Fractional COO Recruitment

Fractional COO Executive Search

A fractional Chief Operating Officer (COO) provides board-level operational leadership on a part-time or flexible basis — bringing the operational capability your business needs to scale, improve performance, or navigate change, without the cost or commitment of a full-time hire. Exec Capital places experienced fractional COOs with PE-backed businesses, scale-ups, and growth-focused organisations across the UK. Every search is run by our specialist team, with Adrian Lawrence FCA overseeing each mandate.

A fractional COO typically works one to three days per week, operating as a genuine member of your leadership team — attending executive meetings, taking ownership of operational performance, and accountable for measurable outcomes rather than just recommendations.

This page is written for the people who make the hiring decision: founders who are still running operations themselves, chief executives who need an operational partner, boards and investors who want delivery against a plan. It explains what a fractional COO is, when the model works and when it does not, how it compares with a part-time COO, an interim COO and an operations consultant, what you should expect from the first six months, and how the engagement is structured and paid. If you are weighing up several part-time leadership roles at once, our fractional C-suite service covers the wider executive team.

What Is a Fractional COO?

A fractional COO is a senior operational executive who works with your business on a defined part-time basis — typically one to three days per week — providing board-level operational leadership without the cost or commitment of a permanent appointment. The role carries the same responsibilities as a full-time COO: operational strategy, process improvement, team leadership, performance management, systems implementation, and ensuring the organisation can execute against its commercial objectives.

The COO role is the most operationally consequential appointment below the CEO. In many businesses, the COO effectively runs the company day-to-day, freeing the CEO to focus on strategy, fundraising, and external relationships. A fractional COO delivers this function on a part-time basis — which works particularly well in businesses where the operational complexity does not yet justify a full-time hire, or where the CEO needs experienced operational support without full-time cover.

Fractional COOs typically work with a small portfolio of clients simultaneously, bringing cross-sector experience from multiple business environments and growth stages. This breadth of operational exposure — across different business models, leadership structures, and organisational challenges — gives fractional COOs a pattern recognition that a career executive in a single company rarely develops.

What makes the role “fractional” rather than advisory is ownership. A fractional COO holds a seat in the leadership team, has managers reporting to them, sets operational priorities and is answerable for the results. The time commitment is smaller than a full-time executive’s, but the authority is real. That distinction matters when you write the brief: if you only want someone to review your operations and write a report, you need a consultant, not a fractional COO. If you want someone to run the operation — set the weekly rhythm, hold managers to account, fix the processes that keep failing and report on it to the board — a fractional COO is the right shape. Our COO job description guide sets out the full scope of the role, and a fractional brief is usually a focused subset of it.

Title and status deserve a moment’s thought too. Some fractional COOs sit on the board as statutory directors; many do not, and work as a member of the executive team reporting to the CEO. Under the Companies Act 2006, a “director” includes any person occupying the position of director, by whatever name called (section 250), so if your fractional COO will attend and act in board meetings as if they were a director, treat the appointment with the same care you would give any director — clear terms of reference, D&O cover and an understanding of the duties involved. The government’s guidance on being a company director is a useful starting point for both sides.

Is a fractional COO right for you?

Most businesses that call us about a fractional COO recognise themselves in one or more of the situations below. If two or three of them apply, the model is very likely to fit. If none of them do, a different hire — or no hire yet — may serve you better, and we will say so.

The founder is overloaded and still running operations

The most common trigger is a founder or managing director who is still the operational centre of the business long after it has outgrown that arrangement. Every escalation lands on their desk, managers wait for decisions, and time that should go on customers, investors and strategy goes on rotas, suppliers and firefighting. A fractional COO takes the operational load off the founder in a structured way: they agree which decisions now sit with them, build the management rhythm that makes most escalations unnecessary, and give the founder their week back. Because the commitment is part-time, it is often the first senior hire a founder-led business can justify — and the one that makes every later hire easier.

