Fractional Executive Leadership
Fractional CMO Services
Marketing leadership that drives revenue, builds brand authority, and connects strategy to pipeline.
CMO represents 14.3% of all fractional executive positions, the second most common fractional role behind CFO.
Pipeline Is Flat. Your CMO Already Knows Why.
Your sales team says they need more leads. Your marketing person says they need more budget. Your fractional CMO audits the funnel, discovers the problem is not lead volume but lead quality, and restructures the targeting strategy. Pipeline quality improves within a quarter without increasing spend.
That is the fractional model. You get a marketing leader who has built and fixed revenue engines at multiple companies. They know which levers actually move pipeline and which ones just feel productive. And they bring the playbook, not just the theory.
What a Fractional CMO Handles
A Fractional CMO provides senior marketing leadership on a part-time or project basis. They own strategy, team direction, and revenue contribution.
- Go-to-market strategy - positioning, messaging, and channel selection that fits your market
- Brand positioning and messaging - clarity that resonates with buyers, not just sounds good internally
- Demand generation - building pipeline that sales can actually close
- Marketing team leadership - developing your internal capability and holding it accountable
- Marketing technology stack - selecting and implementing the right tools, not all the tools
- Content strategy - thought leadership that drives inbound and supports sales conversations
The Revenue Leadership Gap
A full-time CMO carries total compensation between $300K and $400K annually. For companies in the $10M-$75M range, that is a significant commitment when marketing needs are often strategic and seasonal rather than constant.
Fractional CMO engagements scale with your go-to-market cycle. During a rebrand or product launch, engagement is heavy. During execution phases, it drops to oversight and coaching. You get strategic leadership without paying for 40 hours of it every week.
The most common marketing failure is not lack of activity. It is lack of strategy. A fractional CMO ensures every dollar and hour spent on marketing connects to revenue.
Signs You Need a Fractional CMO
Marketing problems often masquerade as sales problems. If these sound familiar, the gap may be at the top:
- Sales says they need more leads but marketing is already spending
- Your brand does not reflect where the company is today
- Marketing activity is high but pipeline contribution is unclear
- You are launching a new product or entering a new market
- Your marketing team lacks senior strategic direction
- You have outgrown your agency but are not ready for a full-time CMO
Meet Our Fractional CMOs
Marketing leaders across professional services, healthcare, and technology. The right CMO matched to your industry and challenge.
Tom Altman
Fractional Executive, CIO
Pat Brune
Fractional Executive, CMO
Matt Arnold
Fractional Executive, CMO
Dan Joyce
Fractional Executive, CMO
Josh Ryther
Fractional Executive, COO
Ready to Connect Marketing to Revenue?
A 30-minute call to discuss your situation. No pitch, no pressure.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a fractional CMO do?
A fractional CMO gives you senior marketing leadership on a part-time basis: connecting marketing to revenue, building demand generation and pipeline, sharpening positioning and brand, leading your marketing team and agencies, and putting the data and systems in place to measure what actually works, without the full-time cost.
When should a company hire a fractional CMO?
Common signals: pipeline is flat or unpredictable, you're spending on marketing but can't tie it to revenue, you're launching or repositioning, sales and marketing aren't aligned, or your marketing team needs senior leadership you can't yet justify full-time.
How much does a fractional CMO cost?
Engagements average between $2,000 and $7,300 per month for basic services and scale from there based on your needs, priorities, and available internal resources. That's a fraction of the $300,000 to $400,000 in total compensation a full-time CMO commands.
What's the difference between a fractional CMO and a marketing agency?
An agency executes campaigns: ads, content, creative, and channels. A fractional CMO owns the strategy above the agency: who you're targeting, what the message is, which channels earn the investment, and how it all ties back to revenue, then directs the agencies and holds them accountable to it.
What's the difference between a fractional CMO and an interim CMO?
A fractional CMO is an ongoing, part-time partner who scales with you over time. An interim CMO steps in full-time and temporarily, usually to hold marketing together through a transition or until you hire a permanent replacement. Altus offers both.
What industries do your fractional CMOs work in?
Our fractional CMOs work across many sectors, and we're not limited to a fixed list. We match the right operator to your business whatever your industry. We do our best work in professional services, healthcare, manufacturing, construction, private equity, venture capital, cooperatives, agriculture.