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Is it just me?

ended 16. January 2026

Is it just me? Or has everyone turned into a ‘fractional’ something or other over the past 12 months (especially on LinkedIn)? Have you ever used a fractional CMO/CFO, etc? Were they any good? Did they add value? Isn't fractional just a synonym of ‘mentor’ or ‘adviser’? And if you are a fractional something or other, tell us about why small businesses should use you. 

5 responses from the Newspage community

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Tony Robinson OBE
Chair at Yorkshire in Business Limited
You're right, it's not a new B2B professional service, but you're wrong if you think it isn't a valuable one. 40 years ago, my business partner and I started the Business Advisory Bureau Limited. We traded nationally for nearly thirty years. We managed top-quality, sector and function-specific, professionally qualified consultants and advisers. Most were project-based, but some were retained by clients for a half day or a day a week. Marketing, HRM & HRD, Quality Standards, ICT, Health and Safety and specific forms of Training were the most requested. Today they'd be called 'fractional'. Some of the best consultants and advisers on LinkedIn market themselves as Fractional .Executives. It's much, much better for business owners, in my opinion, than hiring a generic adviser, coach or mentor. A fractional should be a skilled specialism which adds value but cannot be afforded by the business as a full-time employee. No highly successful entrepreneur has built their business alone.
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Kate Underwood
Founder & Chief People Strategist at Kate Underwood HR and Training
Fractional is the new LinkedIn badge. Like “thought leader”, but with an invoice. And no, it’s not just a posh word for mentor. A mentor chats. A proper fractional CMO/CFO/HRD gets inside your business, helps you decide, then delivers. Less waffle. More outcomes. I’ve been a fractional CPO/HRD for the last 10 years… I just didn’t slap a label on it. It was simply “part-time senior HR that actually sorts things out”. Have I seen fractional be brilliant? Yes. When they’re operators, not commentators. When they ask awkward questions, simplify the mess, and leave you with systems that still work after they’ve gone. Have I seen it be a waste of money? Also yes. That’s the “two Zooms and a slide deck” package. Lovely vibes. No impact. For UK SMEs, fractional is smart when you need senior expertise but not a full-time salary. If they can’t tell you what will change in 30/60/90 days, don’t hire them.
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Kundan Bhaduri
Entrepreneur, Investor and Landlord at The Kushman Group
No it's not just you. Everyone is offering a fractional service, except I can't be a fractional landlord unfortunately. Just like you can't be fractionally pregnant either. Running and managing a property portfolio is very much a hands on full time job.
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David Belle
Founder and Trader at Fink Money
I think in the UK this has perhaps come about due to IR35 regs. Where previously people would have wanted to be a contractor and now they can't, they've had to divide their time up more and cater to a few firms at once so they aren't caught in the trap.
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Rohit Parmar-Mistry
Founder at Pattrn Data
Let’s be honest: ‘fractional’ is the current darling of the LinkedIn buzzword brigade. But look past the jargon, and it is a viable survival and growth strategy for SMEs navigating the current tech landscape.

I operate as a fractional Head of Data and AI because, frankly, most smaller businesses don't need a full-time executive burning a massive hole in their payroll or a large underused data and AI team. However, they do need someone to stop them setting fire to cash on ‘revolutionary’ tools that aren’t fit for purpose.

Without senior-level oversight, SMEs are walking blind into regulatory nightmares and data swamps, usually following generic advice from some tech blog that doesn't understand their specific goals. Fractional isn't just a synonym for 'mentor', mentors offer nice chats; fractional leaders execute specific strategies to avoid the pitfalls of bad data. It’s about renting the brain without buying the body. Pay for the expertise, not the seat-warming.