--- title: Why Fractional Leadership is the Smart Growth Strategy for Startups - InsNerds.com description: Recently, Ben read this article in Inc Magazine, “Startups are booming—but so are bankruptcies,” which got us thinking about the value of cash flow and maximizing the value of money as companies expand. Ben was heavily involved in promotional and traditional marketing efforts for many funded startups during the dot-bomb era. Ben saw these startups image: https://insnerds.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/0-1-100x100-Jan-03-2025-03-12-23-1268-AM.jpg --- 3 min read # Why Fractional Leadership is the Smart Growth Strategy for Startups [ Ben Baker and Nicholas Lamparelli ](https://insnerds.com/insights/author/ben-baker-and-nicholas-lamparelli) : Sep 22, 2024 12:00:00 AM [Talent Management](https://insnerds.com/insights/tag/talent-management) [Fractional Hires](https://insnerds.com/insights/tag/fractional-hires) ![Why Fractional Leadership is the Smart Growth Strategy for Startups](https://insnerds.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/0-1-100x100-Jan-03-2025-03-12-23-1268-AM.jpg) Recently, Ben read this article in Inc Magazine, “Startups are booming—but so are bankruptcies,” which got us thinking about the value of cash flow and maximizing the value of money as companies expand. Ben was heavily involved in promotional and traditional marketing efforts for many funded startups during the dot-bomb era. Ben saw these startups burn through cash at an alarming rate, buying white leather couches, brand-new office furniture, expansive phone systems, wrapped vehicles for their executives, and many other things that would never equate to bottom-line success. They also spent a ton of money with me on thousands of custom promotional marketing pieces. All these companies wanted Ben to work for equity, so Ben put them on retainer and was glad he did. They are long gone, but he is still here. The lesson learned for businesses is that even though we may be liquid at the moment (hint: VC infusion of cash), money is designed to increase run rate and get you from proof of concept to viable product to profitability. Yes, to do all of this, you need to grow as an organization, but you need to grow smart, and that is where fractional leadership comes in. Companies may need high-end strategic advice and leadership to get them from where they are to where they want to be, but having all those people on salary before you are viable is like giving a Ferrari to a sixteen-year-old kid. They won’t be able to handle the power; they will be awestruck and might even wrap it around a tree or have it impounded. Instead, having fractional leadership with decades of experience on a reasonable retainer that you can justify and who can be there to answer the questions and produce deliverables as and when needed makes way more sense. It allows you to preserve cash for research and development, ad spending, client acquisition, and other things that will increase your bottom line. As Nick mentioned in a previous article, having a Chief Claims Officer on staff before you have written any policies makes little sense. However, having someone with that skill set who can be available fractionally who can help you design policies and procedures and set you up for long-term success is invaluable. Initially, you may only need their services for five to ten hours weekly. However, as your organization grows, so will your needs, and you can utilize their services as needed until you can justify the expense of having that person on staff full-time. Fractional leaders are not forever, and most don’t want to be. They are strategic problem solvers who want to come in, understand challenges and goals, set organizations up for success, help hire and train someone full-time, and then fade into the background. Psychologically, fractional leaders have little interest in running a business full-time and dealing with daily minutiae. They prefer to be on the sharp side of the spear, driving new initiatives, change, and programs forward, skunk-working along the way, and then moving on to the next project once they have achieved their goals. Over the next number of weeks, we will discuss various types of fractional leaders and how their skill sets can benefit you and your organization. ![](https://insnerds.