Operations, systems and processes are not scaling with the business

Growth exposes weak operational foundations quickly: manual processes that depend on two or three people, systems bolted together as the business grew, reporting that takes days to compile and is still not trusted. A fractional COO brings experience of building the processes, controls and systems that let a business grow without adding headcount in proportion. That might mean selecting and implementing an ERP or field-service platform, redesigning order-to-cash, or simply putting in a weekly operating review with five numbers everyone believes.

You are rolling out across multiple sites

Multi-site businesses — leisure and fitness operators, hospitality groups, clinics, nurseries, retail and service networks — live or die on consistency. Opening the fifth site is a different problem from opening the first, and by the tenth the business needs standard operating procedures, a site-opening playbook, site-level P&L reporting and area managers who are held to the same standard. A fractional COO who has run a multi-site rollout before can design that operating model, recruit or develop the people to run it, and stay close enough to catch problems early, without the business carrying a full-time COO salary before the estate is large enough to need one.

Your investor has a 100-day plan to deliver

After a private equity investment, the first hundred days set the tone for the hold period. The value creation plan will usually include operational workstreams — margin improvement, procurement, systems, reporting cadence, management capability — and the investor will want a named executive accountable for them. Where the existing team lacks that operational depth, a fractional COO can own the operational parts of the 100-day plan, report on progress to the board in the format the investor expects, and help decide which permanent hires the business needs for the rest of the hold.

You are integrating an acquisition

Buy-and-build strategies and one-off acquisitions both create integration work that falls between the cracks of the existing team: aligning systems, harmonising terms, combining sites, merging teams and protecting customers through the change. An experienced fractional COO can run the integration programme part-time alongside the business-as-usual leadership, which keeps the day-to-day team focused on trading. Where the integration is large or the timetable is tight, an interim COO on a full-time basis may be the better fit — we discuss that trade-off below.

When a fractional COO is probably not the answer

The model has limits, and it is better to know them before you hire. A fractional COO is unlikely to be right if the operation needs someone on site every day to stabilise it, if the business is in a cash crisis that needs full-time turnaround leadership, or if what you really need is a hands-on operations manager to run the shop floor rather than an executive to lead the function. It is also a poor fit where the founder is not ready to let go of operational decisions: a fractional COO without authority becomes an expensive adviser. In those cases, we will usually point you towards an interim appointment, an operations director or head of operations hire, or a permanent COO search.

Fractional COO, Interim COO, and Part-Time COO — What’s the Difference?

Exec Capital recruits across all four models. If you are unsure which structure best fits your current situation, our team can advise on your initial call.

In practice the terms overlap, and candidates use them loosely. The distinction we draw is about what the business needs. A fractional COO is brought in to lead and change the operation, with a defined set of priorities and a time commitment that flexes as the work evolves. A part-time COO is a steadier arrangement — a fixed number of days each month to keep the operation running well, often for a smaller or earlier-stage business with a lighter operational requirement. An interim COO is a full-time leader for a fixed period, used when the business needs someone in the seat every day, now. If your search is genuinely for an ongoing, fixed-days part-time role, our part-time COO page covers that brief in more detail.

Other ways to hire a COO. If you need a permanent Chief Operating Officer, see our COO recruitment service. For a full-time leader at short notice, see interim COO. If the role sits one level below the C-suite — running operations rather than leading the whole operating model — our operations director recruitment and interim operations director services are likely to be a better fit.

Fractional COO vs part-time COO vs interim COO vs operations consultant

The table above compares commitment and duration. The more useful comparison for most buyers is about authority and accountability — who actually owns the outcome. This is where an operations consultant differs most from the three executive models.

The practical test is simple: ask who will be in the room when an operational decision is made, and who will be held to account for it three months later. If the answer is “the person we are hiring”, you need an executive — fractional, part-time or interim depending on time and intensity. If the answer is “our existing team, using the recommendations”, you need a consultant. Many businesses have tried the consultant route first, been left with a good report and no one to implement it, and then hired a fractional COO to do the work. There is nothing wrong with either model; the problem comes when one is bought expecting the other.

