A Case for Fractional Services

This article is meant to highlight the benefits of investigating the use of Fractional services in a growing business's operational plan. These benefits are in the "competitive edge" category of your plan. Read on...

MIT Sloan Management Review - A Valuable Fractional Service

I am a subscriber to MIT Sloan Management Review ("MITSMR") and, not only do I read what they publish, but I also deploy much of what they recommend in my actions and advisory services. They cover a broad range of topics, all very applicable to today's and, better yet, tomorrow's way of doing things to be successful. You might think that their information would be aimed at larger enterprises that, due to larger volumes, are dealing with larger and more complex issues. That's true. However, the things they talk about, analyze, and recommend relate to business in general.

Everything they speak on can be applied to any business of any size, stage, industry, and business model. You just need to know how to digest, and then customize their wisdom to your situation at the time. In a way, I use them in a fractional manner. They have access to a broader range of expertise and possess a greater collective level of wisdom than I will ever have. I take that wisdom and apply it to my business, at times when it would be most impactful, in a way that I can afford it.

The fractional manner that I use MITSMR has been in wide use for many years, first using print media, and now delivered digitally. The last 20 years have enabled the fractionalization of many business services. Now AI will probably take this to where I can say all services. At Savvy-CFO we use the phrase "democratize" to describe this impact on smaller businesses.

I decided to write this article and start it by referencing MITSMR, because of an article they wrote this week - CMO Success Stage by Stage. The article starts with this:

"For chief marketing officer success, focus on helping them attain the right skill set at the right corporate growth stage."

Makes sense right? What if there is a CMO out there who possesses the right skill sets for multiple growth stages, especially those early stages in a business's life? If you had the choice, wouldn't you want one who has the skill sets required over one who doesn't and needs to attain them? Of course, you would. (If you say no to this, please comment below, and we can talk more about risk and ROI-related topics).

My Case for Fractional Services

Until recently, the roadblock to this obvious choice has been affordability, and to a slightly lesser extent, availability. CMOs with experience and skills aren't cheap and tend to gravitate to larger enterprises as a career progression. Here's where democratization comes into play. There are quite a few very experienced marketing professionals out there. Experienced and skilled at growth stages where the needs are high, and affordability critical.

Entrepreneurial in spirit and nature, but through experience apply extensive skills with less risk. They would rather use those skills to help businesses grow to maturity. Our cloud-based, technology-enabled world today opens those doors. By choosing a fractional business model, they can deliver those skills effectively when most needs and at the same time break through the affordability barrier.

Ambitious business owners should add this option to their list of where to find necessary skills, which is what MITSMR is talking about in their article. They speak to marketing skills, and yes, those are at the top of the list for growing businesses. Remember Peter Drucker's Two Essential Functions for Success. Marketing is one of them. The other is Innovation. I've suggested that there's a third essential function, Operations.

All three of these essential functions can now be fractionalized, opening the door to businesses of any size and stage. Experienced professionals who specialize in this business model and delivery mechanism can now offer their services to more (read "all") such businesses, because, properly delivered, the affordability barrier is gone. To stay competitive, business owners need to examine these options for all facets of their essential functions. High ROI growth will be the outcome. 

There's a long list of functions that should be investigated for fractional availability, Marketing is just one of them. All roles should be considered to see if this option is available. Google "Fractional (put in function)", and start there. Some of these are further ahead of others as to choices. Not many have been doing this for very long, so you still need to diligence their skills and ability to deliver them effectively and affordably. As we at Savvy-CFO have almost 20 years of experience in this, we can even help you there.

I rest my case...