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/0-1-100x100-Jan-03-2025-03-12-23-1268-AM.jpg?width=100&height=100&name=0-1-100x100-Jan-03-2025-03-12-23-1268-AM.jpg) ![](https://insnerds.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/0-1-100x100-Jan-03-2025-03-12-23-1268-AM.jpg?width=100&height=100&name=0-1-100x100-Jan-03-2025-03-12-23-1268-AM.jpg) ### About Ben Baker - [![](https://insnerds.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/web-Jan-03-2025-03-12-28-2733-AM.png) ![](https://insnerds.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/web-Jan-03-2025-03-12-28-2733-AM.png) ](https://yourbrandmarketing.com) - [![](https://insnerds.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/linkedin-Jan-03-2025-03-12-37-9032-AM.png) ![](https://insnerds.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/linkedin-Jan-03-2025-03-12-37-9032-AM.png) ](https://www.linkedin.com/in/yourbrandmarketing/) - ![](https://insnerds.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/wordpress-Jan-03-2025-03-12-34-2455-AM.png) ![](https://insnerds.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/wordpress-Jan-03-2025-03-12-34-2455-AM.png) [![](https://insnerds.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/0-1-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-22-6412-AM.jpg?width=150&height=150&name=0-1-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-22-6412-AM.jpg) ![](https://insnerds.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/0-1-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-22-6412-AM.jpg?width=150&height=150&name=0-1-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-22-6412-AM.jpg) ](https://yourbrandmarketing.com) ##### [ Ben Baker ](https://insnerds.com/author/benbaker/) [Website](https://yourbrandmarketing.com)  |  + posts Ben Baker has been a Fractional Chief Communications Officer, Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Podcast Officer for his clients for over a decade. "The single biggest problem with communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” - George Bernard Shaw We help you fix that problem and make sure you are listened to, understood, valued, and engaged with by internal and external clients, prospects and stakeholders in meaningful and profitable ways. - ** [insurance-company-through-core-values-to-overcome-internal-conflict/" > Aligning Your Insurance Company Through Core Values to Overcome Internal Conflict ](https://insnerds.com/aligning-your-%3Cspan%20class=) - ** [From Meetings to Emails: How Tech & AI Empowers Fractional Chiefs of Staff ](https://insnerds.com/from-meetings-to-emails-how-tech-ai-empowers-fractional-chiefs-of-staff/) - ** [The Power of Fractional Sales Leadership ](https://insnerds.com/the-power-of-fractional-sales-leadership/) - ** [Keeping Your Business Moving Forward With The Help of a Fractional COO. ](https://insnerds.com/keeping-your-business-moving-forward-with-the-help-of-a-fractional-coo/) ![](https://insnerds.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Lamparelli-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-35-9358-AM.jpg?width=150&height=150&name=Lamparelli-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-35-9358-AM.jpg) ##### [ Nicholas Lamparelli ](https://insnerds.com/author/nick-lamparelli/) + posts Nick Lamparelli is a 20+ year veteran of the insurance wars. He has a unique vantage point on the insurance industry. From selling home & auto insurance, helping companies with commercial insurance, to being an underwriter with an excess & surplus lines wholesaler to catastrophe modeling Nick has wide experience in the industry. Over past 10 years, Nick has been focused on the insurance analytics of natural catastrophes and big data. Nick serves as our Chief Evangelist. - ** [litigation-time-and-costs-a-discussion-with-chrysa-jones-coo/" > From Teacher to Tech: How SettleStream Cuts Litigation Time and Costs - A Discussion with Chrysa Jones, COO ](https://insnerds.com/from-teacher-to-tech-how-settlestream-cuts-%3Cspan%20class=) - ** [My Battle With Sleep Demons (and How I Overcame It 🤞) ](https://insnerds.com/my-battle-with-sleep-demons-and-how-i-overcame-it-%f0%9f%a4%9e/) - ** [Exploring the History of Citizens Insurance Company of Florida: From Inception to Present - AoB Podcast ](https://insnerds.com/20638-2/) - ** [insurance-agents-brokers-aob-podcast-with-taylor-pascoe-of-sharefile/" > The Importance of Security in Workflow For Insurance Agents & Brokers (AoB Podcast with Taylor Pascoe of ShareFile) ](https://insnerds.com/the-importance-of-security-in-workflow-for-%3Cspan%20class=) ### Related Posts - [![](https://insnerds.