The models are also not mutually exclusive over time. A common path is an interim COO to stabilise an operation, followed by a fractional COO to embed the changes at lower cost, followed eventually by a permanent COO once the business is large enough. Another is a fractional COO who becomes the permanent COO when the business grows into the role. Planning for those transitions at the start — including what happens to the role at the end of the engagement — saves time and avoids awkward conversations later.

When Does a Business Need a Fractional COO?

During periods of rapid growth and scaling

Growth businesses frequently reach a point where operational complexity outpaces the leadership team’s capacity to manage it. Processes that worked at 20 people break at 80; reporting that was adequate at £2m revenue becomes insufficient at £10m. A fractional COO builds the operational infrastructure — processes, systems, governance, team structures — that allows the business to scale without losing efficiency or quality. This is one of the most common applications of the fractional COO model in PE-backed and venture-backed businesses.

Operational underperformance or inefficiency

When operational performance is not matching commercial ambitions — margin erosion, delivery failures, quality issues, or team coordination breakdowns — businesses need an experienced operational leader to diagnose the problem objectively and drive change at executive level. A fractional COO can assess operations quickly, identify the root causes, and implement improvements without the internal politics that often prevent leaders within the business from acting decisively.

Business transformation or change programme

Mergers, acquisitions, systems implementations, operational restructuring, and market expansion all require experienced operational leadership at executive level. A fractional COO plans, manages, and delivers transformation programmes — holding delivery teams accountable, managing complexity across functions, and ensuring the CEO is not drawn into operational detail during a period when strategic focus is critical.

Supporting a CEO who needs an operational partner

Many founders and CEOs are natural strategists, relationship builders, or product thinkers — but not operational leaders. A fractional COO provides the operational counterpart to the CEO: translating strategy into executable plans, managing the leadership team’s delivery, and ensuring the business operates with the discipline and structure needed to achieve its objectives. This CEO-COO partnership is one of the most effective leadership configurations in growth businesses.

Pre-investment or exit preparation

Investors conduct operational due diligence alongside financial and commercial assessment. A fractional COO prepares the operational function — improving process documentation, tightening governance, strengthening management information, and building the operational narrative that gives investors confidence in the business’s ability to scale post-investment. Some PE-backed and founder-owned businesses appoint a fractional COO in the year or so before a transaction specifically for this purpose.

COO departure or leadership gap

When a COO leaves unexpectedly, the operational function loses its executive anchor. A fractional COO maintains continuity — managing the operations team, protecting ongoing programmes, and preserving performance — while the permanent search runs in parallel. The engagement can be structured to overlap with the incoming permanent COO’s start date, ensuring a clean handoff.

What a Fractional COO Delivers

Operational strategy and execution

• Develop and own operational strategy aligned with commercial objectives
• Translate strategic plans into executable operational programmes
• Build and manage operational roadmaps and delivery frameworks
• Ensure operational execution supports business growth and investor commitments

Process improvement and efficiency

• Identify operational inefficiencies and implement targeted improvements
• Streamline workflows and reduce operational friction across teams
• Strengthen coordination and accountability between departments
• Improve operational productivity and cost efficiency

Scaling and organisational design

• Build scalable operational structures and processes aligned to growth stage
• Design organisational structures that support efficient decision-making
• Implement hiring frameworks and team-building processes for rapid scale
• Ensure operational capability can support expansion into new markets or products

Systems and infrastructure

• Evaluate and improve operational systems, tools, and technology
• Lead ERP, CRM, or operational platform implementations
• Strengthen reporting and operational visibility for leadership and investors
• Ensure operational infrastructure supports both current needs and future scale

Leadership and performance management

• Lead and develop operational teams across functions
• Implement performance management and accountability frameworks
• Strengthen management capability across the organisation
• Provide operational leadership support directly to the CEO and board

Not every engagement covers all five areas. The best fractional COO briefs pick two or three priorities and make them explicit, so that the limited days available go on the work that moves the business forward. Part of our job at briefing is to help you choose those priorities and to find a COO whose track record matches them — a systems-led operator for an ERP-heavy brief, a people-led operator for a business whose problem is management capability, a multi-site operator for a rollout.

