Fractional CMO · CTO · CDO
Work directly with Dan Grams on marketing, commerce technology, or digital change—with clear priorities and hands-on accountability.
For founders, CEOs, and investor-backed teams. We agree on the role, decision authority, and outcomes we can measure.
When it helps
Fractional leadership can help when the business needs sustained senior ownership, a clearer direction, or experienced support through change.
Growth has plateaued, and each team has a different explanation for why.
A founder or CEO is still the default escalation point for marketing and technology decisions.
Investors and management need a shared view of priorities, performance, and operating risks.
The internal team is capable and ready for clearer priorities, coaching, and senior support.
A leadership departure, acquisition, or reorganization has created an ownership gap.
The company wants to define the role clearly before making its next full-time hire.
Choose the mandate
The right scope depends on where leadership is missing. We select the mandate your business needs, then agree on capacity and specialist support. These are three ways to engage, not three full-time jobs bundled into one.
Chief marketing officer
Connect customer needs, channel investment, conversion, and retention to the economics of the business.
Commerce-focused technology leadership
Give platform, integration, and vendor decisions a senior owner who understands both the business and the delivery work.
Chief digital officer
Connect digital customer experience, data, systems, and practical AI adoption across functions so change reaches day-to-day operations.
The first 90 days
You should know what you are getting, how decisions will be made, and what progress looks like. We tailor this starting plan to your mandate and the information available.
Review performance, customer experience, systems, spend, and team ownership. Deliver a baseline scorecard, a list of material risks and information gaps, and a prioritized 90-day plan.
Set owners, milestones, and decision rights. Put budget tradeoffs and dependencies in front of leadership, start the agreed priorities, and keep a record of decisions and open issues.
Review progress against the baseline, explain what changed, and recommend what to continue, stop, or adjust. Deliver the next-quarter roadmap and an ongoing ownership or handover plan.
A practical reporting rhythm: weekly working decisions and a monthly leadership review of performance, spend, risks, and decisions needed. Founders, executives, and investors can work from the same picture.
Relevant experience
I bring 20+ years across ecommerce and digital growth, including hands-on work through post-acquisition operating transitions in both private equity and corporate environments. My experience is in the operating work after ownership changes, not negotiating or advising on the transactions.
That perspective matters when a business has to keep serving customers while priorities, expectations, and ways of working change. I can help translate the next stage into a practical plan with clear owners and visible tradeoffs.
First-party operating records from my in-house role at Ryan’s Pet Supplies.
Decision guides
These guides help diagnose whether the business is missing specialist execution, senior ownership, or a shared commercial view.
Common questions
Start with the decisions the business needs someone to own. A CMO, or chief marketing officer, mandate centers on customers, marketing, channels, and growth economics. My CTO, or chief technology officer, scope centers on commerce platforms, integrations, technical priorities, and vendor decisions. A CDO, or chief digital officer, connects the customer experience, data, technology, and ways teams work. We agree on one focused mandate and the authority, capacity, and specialists it needs.
An interim leader temporarily fills a role during a transition. Fractional leadership provides recurring senior ownership on a defined part-time schedule. We will clarify whether your needs fit a fractional engagement, require an interim appointment, or call for a permanent hire. The work can also help define that future role and support a handover.
Yes. I work with employees and agencies to clarify priorities, decision rights, briefs, measures, and ownership. Internal teams keep their context, specialists keep their role, and leadership gets a shared view of performance and the decisions that need attention.
Both. I can build the plan, lead working sessions, analyze performance, shape briefs, review delivery, and own agreed priorities. Engineering, security, media buying, and high-volume creative production remain with appropriately qualified internal or external specialists. Fractional leadership does not replace every specialist the business needs.
I have worked through post-acquisition operating transitions in both private equity and corporate acquisition environments. That is hands-on experience on the business side after ownership changes, not transaction negotiation or deal advisory. For your business, we can scope work around operating continuity, priorities, team and partner alignment, and a clear view of the work ahead.
We agree on the mandate, time commitment, access, decision authority, and success measures before work starts. A typical starting point is a diagnostic and 90-day plan, with weekly working sessions and monthly performance reviews. Capacity depends on the business and the scope; ongoing leadership and a defined transition assignment need different commitments.
Bring your business priorities, current team structure, and the decisions that need an owner. We can work out whether a CMO, commerce-focused CTO, or CDO mandate fits what comes next.
