Is Fractional Product Management right for you?

What’s Fractional Product Management?

Simply put, fractionals are experts who embed within companies part-time, for a “fraction” of their traditional capacity. In the product space, titles include Fractional CPO, Fractional Head of Product, Fractional Product Leader and Fractional Product Manager.

Why demand is increasing for fractional work at tech startups:

• This fundraising cycle is much tighter, forcing startups to be more thoughtful with their budgets.

• Fractionals bring deep industry expertise that clients tap into on day one. Not only do fractionals save startups money vs. full-time hires, fractionals multiply their impact vs. part-time support, too.

• As more startups are experiencing one type of fractional, they’re applying the benefits of this structure to new needs and new roles.

• Accelerators and VCs are beginning to advise startups to hire fractionals.

• More people are talking about it on LinkedIn.

Key Takeaway: Fractional product work is not the same as W2 full time work, just part time.

The lifestyle dream.

As with all early adopter upsides, we’ll likely see first-mover advantages and opportunities to establish oneself as a fractional expert in this space. If serving a portfolio of companies, you’ll have a front-row view of changing trends across companies and industries, and will likely bring more expertise to clients than talent working in other structures. Fractionals who have chosen to take the leap report greater control over their own schedule, healing from burn-out, and enjoying choosing the clients with whom they want to work.

Securing work.

Fractional work, especially within the product discipline, is very new. Being a trail blazer means that you’ll spend a lot of time educating potential clients who have never heard of fractional work, crafting your own marketing strategies, and charting a path without much infrastructure to support you.

Pitching potential clients is not the same as interviewing for full time roles. Thankfully, you won’t have fourth, fifth, or eighth round interviews, or time-sucking case studies. You could close smaller jobs as quickly as a half hour zoom call - which also means your pitch needs to be dialed.

Most fractionals rely on their network to source leads. There are a few dozen marketplaces attempting to facilitate fractional client work and more are popping up every day. But, there isn’t one that has established themselves (yet) as a reliable source for client work, especially in product. While some fractional roles are popping up on job sites like LinkedIn, few, if any of those roles are product focused (for now).

The day-to-day.

How you organize and spend your time can be quite different in fractional-land as well. As a fractional, you embed within the teams you serve. But, you’ll likely skip non-essential org rhythms and fluff meetings. This helps you move fast and create that bang-for-the-buck value for your clients, but it also means that more of your billable hours are “deep think” hours. You may find 20-25 hours to be a realistic weekly max, rather than 40.

Juggling multiple clients at once is not for the process-adverse. You’ll be creating contracts, and playing your own finance, accounting, billing and legal department. Sadly, most fractionals and consultants who work with startups report having been stiffed by at least one former client. At the other end of the spectrum, large companies can take months to process invoices. For many, a fractional career requires becoming proficient in multiple net-new skills.

Fractional Product Management may be a fit for you, if…

• You’re already a product expert

• You have a potential client and want to pitch/test the fractional format

• You’ve built a strong personal brand or are willing to invest the time and resources into building one

• You’re okay with making a different income level every month and can weather slow seasons, like July and August

• You have time and savings (6months - 1 year) to figure it out

Think twice about fractional product work, if…

• You’re new to product management. Freelance projects at a discounted rate or pro-bono work to build your chops is likely a better option.

• You’re looking for a quick income stream and don’t have a potential client on the line

• You’re between jobs and are looking for part-time work while hoping to land a full-time role

• You’re not particularly organized, and/or don’t enjoy deeply unstructured environments

• You’re monetarily risk adverse

Frequently asked questions

Q: What type of business structure do I need?

Many fractionals operate under an LLC to protect their personal assets, and some also use it for branding optics. If fractional work is your main gig, you’ll need to pay self employment taxes. You’ll also want to keep record of your expenses. Otherwise, it’s not much additional work than paying personal taxes each year.

Q: How do you figure out what to charge?

Some fractionals charge hourly, some by flat fee, and others do retainers. Depending on the startup size, some fractionals take a portion of their pay in equity. However you choose to charge, make sure to quote your total employment costs, including taxes, healthcare, business expenses, etc. Also, do not confuse how many hours you intend to work per week, vs. how many billable hours you’re able to work per week, as the latter can be meaningfully lower.

Q: Making product decisions can require a lot of context. How do you ramp up quickly?

Many fractionals schedule a discovery / onboarding milestone into their contracts and take the first week of the engagement to come up to speed. Keep in mind that you are the expert in your craft and industry, and in some cases may know the product challenges your clients are facing better than they do!

Have more questions?

If you want to get a step ahead, contact to book a session to discuss your unique situation and go-to-market plan. Kayla Doan has a 12 years experience leading product teams and has supported startups as Fractional Head of Product (2x), Fractional Product Leader (2x), and has advised dozens more.