Staffing Up Executives in Small Steps, Not Big Jumps

 

“Fractional can be a really wonderful way to be smart about staffing up.”

Kristine Ford, CMO

 

This quote appeared in an article by Katie Hicks, and it had me ask, why?

Staffing up, especially for executive roles, traditionally meant hiring a full-time resource. The timing of this step was often determined by the ability to afford the fully loaded cost of someone with all the experience, tenure, and relationships required to be successful in the role.

As a result, executive teams started out small as teams of two or three, grew slowly over time, and all along, each executive had to wear multiple hats. In the startup world, that is proudly referred to as "scrappy” and “lean.”

 

The reality of wearing multiple hats, of having responsibility for an area of the business one knows little about, is far different. The more hats, the greater the challenge and the potential for negative impacts, like gaps in performance. Because no matter how hard you work, when you are overtasked, you wind up neglecting one area over another.

And who is looking at strategy when the people in charge constantly have their hair on fire? It’s hard for them to impact the long game when the best and brightest in the organization are juggling a brain-scrambling number of tasks.

 

Staffing up and growing an executive team in large increments is outdated. And in other areas of our lives, we have already embraced the alternative. The idea of taking small steps is built into the formula for success in personal development, mentoring, building wealth, or the Kaizen concept. Here we say:

‘Success is a progression of small steps, eventually creating monumental momentum.’

‘Small steps to a stable growth.’

‘Taking small steps to make a big impact.’

‘Small steps make big changes.’

‘Small steps add up.’

‘Small, consistent steps yield big results.’

‘The power of compounding can lead to significant long-term gains.’

 

Fractionalizing work at the executive level allows for a different growth model. Instead of staffing up in large steps, the necessary talent and skills can be added sooner and in the right increments. Founders and owners of a business do not have to wait until they can afford the fully loaded cost of an executive.

And the result of taking smaller steps is not just equal, but it leads to faster growth:

• The right skills are in place just when you need them, not when you can afford them.

• There is no loss in productivity due to multitasking or suboptimal talent.

• At any time, the skills can be right-sized for the needs of the business.

 

Likeminded, GSK Velu commented on the success journey of an entrepreneur: “The power of small steps in any entrepreneur journey brings an understanding of and confidence in the ability to adapt, analyze, solve problems, make improvements, grow and see the difference at a remarkable level.”

 

 

Contact us to find out how our Sales Leaders can be brought on in fractional increments.

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Dr. GSK Velu – The Importance of Small Steps in A Success Journey

Katie Hicks – Why the fractional CMO position seems to be catching on

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