Defining our Terms: What is a Fractional Leader Anyway?

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio from Pexels.

“Fractional” leaders are not new to the world.

It’s a tried and true model for Chief Executive Officers to get the help they need to grow and operate their businesses. There’s still a lot of confusion around the term though, so here are definitions of various business helpers excluding full-time hires, which we all understand well enough presumably.

I’ll start with an “advisor” and end with my definition of a fractional executive or fractional leader.

One thing I want to share first is my bias for working with people—in any category—who properly balance “helping” and “telling.”

• Helping happens when someone is curiosity-driven and understands there may be a lot they don’t know about a situation, to start at least. They’re committed to gaining this understanding to see whether and how they might be useful to another person. The reason to use this specific word is because the inquiry itself can help the other person gain greater clarity into what they are wrestling with.

• Telling happens when someone is drawing on their expertise or experiences to make an assertion or prescription--a tactical recommendation, for instance.

Here’s a shorthand way to think about it.

Take doctors. When we’re in the diagnostic phase of working with a patient, we are in a “helping” mode. Sometimes, we never leave that conversational stage because we get to a useful insight or discovery that means we don’t need to go any further. We resolve the question at hand! When that doesn’t happen, we proceed to make a diagnosis and “prescribe” a next step. That is “telling.”

I’d be wary of relying on the contributions of someone who begins with telling or moves on to telling very quickly, for no other reason than that they probably don’t know enough to be so prescriptive so fast.

All of the below roles are assumed to report to the CEO or a founder, or at a later-stage company, a senior leader perhaps.

Advisor

An expert in a domain. The relationship could be any length, including indefinite. The commitment is on the order of one hour per week or less on average. Advisors lean toward more telling based on their domain expertise but should still start with helping questions. They don’t do work or follow through on their insights. They are not embedded in the team and don’t manage others.

There is also a flavor of advisors primarily there for branding, marketing and possibly networking purposes.

Mentor

A future version of yourself in one or more dimensions. The relationship could be any length, including indefinite. The commitment is on the order of one hour per month. Mentors share their relevant experiences and still do lots of helping. They don’t do work or follow through on their ideas. They are not embedded in the team and don’t manage others.

Coach

An expert in helping other people learn and grow. The relationship could be any length, including indefinite. The commitment is on the order of one hour per week. They emphasize helping someone think things through and discover new perspectives and options. They might offer recommendations (i.e., telling) with care. They don’t do work or follow through. They are not embedded in the team and don’t manage others.

Consultant

Fractional talent used to be a variant of consulting. Below is the definition of a consultant after carving out fractional talent:

An expert in a domain or domains. The relationship is limited to a project, defined by having a distinct beginning and end; a consultant might string together multiple projects over time. The time commitment varies and might extend to a few individuals if working with a consulting firm. They start with helping before moving on to telling. They execute the project they define but don’t do follow though that is out of scope. They are not embedded in the team but are sometimes co-located, and they don’t manage others.

Fractional Executive / Fractional Leader

The term “fractional” is often reserved for CXO-level roles. A fractional exec can provide the expertise of an advisor and consultant, insights from relevant prior experience like a mentor, and when called for, the thoughtful engagement of a coach. 

Fractional talent doesn’t just advise, share experiences, or ask good questions. They roll up their sleeves and do the work that results from insights. And they do that work as an extension of the team, developing knowledge that flows back to the organization. They also can hire, develop and manage team members.

• The relationship lasts as long as it’s providing value.

• The commitment ranges from a few hours to multiple days and possibly even flexes up to full-time for stints (similar to an “interim” CXO).

• The relationship balances helping and telling as new problems and opportunities arise to be addressed.

Finally, successful fractionals have top-notch management and leadership skills. Because they operate like a team member and are spread across different companies, they have exceptional self-management skills too. They are fast learners and have the ability to seamlessly switch between contexts and tasks, necessary attributes to hit the ground running with each new company and project.