Unpredictable pipeline and inconsistent sales performance are leadership problems — a fractional Sales Director fixes both.
Sales underperformance is rarely a talent problem at the individual level.
It is almost always a leadership problem.
The team lacks clear structure, consistent process, and the senior commercial accountability that drives repeatable performance.
Pipeline reviews happen but nothing changes.
Forecasts are optimistic and wrong.
Deals stall because no one has the seniority to escalate them.
The CEO ends up back in the sales process when they should be running the business.
The missing ingredient is a senior sales leader who owns revenue outcomes — not just activity metrics.
A fractional Sales Director from Leadership Services is that leader.
They join your business as the de facto head of sales, take full accountability for the commercial function, and drive the structural and behavioural changes that turn unpredictable revenue into consistent, scalable growth.
They have done it in comparable businesses before.
They know what a high-performing sales team looks like.
And they will not accept the explanations for underperformance that a leadership team has grown accustomed to hearing.
Every engagement begins with a defined 90-day impact sprint.
Commercial assessment: full pipeline audit, CRM review, and structured assessment of the sales team’s capability, process, and culture. Identification of the immediate pipeline opportunities being mismanaged, the process gaps creating forecast inaccuracy, and the coaching priorities for each individual on the team.
Accountability infrastructure live: structured pipeline reviews in place, deal qualification framework adopted, weekly one-to-ones running with clear performance expectations, and the CRM being used as a revenue management tool rather than an administrative burden. Forecast accuracy improving week on week.
Commercial engine operational: a go-to-market strategy aligned to the highest-potential customer segments, a sales team that is performing to clear standards, and a pipeline that gives the CEO and board reliable, forward-looking revenue visibility. Revenue is growing and the CEO is out of the sales process. Within 90 days, you will have a structured pipeline, a disciplined sales team, and a fractional Sales Director who is accountable for hitting the commercial targets agreed at the start of the engagement.
A commercially grounded sales strategy defining target markets, ideal customer profiles, sales channels, competitive positioning, and the revenue model required to hit growth objectives. Translated into an executable, accountable sales plan with clear territory allocation, pipeline targets, and quarterly milestones.
Direct leadership of your sales team — setting performance standards, running structured pipeline reviews, coaching individuals on deals and skills, and embedding the accountability culture that distinguishes high-performing commercial teams. Your fractional sales director joins as the de facto head of sales.
Rigorous pipeline management disciplines, deal qualification frameworks, and forecasting processes that give the board accurate, reliable revenue visibility. Eliminates the uncertainty and optimism bias that undermines most SME sales forecasts and consistently surprises CEOs at the end of each quarter.
Assessment and optimisation of your CRM, sales enablement tools, and AI-powered sales technology. Ensures your team uses the right tools with the right disciplines — turning your CRM from an administrative burden into a genuine revenue management system that drives accountability and insight.
Strategic oversight of your most important customer relationships — building structured account plans, identifying cross-sell and expansion opportunities, and ensuring key accounts receive the senior commercial attention required to protect and grow long-term revenue from the customers your business depends on most.
Expert leadership of sales team recruitment — defining the right roles, writing competency scorecards, running rigorous interview processes, and building structured onboarding programmes that accelerate new hire time-to-productivity and reduce the significant commercial cost of making a poor sales hire.
Full-Time Hire
All engagements are flexible, with no long-term tie-ins. View full pricing.
A fractional sales director provides senior sales leadership on a part-time basis. They own revenue strategy, sales team performance, pipeline management, and go-to-market execution — operating as the most senior sales leader in your business. Unlike a sales manager focused on activity, a fractional sales director sets strategic direction, coaches the team, manages key customer relationships, and ensures the commercial function is structured and led in a way that delivers predictable, scalable revenue growth.
A fractional or part-time sales director from Leadership Services ranges from £1,500 to £5,000 per month, depending on the number of days required and engagement scope. This compares to a full-time Sales Director salary of £100,000 to £160,000 per year in the UK, plus employer on-costs, bonus targets, benefits, and recruitment fees. For most SMEs with a sales team of under 20 people, the fractional model delivers superior return on investment.
Yes. Leadership and development of the existing sales team is typically the primary focus of a fractional sales director engagement. Your part-time sales director joins as the de facto head of sales — setting standards, running pipeline reviews, coaching individuals, and embedding the disciplines and culture that drive consistent performance. They complement and develop your existing team rather than replacing them.
Yes. Our fractional sales directors are experienced in deploying AI-powered sales technology, including CRM automation, predictive lead scoring, conversation intelligence platforms, and AI-driven pipeline forecasting tools. They assess which tools are appropriate for your business, manage implementation, and train the team to use them effectively — ensuring technology investment translates into genuine productivity gains rather than shelfware.
Most engagements begin within one to two weeks. Following an initial consultation, Leadership Services matches you with a fractional sales director whose sector experience, sales methodology, and growth-stage background are relevant to your business. There is no recruitment process, no notice period, and no long onboarding — your part-time sales director joins the team and typically begins with a rapid commercial assessment, identifying the most important levers to pull to accelerate revenue growth.
Our fractional sales directors have sector experience spanning B2B professional services, technology and SaaS, financial services, manufacturing, logistics, healthcare services, and business services. We match each engagement based on your target customer type, sales cycle complexity, and growth stage — ensuring the fractional sales director you work with has directly relevant experience of selling in your market and leading teams at your stage of commercial maturity.
Book a discovery call to discuss whether Revenue That Grows Every Quarter. Not Just Some of Them. is right for your business.