Fractional COO vs Full-Time COO
When does part-time executive leadership make more sense?
For businesses under $5M in revenue, a fractional COO delivers executive-level operations leadership at 20-30% of the cost of a full-time hire.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Factor | Fractional COO | Full-Time COO |
|---|---|---|
| Annual Cost | $30K-$90K/year ✓ | $150K-$250K+ (salary + benefits) |
| Time Commitment | 10-20 hours/week | 40+ hours/week |
| Hiring Timeline | 1-2 weeks ✓ | 3-6 months |
| Exit Flexibility | Month-to-month ✓ | Severance, HR process |
| Experience Level | Senior operators across industries ✓ | One person's experience |
| Full Dedication | Shared attention | 100% focused on your company ✓ |
| Team Integration | Partial presence | Daily presence ✓ |
| Long-term Vision | Transitional by design | Builds institutional knowledge ✓ |
Choose Fractional COO When...
- Revenue is under $5-10M
- You need expertise but not full-time hours
- Cash flow matters and you want flexibility
- You're not sure what "good" operations looks like yet
- You want to move fast without a 6-month hiring process
- You need someone who's done this before, many times
Choose Full-Time COO When...
- Revenue exceeds $10M consistently
- Operations complexity requires daily attention
- You can afford $200K+ total compensation
- You need someone building long-term institutional knowledge
- Your team needs daily executive presence
- You've outgrown what fractional can provide
Common Questions
When should I hire a full-time COO instead of fractional?
When you're consistently above $10M in revenue, have complex operations requiring daily executive attention, and can afford $200K+ annually for salary and benefits. Most businesses reach this point after 2-3 years of working with a fractional COO.
Can a fractional COO transition to full-time?
Sometimes, but it's not the typical path. Most fractional COOs prefer the variety and flexibility of working with multiple clients. A better path is using your fractional COO to help you hire and onboard a full-time operations leader when you're ready.
How do I know if I need any COO at all?
If you're the bottleneck in your business, if operations issues keep recurring, if you're working IN the business instead of ON it, or if growth is creating chaos instead of profit — you need operations leadership. The question is whether that's fractional or full-time.
What's the typical engagement length with a fractional COO?
6-18 months is common. Some businesses use fractional support indefinitely. Others graduate to full-time hires. The goal is building systems and capability, not creating dependency.
See If Fractional COO Is Right For You
Book a free call. We'll discuss your situation and tell you honestly whether fractional support makes sense — or if you need something else entirely.