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Onboarding-1-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-31-3265-AM.png?width=150&height=150&name=Onboarding-1-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-31-3265-AM.png) ![](https://insnerds.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Onboarding-1-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-31-3265-AM.png?width=150&height=150&name=Onboarding-1-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-31-3265-AM.png) ](https://insnerds.com/scaling-your-startup-talent-why-fractional-leadership-teams-is-a-game-changer/) [Scaling Your Startup Talent With Fractional Leadership Teams](https://insnerds.com/scaling-your-startup-talent-why-fractional-leadership-teams-is-a-game-changer/) You are growing and evolving.  You have made it past the MVP stage, funded your… - [![](https://insnerds.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Practical-Approaches-to-Sourcing-Fractional-Leaders-image-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-29-7026-AM.png?width=150&height=150&name=Practical-Approaches-to-Sourcing-Fractional-Leaders-image-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-29-7026-AM.png) ![](https://insnerds.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Practical-Approaches-to-Sourcing-Fractional-Leaders-image-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-29-7026-AM.png?width=150&height=150&name=Practical-Approaches-to-Sourcing-Fractional-Leaders-image-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-29-7026-AM.png) ](https://insnerds.com/practical-approaches-to-sourcing-fractional-leaders/) [Practical Approaches to Sourcing Fractional Leaders](https://insnerds.com/practical-approaches-to-sourcing-fractional-leaders/) (This is the fourth article in a series about hiring fractional executives. Last week, we… - [![](https://insnerds.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Mind-the-gap-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-30-3847-AM.png?width=150&height=150&name=Mind-the-gap-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-30-3847-AM.png) ![](https://insnerds.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Mind-the-gap-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-30-3847-AM.png?width=150&height=150&name=Mind-the-gap-150x150-Jan-03-2025-03-12-30-3847-AM.png) ](https://insnerds.com/balancing-talent-and-budget-the-rise-of-fractional-leadership/) [Balancing Talent and Budget: The Rise of Fractional Leadership](https://insnerds.com/balancing-talent-and-budget-the-rise-of-fractional-leadership/) It is a question everyone in leadership asks.  How do I get the best return… [**Share](https://www.linkedin.com/cws/share?url=https%3A%2F%2Finsnerds.com%2Fstartups-are-booming-but-so-are-bankruptcies%2F%3Futm_source%3Dlinkedin%26utm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_campaign%3DSocialWarfare) [**Tweet](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Why+Fractional+Leadership+is+the+Smart+Growth+Strategy+for+Startups&url=https%3A%2F%2Finsnerds.com%2Fstartups-are-booming-but-so-are-bankruptcies%2F%3Futm_source%3Dtwitter%26utm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_campaign%3DSocialWarfare&via=InsNerds) [**Share](https://www.facebook.com/share.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Finsnerds.com%2Fstartups-are-booming-but-so-are-bankruptcies%2F%3Futm_source%3Dfacebook%26utm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_campaign%3DSocialWarfare) [**Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/submit?url=https%3A%2F%2Finsnerds.com%2Fstartups-are-booming-but-so-are-bankruptcies%2F%3Futm_source%3Dreddit%26utm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_campaign%3DSocialWarfare) [**Email](mailto:?subject=Why%20Fractional%20Leadership%20is%20the%20Smart%20Growth%20Strategy%20for%20Startups&body=Recently%2C%20Ben%20read%20this%20article%20in%20Inc%20Magazine%2C%20%E2%80%9CStartups%20are%20booming%E2%80%94but%20so%20are%20bankruptcies%2C%E2%80%9D%20which%20got%20us%20thinking%20about%20the%20value%20of%20cash%20flow%20and%20maximizing%20the%20value%20of%20money%20as%20companies%20expand.