What a real conflict looks like
A genuine conflict is a direct competitor: same buyer, same product, same market. Somebody holding the CMO seat at two companies selling the same software to the same buyer cannot serve both, and any operator worth engaging will say so before you do.
What is not a conflict is the same sector at a different stage, or the same function in an adjacent market. A CFO who has seen the inside of four ecommerce businesses is more useful to your ecommerce business, not less, and asking them to work only with you is asking them to be worth less.
The clause that works
- A named list of direct competitors they will not take on while engaged with you. Three to five names, written down, rather than a definition you will argue about later.
- A duty to disclose before accepting any new client in your space, with you able to object.
- Standard confidentiality with a stated period, which is what actually protects your information.
- No blanket exclusivity, because an operator who agrees to it is either charging you for the clients they gave up or is not busy enough to have any.
What to ask before you engage
- Who else are you working with right now, by sector and stage rather than by name?
- Is there anybody on your current client list who would object to you taking this on?
- How do you handle it if one of my competitors approaches you in six months?
- What happens to what you know about us when this engagement ends?
Why the honest operators volunteer this
An experienced fractional executive has had this conversation many times and will usually raise it before you do. Somebody who has not thought about it, or who says they have no other clients, is telling you something about how much demand there is for them.
It is worth noticing which way the awkwardness runs. An operator who declines your engagement because of an existing client has just demonstrated exactly the behaviour you would want protecting you.
What we do about it here
Every operator sets their own availability and manages their own client list, because the contract is between you and them and we are not a party to it. That means the conflict conversation is one you have directly, which is the only place it can usefully happen.
What the bench does is make the question askable early: profiles show the seat, the sectors and the stage, so you can raise it before a first call rather than in week three.
Questions
- Can a fractional executive work for two competing companies?
- No reputable one will. A direct competitor means the same buyer, the same product and the same market, and an experienced operator will decline before you have to ask. The same sector at a different stage is not a conflict, and is usually an advantage.
- Should I ask a fractional executive for exclusivity?
- No. Exclusivity breaks the model that makes the arrangement affordable, and anyone who agrees to it is either pricing the clients they gave up into your rate or does not have any. A named list of direct competitors they will not take on achieves the protection without the cost.
- How do I protect confidential information from a fractional executive?
- A confidentiality clause with a stated period, usually two or three years after the engagement ends, is what actually protects the information. Restricting who they work for protects far less than people assume, and costs far more.