NeedĀ AI leadership?
Hire a Fractional Chief AI Officer
Get senior AI leadership on demand, without the cost of a full-time Chief AI Officer salary.
For UK founders and CEOs under pressure to "do something with AI" but with no one senior to set the strategy. You get a seasoned operator who turns AI from noise into real, governed business value, working to your budget and your goals.
TALK TO A CHIEF AI OFFICER
We are Boardman.
We place fractional Chief AI Officers with real operating experience into UK scaling businesses.
Our AI leaders have set adoption strategies, built governance from scratch, and separated the AI that delivers from the AI that just burns budget.
Sound familiar?
- Is your board pushing you to "have an AI strategy" with no one to own it?
- Are you spending on AI tools without a clear plan or any return?
- Are you worried about AI risk, governance, and data with no one senior watching it?
- Do you need CAIO-level judgement but not a CAIO-level salary?
...we can help.
Grab a virtual coffee and tell us where you are with AI.
What is a fractional Chief AI Officer?
A fractional Chief AI Officer is an experienced AI leader who works with your company part-time, giving you senior strategy, governance, and adoption leadership on artificial intelligence for a fraction of a full-time salary. You get the judgement of a proven operator, scaled to what you actually need.
The work is practical, not theoretical.Your fractional CAIO sets your AI strategy, builds an adoption roadmap, prioritises the use cases that actually pay off, puts governance and risk controls in place, guides vendor and build decisions, and helps upskill your team so the capability sticks.
A fractional CAIO is not the same as your CTO or CIO. Your CTO builds your product and your CIO runs your systems. Your CAIO owns how AI is adopted across the business, safely and with a clear return. The roles overlap, and for some companies the right answer is to embed the AI remit in an existing leader rather than add a new one. An honest fractional CAIO will tell you which you need.
Engagements flex to fit. Some businesses want ongoing leadership a few days a month. Others want intensive help to set a strategy, stand up governance, or get a first set of use cases live. You scale the time up or down as your needs change.
And sometimes what you need is not a leader on retainer but one piece of work done properly. Our AI strategy engagements are fixed-scope and fixed-price, from a five day readiness review at Ā£7,500 to a full strategy with a costed 90-day plan at Ā£35,000.
Does your business need one?
Here is the honest answer most will not give you: not every business needs a Chief AI Officer, and even fewer need a full-time one. AI will not save a business that has not worked out what it is actually for. The point is not to "have AI", it is to solve real problems with it.
If you are not sure yet whether there is real value in AI for your business, do not hire anyone. Our AI Ready Review answers that question in five days for Ā£7,500: your top five opportunities ranked, and an honest verdict on whether you are in a position to pursue them.
So before you hire, it is worth being clear about the triggers that genuinely justify senior AI leadership:
- Your board or investors are pushing hard on AI and you have no one senior who can own a credible answer.
- You are already spending on AI tools and licences, but with no strategy, no prioritisation, and no measurable return.
- You are sitting on data and use cases with real potential, but no one to turn them into a roadmap and ship them.
- You are worried about AI governance, risk, data protection, or compliance, and rightly do not want to learn those lessons the hard way.
- You need to bring your team and your culture along, not just buy tools, and that takes leadership.
If a few of these ring true, a fractional CAIO is likely the most sensible way in. If only one does, the right move may be to embed AI in your existing leadership, and we will say so.
Fractional CAIO, full-time CAIO, or AI remit in your CTO or CIO?
The terms get used loosely, and the honest choice is not always a new hire. Here is how they differ in practice.
| Model | Time commitment | Best for | Cost shape |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fractional Chief AI Officer | Ongoing, part-time (days per week or month) | Scaling businesses needing senior AI strategy and governance without a full-time hire | A fraction of a full-time salary |
| Full-time Chief AI Officer | Permanent, full-time | Larger organisations where AI is central to the business model | Full salary, equity, benefits |
| AI remit in your CTO or CIO | Added to an existing role | Businesses whose AI needs are real but not yet large enough for a dedicated leader | Lowest, but limited by that leader's capacity and focus |
For most UK scaling businesses, fractional is the sweet spot. You get top-tier AI leadership, you only pay for the time you need, and you can scale it as the work grows.
How much does a fractional Chief AI Officer cost?
A fractional CAIO costs a fraction of a full-time Chief AI Officer salary, which for a credible senior hire runs well into six figures once you add benefits. You pay for the days you use, and you scale the commitment to your stage and budget.
Cost depends on a few things: how many days a month you need, the seniority and track record you are hiring for, and how hands-on the engagement is. Setting a first strategy looks very different from ongoing leadership of a live AI programme.
If it is the first strategy you need, that is a fixed-price engagement rather than a day rate. AI Strategy is Ā£22,000 over two to three weeks, and adding a costed 90-day plan takes it to Ā£35,000. Ongoing fractional CAIO leadership is priced separately on the days you need.
Either way you get CAIO-level judgement at a fraction of the cost, with none of the long-term overhead. Book a discovery call and we will give you a clear figure for your situation.
The point is you get CAIO-level judgement at a fraction of the cost, with none of the long-term overhead. Book a discovery call and we will give you a clear figure for your situation.
How Boardman delivers
We do not send you a CV pile and wish you luck. We match you to an AI leader from our vetted bench, then stay involved to make sure it works.
AI is where this matters most, because the field is full of noise and short on real operators. Our people are practitioners, not hype merchants. That outlook runs through the firm: Ross Boardman hosts the "AI Won't Save Us" podcast and mentors on AI with the Turing Innovation Catalyst, and it shapes how we think about adoption: clear-eyed, outcome-led, and honest about what AI will and will not do for you.
We focus on the UK mid-market, so the people we place understand the stage you are at and the pressures you face. You get top-tier talent, matched fast, working to your goals from week one. On time, every time.
We help companies with:
- Crafting an AI strategy aligned with business priorities
- Building AI-ready infrastructure and data foundations
- Accelerating AI initiatives with real-world ROI inside a quarter
- Embedding responsible AI principles and governance across teams
- Preparing for investor scrutiny and regulatory compliance
Book a no-pressure intro meet below
Hereās what our collaboration could look like:
- Initial Call. A quick, no-pressure chat about where you are and what you need.
- Meet Your Fractional Chief AI Officer. We introduce you to the right person from our bench.
- Company Deep Dive. They get under the skin of your business, data, and goals.
- Customised Plan. You get a clear plan with milestones, built around your priorities.
- Execution. Your CAIO gets to work alongside your team, driving real outcomes.
- Ongoing Support. We stay close to make sure it keeps delivering as you grow.
Book a no-pressure intro meet below.
Frequently Asked Questions.
Why should I hire a fractional Chief AI Officer?
What does a Chief AI Officer do?
What's the difference between a Chief AI Officer and a CTO or CIO?
Does my business actually need one?
How do we start working together?
How much does a fractional Chief AI Officer cost?
Do we need ongoing AI leadership, or just a strategy?
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