What this is
Sometimes you don’t need a consultant. You need a leader.
A CPO has left. A COO role is unfilled. You’re in the middle of a transformation and need someone who can both set direction and do the work: align teams, make decisions, manage stakeholders, and keep the business moving.
As a fractional CPO/COO, I step into your leadership team with clear accountability for outcomes across product, and often operations, while you build or hire the permanent team.
Examples of this kind of leadership in my career:
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At MIXMOVE, I built the product organisation, then assumed interim CEO responsibilities for seven months during a leadership transition, maintaining operational continuity, and working directly with board and investors.
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As Business Manager for Sage One, I held full P&L ownership of the online payroll & employee management business, taking it to profitability within three years.
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At inet Logistics (later part of Alpega Group), I led the shift from bespoke customer development to a standardised SaaS product, putting in place the processes and governance needed for scale.
Typical use cases
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Leadership gap: A key product or operations leader has left (or isn’t the right fit) and you can’t afford a vacuum.
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Transformation: You’re moving from bespoke to SaaS, or from one‑product to multi‑product, and need an experienced hand to steer it.
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Scale‑up: Growth has outpaced your current structures; you need to redesign how work flows across teams.
What I take responsibility for
Depending on your needs and size, this can include:
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Product strategy and roadmap ownership.
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Portfolio management and investment choices.
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Day‑to‑day leadership of product teams and, where needed, design and product marketing.
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Defining and running cross‑functional processes between product, sales, marketing, and customer success.
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Steering SaaS transitions and platform decisions with engineering leadership.
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Input into hiring and building the permanent leadership bench.
If a COO‑shaped gap exists, scope can extend to broader business operations: org design, planning rhythms, metrics, and execution discipline.
How it works
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Scope: We define which outcomes and responsibilities sit with me vs. existing leadership.
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Time: Typically 1–3 days per week for 3–9 months (with flexibility based on phase).
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Integration: I work as part of your leadership team, joining key cadences (LT meetings, board prep, etc.) and leading relevant teams directly.
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Transition: Towards the end of the engagement, I help you hire or onboard the permanent leader and hand over cleanly.
Outcomes you can expect
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No leadership vacuum while still being thoughtful about permanent hires.
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A clearer strategy and operating model for product and/or operations.
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Measurably better alignment between product and commercial outcomes.
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A permanent leader stepping into a more coherent, less chaotic environment.
These outcomes are based on what I’ve delivered before, from taking Sage One to profitability with full P&L ownership, through leading portfolio and SaaS transformations at Alpega and inet, to holding interim CEO responsibility at MIXMOVE.