%20Ben%20was%20heavily%20involved%20in%20promotional%20and%20traditional%20marketing%20efforts%20for%20many%20funded%20startups%20during%20the%20dot-bomb%20era.%20Ben%20saw%20these%20startups%0D%0A%0D%0ARead%20More%20Here:%20%20https%3A%2F%2Finsnerds.com%2Fstartups-are-booming-but-so-are-bankruptcies%2F%3Futm_source%3Demail%26utm_medium%3Dsocial%26utm_campaign%3DSocialWarfare) [![The Power of Fractional Sales Leadership](https://insnerds.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/0-1-100x100-Jan-03-2025-02-33-41-5563-AM.jpg) ](https://insnerds.com/insights/the-power-of-fractional-sales-leadership) 3 min read #### [The Power of Fractional Sales Leadership](https://insnerds.com/insights/the-power-of-fractional-sales-leadership) [Ben Baker and Nicholas Lamparelli](https://insnerds.com/insights/author/ben-baker-and-nicholas-lamparelli) : Oct 19, 2024 12:00:00 AM The Power of Fractional Sales Leadership by Ben Baker and Nicholas Lamparelli (In this week’s Fractional Executive article, Ben and Nick get ... [Talent Management](https://insnerds.com/insights/tag/talent-management) [Sales](https://insnerds.com/insights/tag/sales) [Fractional Hires](https://insnerds.com/insights/tag/fractional-hires) [Read More](https://insnerds.com/insights/the-power-of-fractional-sales-leadership) [![Scaling Your Startup Talent With Fractional Leadership Teams](https://insnerds.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Untitled-design-4-1.png) ](https://insnerds.com/insights/scaling-your-startup-talent-why-fractional-leadership-teams-is-a-game-changer) 3 min read #### [Scaling Your Startup Talent With Fractional Leadership Teams](https://insnerds.com/insights/scaling-your-startup-talent-why-fractional-leadership-teams-is-a-game-changer) [Ben Baker and Nicholas Lamparelli](https://insnerds.com/insights/author/ben-baker-and-nicholas-lamparelli) : Aug 24, 2024 12:00:00 AM Scaling Your Startup Talent With Fractional Leadership Teams by Ben Baker and Nicholas Lamparelli You are growing and evolving. You have made... [Talent Management](https://insnerds.com/insights/tag/talent-management) [Strategy](https://insnerds.com/insights/tag/strategy) [Fractional Hires](https://insnerds.com/insights/tag/fractional-hires) [Read More](https://insnerds.com/insights/scaling-your-startup-talent-why-fractional-leadership-teams-is-a-game-changer) [![Fractional CMOs: The Solution to Marketing Efficiency in Year One and Beyond”](https://insnerds.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/0-1-100x100-Jan-03-2025-02-04-36-9521-AM.jpg) ](https://insnerds.com/insights/fractional-cmos-the-solution-to-marketing-efficiency-in-year-one-and-beyond) 4 min read #### [Fractional CMOs: The Solution to Marketing Efficiency in Year One and Beyond”](https://insnerds.com/insights/fractional-cmos-the-solution-to-marketing-efficiency-in-year-one-and-beyond) [Ben Baker and Nicholas Lamparelli](https://insnerds.com/insights/author/ben-baker-and-nicholas-lamparelli) : Oct 5, 2024 12:00:00 AM Fractional CMOs: The Solution to Marketing Efficiency in Year One and Beyond” by Ben Baker and Nicholas Lamparelli If we are not telling the... [Talent Management](https://insnerds.com/insights/tag/talent-management) [Strategy](https://insnerds.com/insights/tag/strategy) [Marketing](https://insnerds.com/insights/tag/marketing) [Fractional Hires](https://insnerds.com/insights/tag/fractional-hires) [Read More](https://insnerds.com/insights/fractional-cmos-the-solution-to-marketing-efficiency-in-year-one-and-beyond) ![](https://px.ads.linkedin.com/collect/?pid=7110236&fmt=gif) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Ben Baker and Nicholas Lamparelli", "url" : "https://insnerds.com/insights/author/ben-baker-and-nicholas-lamparelli" }, "dateModified" : "2025-01-03T03:12:53.347Z", "datePublished" : "2024-09-22T04:00:00.000Z", "headline" : "Why Fractional Leadership is the Smart Growth Strategy for Startups - InsNerds.com", "image" : [ "https://insnerds.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/0-1-100x100-Jan-03-2025-03-12-23-1268-AM.jpg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://insnerds.com/insights/startups-are-booming-but-so-are-bankruptcies", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://insnerds.com/hubfs/InsNerds%20Large%20print%20quality.png" }, "name" : "Insurance Nerds" } } ```