies successful; their fresh set of eyes may help you identify gaps and outdated methodologies that are difficult to see when you are in the weeds.
Be transparent with the leader and the teams on the benefits, process, and reasons why this resource is being brought in, the remit for the role, and the level of access required to put them in a position to deliver for your business. As a part of this, the fractional leader and employees need to understand that, while this is a contracted position, they are a member of the team with well defined objectives to achieve.
Set triggers for when a full-time resource will be the optimal or desired solution. There will be a time within your business when a fraction of a leadership resource will not be enough.Document the triggers that would lead to this event; triggers are usually tied to revenue, client count, or size and complexity of the team. The fractional sales leader will be documenting processes, procedures, methodologies, and other relevant information that will make for a seamless handover.
How to use a Fractional Sales Leader?
A fractional hire could be used in a number of different scenarios. They can act as an interim leader filling a vacancy gap as the company searches for a full time resource. They could develop or augment a strategy, sales playbook, or validate your market position. They could conduct training, support the sales process, and act as a mentor/coach to the sales team. Moreover, they fill a gap in the leadership team and business as you strive to reach that optimal size where a full-time resource is required. In short, they provide the other leaders of the organization invaluable time and support while leveraging their experience and expertise as it relates to revenue development.
Fractional Leadership is not a new concept, and historically companies have leveraged non-executive directors, external board members, and fully outsourced service providers to help set strategies and execute on a vision. We are seeing the transformation of work and roles that have historically measured value and success on time spent rather than on outcomes. With the advancements in communication tools and a mandated virtual workforce requirement, we are seeing an acceleration in the adoption of Fractional Sales Leadership.
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