When Does a Fractional COO Make Perfect Sense?

Happy Monday, everyone! Let’s kick off our “behind the curtain” week by answering a big question:

WHEN exactly does it make sense to bring a fractional COO on board?

Here are three common scenarios I see all the time:

🚀 The Growth Sprint: You’re scaling quickly, but not quite ready for a full-time ops exec. A fractional COO helps you build structure around that momentum so you don’t burn out

—or drop the ball.

🌁 The Bridge to Full-Time: You’re hiring for a full-time COO, but you need someone to keep things moving now. A fractional partner fills that gap—making progress while you find your long-term fit.

🧠 The CEO’s Second Brain: You’re still wearing every hat, and decisions are piling up. A fractional COO becomes your go-to thought partner—helping you prioritize, execute, and actually breathe again.

Often, it starts with a single project.

Writing real goals that don’t sound like fluff.

Untangling the org chart so people know who does what.

Building a simple system to actually track progress.

Make it a great day,

WP