What a fractional COO delivers in month 1, month 3 and month 6

Every engagement is different, but a well-run fractional COO appointment follows a recognisable arc. The milestones below are what we would expect a good fractional COO to have achieved by each point; they are also a useful framework for agreeing objectives at the start and for reviewing the engagement honestly as it goes. Our guide to the first 90 days of a new COO goes further into how operational leaders establish themselves.

Month 1: diagnose, listen and take control of the rhythm

• Understand the operation as it really is. Time with each manager, at each site or function, and with key customers and suppliers. The aim is to see where work actually gets stuck, not where the organisation chart says it should flow.
• Agree decision rights. Make explicit, with the CEO or founder, which decisions now sit with the COO, which stay with the CEO, and which go to the board.
• Put in a weekly operating rhythm. A short, consistent operating review with a handful of measures that matter, owned by named managers.
• Find the quick wins. Usually two or three fixes that relieve visible pain — a broken handover between sales and delivery, a reporting gap, a recurring supplier problem.
• Deliver a written assessment and plan. A short document for the CEO and board: what is working, what is not, the priorities for the next quarter and what the COO needs to deliver them.

Month 3: priorities under way and visible change

• The operating plan is running. Priority workstreams have owners, milestones and a cadence of review, and the board can see progress against them.
• Management information is trusted. Operational KPIs are produced on time from agreed data, and the arguments are about what to do, not whether the numbers are right.
• The team is taking shape. The COO has assessed the management team, given clear feedback and started any changes needed — development, restructuring or hiring.
• Escalations to the founder have fallen. One of the clearest signs the engagement is working is that the CEO is spending noticeably less time on operational detail.
• Quick wins are banked and measured. The early fixes are embedded in process rather than dependent on the COO personally.

Month 6: embedded improvement and a decision about what comes next

• Structural changes are complete or well advanced. Systems implemented, processes documented, organisation redesigned where needed.
• Measurable outcomes. Improvement against the measures agreed in month one — on-time delivery, margin, utilisation, customer complaints, site performance, whatever was chosen.
• The operation runs without the COO in the room. Managers run the operating rhythm themselves, and the COO’s time shifts from fixing to leading and coaching.
• A clear view of the next stage. Should the engagement continue at the same days, step down, step up, or convert to a permanent appointment? A good fractional COO will raise this question themselves rather than waiting to be asked.

Writing these milestones into the engagement letter, at least in outline, gives both sides a shared definition of success. It also makes the month-three review a straightforward conversation rather than a judgement call.

Fractional COO Day Rates and Cost

Fractional COO day rates in the UK vary widely and depend on the COO’s sector background, the operational complexity of the brief, the seniority of the leadership team they will sit in, and whether the business is PE-backed or undergoing significant transformation. We do not publish a rate card, because a single range would be misleading: a fractional COO leading a regulated multi-site operation through an integration is a different proposition from one putting basic process discipline into a twenty-person business.

The total cost of an engagement is straightforward to work out once the brief is clear. It is the number of days per week (or month) multiplied by the agreed day rate, over the agreed term. That makes it easy to compare against the alternatives. Against a permanent COO you avoid salary, employer’s National Insurance, pension, benefits, bonus and any equity, and you can scale days up or down as the work changes. Against an interim COO you pay for fewer days, but you get less time in the business. Against a consultancy project you pay for an accountable leader rather than a defined set of deliverables.

The factors that move a fractional COO day rate are predictable:

• Scope and complexity. Number of sites, countries, people and systems; whether the role includes integration, turnaround or a regulated environment.
• Stakeholders. Reporting to an investor board with a value creation plan usually demands more senior experience than reporting to a founder.
• Specialist experience. Specific sector, systems or multi-site rollout experience narrows the pool and is priced accordingly.
• Intensity and term. Shorter, more intensive engagements tend to carry a higher daily rate than longer, steadier ones.
• Location and travel. Engagements that need regular on-site presence across several locations cost more to resource than largely remote ones.

