If you’ve ever worked in leadership at an early-stage or growth-stage company, you’re likely familiar (very familiar) with the need to wear multiple hats. If you’ve founded your own company, you’re likely still wearing many of them.

Most founders launch their companies because they’re passionate about the problems they’re solving. But, very quickly, they’re no longer solving only those problems. They’re now also accountants, salespeople, chief marketing officers, customer service reps, and operations managers. (They may also be just a tad overwhelmed.)

While juggling tasks, founders and small teams usually find ingenious shortcuts to help solve their new problems and scale themselves. But once they start bringing on new employees, those shortcuts start to become standard operating processes by inertia — which can then hold companies back from reaching the next level of growth.

That is the sweet spot where a fractional executive will make all the difference to a business.

So, what is a fractional executive?

A fractional executive joins a company on a part-time or consultative basis, using their expertise to fill gaps, build external relationships, or put processes in place. A full-time executive might be able to offer the same skills, but companies will often hire on a fractional executive if they:

• Need deep but short-term expertise as they enter a new market, launch a new product, or pivot their strategy;

• Need help setting up operational processes;

• Or can’t afford to bring on a full-time executive yet — a fractional executive can provide guidance until they can.

One of the best parts of hiring on a fractional executive? They’re subject-matter experts in their fields and can usually bring immediate and impactful change to the organizations they work with.

How fractional executives work with consumer brands

Early-stage and growth-stage purpose driven brands represent some of the busiest — and hardest working — companies out there. Founder-led teams are usually heads-down tackling marketing, operations, compliance, finance, and customer service — and that constant juggling can mean they don’t have the headspace to take a step back, analyze what’s working, and build better internal systems.

When Angela Wallace, a fractional executive who works primarily with purpose-driven brands, teams up with a company, she comes in to assist with one of three pillars (in any combination).

Setting up entrepreneurial operating systems

Having worked closely with brands since 2018, Ange is intimately familiar with the systems and processes they need to have in place in order to succeed. Working closely with founders, she helps businesses set up essential, entrepreneurial operating systems that touch on:

• Cadence and structure with ongoing business management

• EOS (with experience in L10 leadership meetings and more)

• Brand building

• Logistics

• Operations

• Product development

• Production and supply chains

Having these systems in place early on helps brands save time, streamline daily processes, and ensure they’re ready to scale as they grow, with the scaffolding for success in place.

Business development

For brands that are ready to make the leap from direct-to-consumer (D2C) to wholesale, working with a fractional executive like Ange can open the door to new markets and geographies. Breaking into new markets can often be an uphill battle for those new to the industry, but partnering with a sales expert that has existing connections to top retailers and distributors can help pave that path.

A fractional executive that specializes in business development can help you decide which wholesale platforms are worth investing in, how to get listed in certain doors, and how to build a business development strategy that grows with you.

Conscious capitalism

In a world that continues to veer towards a more purpose-driven, impactful, and conscious form of capitalism, brands can no longer simply sell a product — they need to take a stand and tell a story. Whether brands are just starting up or have been around the block, consumers today are demanding that they take a stance on sustainability and social impact.

In this changing world, a fractional executive can come in and help your business understand the issues they need to address, where they can do more, and how they can connect with conscious communities. There’s no greenwashing here — the right fractional executive will help you become a conscious company that does well by doing good.

Scale your business with a fractional executive

The waters of building a strong business have never been as murky as they are in 2021 — but they’ve also never held as much potential.

If you’re a purpose-driven business looking for help in setting up your operating systems, scaling your sales, or stepping into a conscious capitalist future, reach out for a free 20-minute consultation call with Ange. Having worked with over 80 brands across Canada and the United States, she can help you understand where you’re crushing it — and, more importantly, where you might need a little help getting unstuck.

© Angela Wallace Impact Agency

Authored with content co-conspirator Kenza Moller: professional story-telling for impact-oriented companies, agencies and thought leaders.