Fractional Head of Growth for founder-led startups.
I own growth strategy, GTM, and revenue operations for B2B companies between $1M and $10M in revenue. Part-time embedded leadership, built to leave you better than I found you.
What is a Fractional Head of Growth?
A Fractional Head of Growth is a senior growth leader who works with a small number of companies at a time, part-time, instead of joining one as a full-time executive. The role exists because founder-led companies between $1M and $10M hit the same wall: growth has created operational chaos, but it is too early to justify a $200K full-time executive hire with equity.
The scope is broader than a Head of Marketing and more operational than a CMO. A Fractional Head of Growth owns the complete revenue system: acquisition, conversion, activation, retention, and the operations and data that connect them. They are senior enough to make the calls, hands-on enough to build the system, and temporary by design.
The goal is to remove the founder from the day-to-day of growth, hand over a system the team can run, and leave.
When to hire a Fractional Head of Growth.
Right fit
- You are between $1M and $10M in revenue with proven product-market fit.
- Growth has created chaos. Systems are duct-taped together. You are the bottleneck.
- You have hired marketers or sales reps, but the pieces do not connect.
- You are not ready to commit $200K plus equity for a full-time growth executive.
- You want senior judgment and hands-on building, not just a strategy deck.
Not a fit
- Pre-revenue. Fix the product before the growth system.
- Hypergrowth-at-all-costs culture that rewards heroics over systems.
- You already know what you want built and just need a pair of hands.
- You want someone who will replace the team with prompts and AI agents. That is not what I build.
- Pre-Series B with a full growth org already in place. You need a full-time Head of Growth, not a fractional one.
What I own in a Fractional Head of Growth engagement.
GTM Strategy
Positioning, ICP definition, pricing, channel mix. The strategic frame that every tactical decision rolls up to.
Revenue Operations
CRM, pipeline definitions, handoffs, reporting. The operational plumbing that lets you see where growth is leaking.
Growth Systems
Outbound, inbound, partnerships, retention loops. Workflows and automation designed for your team's actual capacity.
Team & Hiring
Who to hire first, what role at what stage, how to interview for growth. I train the team I will hand over to.
Three ways we can work together.
Diagnostic
2 to 4 weeks
From $5,000
A full audit of your go-to-market. End-to-end map, prioritized action plan, ROI estimates. You walk away with clarity whether or not we continue.
Fractional Engagement
3 to 9 months
From $8,000/mo
Embedded part-time leadership. I own growth strategy and execution. 15 to 25 hours per week. Build, train, hand over.
Advisory Retainer
Ongoing
From $2,500/mo
Post-handover strategic access. Monthly call, async support, quarterly system review. For the decisions that come up after the system ships.
Pricing ranges. Final scope depends on company size, existing systems, and goals. We agree on both before we start.
Frequently asked questions.
A Fractional Head of Growth is a senior growth leader who works with multiple founder-led companies part-time instead of joining one as a full-time executive. They own growth strategy, connect marketing and sales and operations into one system, and remove the founder from the day-to-day so the business can scale. Typical engagement runs 15 to 25 hours per week over 3 to 9 months.
A Fractional CMO owns marketing: brand, demand generation, content, paid acquisition. A Fractional Head of Growth owns the entire revenue system: marketing, sales enablement, revenue operations, partnerships, retention. For founder-led companies where marketing and sales are not yet separated functions, a Head of Growth fits better than a CMO.
Between $1M and $10M in revenue is the sweet spot. You have product-market fit but growth has created operational chaos. You are still the bottleneck. You have hired marketers or sales reps but nothing sticks together. A full-time Head of Growth would cost $200K plus equity and take 3 to 6 months to hire. A fractional engagement gives you senior judgment in 2 weeks.
Fractional engagements typically run between $6,000 and $15,000 per month depending on scope. That is 40 to 60 percent of what a full-time senior growth hire would cost, without the recruiting time, equity grant, or severance risk. For a time-boxed diagnostic project, expect $5,000 to $10,000 for 2 to 4 weeks of work.
It starts with a 2-week diagnostic. I map your go-to-market end-to-end: pipeline, CRM, marketing, sales, ops. I identify where growth is leaking and deliver a prioritized action plan. From there, we fix foundations, build systems, and I train your team. The whole arc runs 3 to 9 months. You own everything when I leave.
Yes. Most of my work is remote and async. I work across time zones with companies in Europe, the US, and beyond. For embedded work, we agree a schedule that covers both sides.
Founder-led B2B companies between $1M and $10M in revenue. Primarily SaaS and professional services. Team size of 5 to 50 people. Post-traction, pre-scale. I avoid pre-revenue startups, hypergrowth-at-all-costs environments, and projects where the founder has already decided what they want built.
Ready to hand off the growth system?
If this sounds like your company, let's talk. 30 minutes on video. No slides, no pitch. If we are a fit, we agree next steps. If not, you walk away with a clearer picture of what you actually need.
Or email me: mr@marcelruettgers.com