For permanent COO pay, our COO salary guide sets out how packages are structured, which is a useful reference point when you compare a fractional engagement with a full-time hire. Exec Capital can provide remuneration guidance for your specific brief as part of the initial briefing call.

Engagement basis: days, day rate and IR35

The commercial structure of a fractional COO engagement is simpler than many businesses expect. These are the points we agree with you at the start.

Days and working pattern

Most fractional COO engagements start at one to three days a week. Some are set as a fixed weekly pattern — the same days every week, so the team knows when the COO is in — and some as a monthly allocation of days that flexes with the work. Early in an engagement the time is often front-loaded, because the diagnostic phase needs presence; it then settles to a steadier pattern. Be specific about expectations between days: most fractional COOs will take an urgent call or join a short meeting on a non-contracted day, but that should be agreed, not assumed.

Day rate inclusive of our fee

For fractional and interim engagements, we quote you a single day rate that is inclusive of our fee. You see one all-in figure per day worked, rather than a placement fee on top, so the total cost of the engagement is simply the days worked multiplied by that rate. The engagement can be scaled up, scaled down or ended on the notice period agreed at the outset. If you later decide to make the fractional COO a permanent appointment, the terms for that conversion are set out in our terms of business before the engagement starts.

Permanent COO searches are handled differently, usually on a retained basis. If you are deciding between models, our guide to retained vs contingent executive search explains how the two fee structures work and when each makes sense.

Contracting and IR35

Fractional COOs usually work through their own limited company or through an umbrella arrangement, and occasionally as a part-time employee on the payroll. Where the COO works through their own company, the off-payroll working rules (IR35) apply. Under HMRC’s guidance on understanding off-payroll working, a medium or large client is generally responsible for deciding the worker’s employment status, while for small clients outside the public sector that responsibility sits with the worker’s own company. If your business is in scope, HMRC’s guidance for clients sets out the size tests and the requirement to give a status determination statement with your reasons. HMRC’s Check Employment Status for Tax tool is a reasonable starting point, but the outcome depends on how the engagement actually works in practice, so verify your position on gov.uk and take advice where it is unclear.

A fractional COO is, by design, a senior leader embedded in your business, so the status question deserves real attention rather than a template answer. Factors such as control, substitution, the number of clients the COO works with and how the work is defined all play a part. Our guide to IR35 rules for senior executive engagements covers the issues in more depth, and we will discuss the right structure with you before the engagement begins. Insurance is the other practical point to settle early — professional indemnity on the COO’s side and D&O cover on yours; our note on insurance and liability for fractional leaders explains what to check.

What is included

• A briefing call to agree scope, priorities, days and budget
• A written role brief you sign off before the search begins
• Search across our network of operational leaders, and direct approaches where needed
• Screening and assessment of every candidate against your brief
• A shortlist with written notes on each candidate, including availability and day rate
• Interview co-ordination, referencing and offer management
• Support with the engagement terms, onboarding and the month-one plan
• A named contact throughout the engagement, including at review points

Fractional COO Support for PE-Backed and Growth Businesses

Private equity firms and growth investors require portfolio companies to have strong operational leadership — both to deliver the value creation plan and to prepare the business for a future transaction. A fractional COO provides this operational backbone without the cost of a full-time hire, and can usually start sooner than a permanent appointment; we agree the timetable with you at briefing.

For PE portfolio companies, a fractional COO typically focuses on three priorities during the value creation period: implementing the operational structures that allow the business to scale, strengthening the management reporting and governance that investors expect, and building the operational track record that makes the business more valuable at exit. Each of these is directly linked to enterprise value.

For founder-led businesses preparing for their first institutional investment, a fractional COO professionalises the operational function ahead of investor scrutiny — introducing the process discipline, team structures, and reporting quality that institutional investors require before committing capital.

