Fractional Sales Director or a commercial director?
The short answer: a fractional Sales Director brings the judgement for part of a week; a commercial director brings something different that is often confused with it. Here is what each one actually owns, what they cost on the same basis, and when to pick the other one.
What a commercial director actually is
The British title for a seat that usually carries sales plus the commercial terms around it: pricing, margin, partnerships and the contracts the revenue arrives under.
What each one owns
| A fractional Sales Director | A commercial director |
|---|---|
| New business and the team that wins it | Pricing and margin, not just volume |
| Pipeline, forecast and sales process | Partnerships, channel and the deals behind the deals |
| Hiring and coaching the sales function | Contract terms, and what the business commits to in them |
| What closes, and how quickly | The commercial shape of revenue rather than its size alone |
What neither of them does
Neither owns delivery. A contract signed on terms the company cannot deliver against is a commercial win and an operational problem, and that split is where the two titles most often fall out.
How each one fails
The fractional Sales Director: Being asked to renegotiate margin and partnerships with no authority over pricing, which is a commercial remit without the commercial mandate.
A commercial director: Being hired for margin and partnerships by a company whose actual problem is that nobody is selling, where the pricing work has nothing to price yet.
What they cost, on the same basis
A fractional Sales Director charges £700 to £1,300 a day, and most engagements run one to three days a week. The same band as a sales director on this bench, because at this size the two titles describe one job with a different emphasis rather than two markets. The monthly and annual arithmetic for the fractional side, against a full-time equivalent, is on the cost page for this seat.
Pick a commercial director when
- Margin matters more than volume right now
- Revenue arrives through partners and channel rather than direct selling
- The contracts themselves are where the value is being lost
We would rather say that plainly than win an engagement that was the wrong shape. Nobody pays us to list on the bench, so there is nothing in it for us either way.
When you want both
Not at this size. One person holds both, and the title should follow whichever half is actually the constraint.
Common questions
Is a fractional Sales Director cheaper than a commercial director?
On a like-for-like basis it usually is, because you buy the days you need rather than all of them. A fractional Sales Director runs £700 to £1,300 a day, most often one to three days a week. The same band as a sales director on this bench, because at this size the two titles describe one job with a different emphasis rather than two markets. But cheaper is the wrong question if the work genuinely needs the other one.
When should I pick a commercial director instead?
Margin matters more than volume right now Revenue arrives through partners and channel rather than direct selling The contracts themselves are where the value is being lost
Can I have both?
Not at this size. One person holds both, and the title should follow whichever half is actually the constraint.