In the US, it's been mainstream for years. In the Netherlands, it's just starting. A Fractional Head of Sales is an experienced commercial leader who works part-time (1-2 days per week) for your company. This article explains what it is, what it costs, and when it's smart.

What is a Fractional Head of Sales?

A Fractional Head of Sales is an experienced sales leader who works part-time (usually 1-2 days per week) to build and lead your commercial strategy and organization.

Compare it to a fractional CFO or CMO: senior expertise, without the cost of a full-time hire.

In the US, more than 120,000 companies work with fractional executives. In Europe, the model is growing fast, especially at B2B tech companies between €1M-€10M revenue.

What does a Fractional Head of Sales do?

Builds your sales funnel and CRM process
Trains your team or first sales hire
Develops playbooks, scripts, ICP
Manages KPIs and pipeline management
Helps with hiring and onboarding sales talent

What does it cost?

The cost comparison:

Fractional Head of Sales

€4,000 - €8,000/month

1-2 days per week, minimum 6 months

Full-time Head of Sales

€150,000 - €220,000/year

Salary + employer costs + bonus + onboarding

Interim sales manager

€120,000 - €180,000/year

5 days per week, often short-term focus

Fractional is **60-70% cheaper** than full-time or interim, but you still get senior-level expertise.

When is it smart?

A Fractional Head of Sales is smart if:

You're between €1M-€10M revenue

Your founder sells personally and wants to systematize it

You've just made your first sales hire (or that one failed)

You have no sales system: no CRM, no playbook, no pipeline

You want to grow to €5M-€20M but don't know how

When is it NOT smart?

Fractional is not the right choice if:

You're under €500K revenue, focus on product-market fit first

You already have a sales team of 5+, then you need full-time leadership

You want someone who will also sell, fractional is strategic, not execution

You're not willing to delegate authority, a fractional needs to be able to decide

How does it work at Accelr?

At Accelr, I work in phases:

Month 1: Diagnosis

We do De Scan. I map your funnel, tooling, ICP and processes. You get a roadmap with priorities.

Month 2-3: Building

We build the foundation: CRM, playbook, scripts, ICP, onboarding, KPI dashboard. Everything you need to scale.

Month 4+: Running & Optimizing

We train your team, manage KPIs, optimize the funnel. I stay available 1-2 days per week for coaching, strategy and decisions.

Minimum duration: 6 months. After that you can scale up to full-time, scale down, or continue with fractional, depending on what you need.

Is this for you?

Let's find out. Book a call, I'll ask some questions about your situation, and we'll see if fractional fits.

More about Fractional

Fractional Head of Sales: what is it?