Investors often pair a fractional COO with a fractional CFO in the early months of a hold. The two roles complement each other: the CFO owns the numbers, cash and lender relationships; the COO owns the operational levers that move those numbers. Agreeing how they will work together — shared KPIs, a single board pack, clear ownership of the cost-reduction and margin workstreams — avoids duplication and gives the investor one coherent view of progress against the plan.

Where the investor’s preference is for a permanent operator from the start, our portfolio company COO recruitment service covers full-time appointments into PE-backed businesses. A fractional COO can also bridge the gap while that search runs, owning the operational parts of the 100-day plan so that the value creation timetable does not slip while the permanent hire is found.

The Fractional COO Search Process

We agree the timetable with you at briefing, including dates for the shortlist review and first interviews, so that your diary and the candidates’ availability are planned from the start. Fractional COOs are often available sooner than permanent candidates, because they are not working through a long notice period, but the right candidate matters more than the fastest one.

Sectors We Place Fractional COOs In

• Technology, SaaS and software businesses — scaling operational infrastructure alongside rapid headcount and revenue growth
• Financial services and fintech — FCA-regulated businesses managing operational complexity and compliance requirements
• PE and VC-backed portfolio companies — businesses implementing value creation plans and preparing for transaction
• Professional services — law firms, consultancies, and advisory businesses managing capacity, delivery, and margin
• Manufacturing and engineering — operational leaders with experience in lean, supply chain, and production management
• Healthcare and life sciences — businesses managing regulated operational environments and clinical governance
• E-commerce and retail — businesses managing fulfilment, supply chain, and omnichannel operational complexity
• Media, creative and digital businesses — founder-led organisations building operational discipline alongside creative growth
• Leisure, fitness and hospitality — multi-site operators standardising site operations, openings and site-level reporting

Who we place fractional COOs for. Our clients are typically founder-owned SMEs that have outgrown founder-led operations, venture-backed scale-ups preparing for the next round, private equity portfolio companies delivering a value creation plan, family-owned businesses professionalising their management team, and multi-site operators building a consistent operating model across an expanding estate. The common thread is a business where operational leadership is now the constraint on growth, and where a full-time COO is not yet the right answer.

In FCA-regulated firms, the operations role can carry regulatory weight. In banks, insurers and other firms in scope of the relevant rules, the Chief Operations function is a senior manager function (SMF24), which requires regulatory approval before the person takes up the role. A fractional arrangement in that setting needs careful thought about time commitment and accountability; our SMF24 Chief Operations function hiring guide explains what is involved. Many smaller regulated firms also need part-time regulatory leadership alongside their operational hire — for fractional SMF16 and SMF17 roles, see our fractional compliance officer service.

How we assess fractional COO candidates

Plenty of people describe themselves as fractional COOs. Fewer have actually run an operation at the level your business needs, and fewer still have done it successfully on a part-time basis. Our assessment is designed to separate the two.

• Operated, not advised. We look for candidates who have held line accountability for operations — people, sites, budgets, systems — rather than a career spent in advisory roles. We ask for specifics: what they ran, how big it was, what changed while they were there and how they know.
• Relevant pattern. We match the candidate’s track record to the problem in your brief. A COO who has led three multi-site rollouts is a better fit for a site expansion than one with a stronger CV built in a single-site business.
• Fractional discipline. Working effectively on two days a week is a skill in itself. We test how candidates structure their time, how they keep momentum on non-contracted days, and how they manage their other commitments so that your business gets the attention it needs.
• Capacity and availability. We confirm current commitments and genuine availability, so that the days you contract are days the COO can actually give.
• Fit with the CEO. The CEO–COO relationship is the heart of the role. We explore how each candidate works with founders and investors, how they handle disagreement, and how they hand authority back as the team strengthens.
• References that test the claims. We take references on outcomes, not just conduct, including from people who reported to the candidate.

The Benefits of a Fractional COO

• Board-level operational leadership at significantly lower cost than a permanent hire
• Faster to appoint than a permanent COO, with the timetable agreed at briefing
• Flexible engagement that scales with your operational requirements
• Cross-sector operational experience from multiple business environments and growth stages
• Objective external perspective on your operational performance and structure
• Investor-ready operational governance and management reporting
• Bridge leadership while a permanent COO search is conducted

There are trade-offs to manage too. A fractional COO is not in the business every day, so the operation needs managers who can run it in between. Momentum depends on a clear set of priorities, because limited days spread across too many issues achieve little. And because good fractional COOs work with more than one client, their availability for unplanned crises is finite. None of these is a reason to avoid the model, but each should be addressed in the brief and the engagement terms. When the business outgrows the arrangement, our guide on replacing fractional executives with full-time hires sets out how to manage the transition well.

Fractional COO jobs: a note for candidates

This page is written for businesses hiring a fractional COO, but we know many visitors are experienced operators looking for fractional COO roles. If that is you, please register with us as a candidate and tell us about the operations you have run, the sectors you know, and how many days you have available. Current live roles across the group are listed on our opportunities page. Many fractional COO jobs are filled from our network before they are advertised, so registration is the best way to be considered.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a fractional COO?

A fractional COO is a senior operational executive who works with your business on a part-time or defined-day basis — typically one to three days per week — providing board-level operational leadership without the cost or commitment of a full-time permanent appointment.

How much does a fractional COO cost in the UK?

The cost is the agreed day rate multiplied by the days worked. Day rates depend on the COO’s background, the complexity of the brief, the stakeholders involved and how much on-site presence is needed. We give you rate guidance for your specific brief at the briefing call, and the day rate we quote is inclusive of our fee.

What is the difference between a fractional COO and an interim COO?

A fractional COO works part-time across multiple clients on an ongoing basis. An interim COO is usually full-time for a defined period — typically three to twelve months — engaged to manage a specific leadership transition or transformation programme. If you need part-time ongoing operational leadership, fractional is usually the better fit. If you need full-time operational leadership for a defined term, interim is the right model.

What is the difference between a fractional COO and a part-time COO?

The terms overlap. We use “fractional” for an engagement focused on leading change against defined priorities, with days that flex as the work evolves, and “part-time” for a steadier fixed-days arrangement to keep a smaller operation running well. The authority and accountability are the same; the purpose and pattern differ.

How quickly can you place a fractional COO?

We agree the timetable with you at briefing, including dates for shortlist review and interviews. Fractional COOs are often available sooner than permanent candidates because they are not working through long notice periods, and for urgent requirements we prioritise candidates who can start quickly.

How many days a week does a fractional COO work?

Most engagements start at one to three days a week, often with more time in the first month for the diagnostic work. The pattern can be fixed weekly days or a flexible monthly allocation, and it can be reviewed as the work changes.

Can a fractional COO work for a PE-backed business?

Yes — PE-backed businesses are one of the most common contexts for a fractional COO appointment. Investors require strong operational leadership to deliver value creation plans and prepare the business for a future transaction, and a fractional COO can own the operational parts of the 100-day plan.

Is a fractional COO inside or outside IR35?

It depends on how the engagement works in practice and on the size of your business, which determines who makes the status decision. Medium and large clients generally decide and must issue a status determination statement. Check HMRC’s guidance on gov.uk and take advice where the position is unclear.

Can a fractional COO become our permanent COO?

Yes, and it is a common outcome when the business grows into the role. The conversion terms are set out in our terms of business before the engagement starts, so there are no surprises if both sides decide to make it permanent.

Do you recruit fractional COOs outside London?

Yes. Exec Capital recruits fractional COOs across the UK — London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Edinburgh, and all major business centres. Many fractional COO engagements are partly or fully remote, which significantly expands the available candidate pool.

Do you also recruit interim and permanent COOs?

Yes. Exec Capital recruits across all three models. See our interim COO service for short-notice full-time requirements and our COO recruitment service for permanent appointments, both linked in the section comparing the models above.