Agostino Marengo / Services / SRV-01

SRV · 01Strategic AI Leadership

Fractional
Chief AI Officer.

A C-level AI executive in your leadership team, part-time. The operational accountability of a Chief AI Officer, the flexibility and cost of an advisor. From strategy to execution, with a clear budget.

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§ 01 Definition

What a Fractional CAIO is.

A Chief AI Officer in your leadership team, part-time.

A Fractional CAIO is a senior AI executive who joins your C-suite with operational accountability: sits in board meetings, sets strategy, governs execution, answers to your stakeholders.

A part-time C-level who brings the experience of a university professor in Computer Science, fifty-plus AI transformations led and the IMPACT method, in exchange for 2–4 days per month.

The model is built for mid-sized and large companies for which a full-time Chief AI Officer would cost more than they need, and which need AI leadership to bring into production what today sits in POC.

§ 02 Differences

Three ways to have a Chief AI Officer.

Three alternative models. An honest comparison on cost, commitment, accountability and execution speed.

Option AConsultant

Option BFractional CAIO

Option CFull-time CAIO

Dimension

Produces external documents and recommendations. No accountability for execution.

Joins the leadership team. Reports to the CEO. Has deliverables, KPIs and operational responsibility like any other C-level.

Internal C-level with full accountability. But requires a budget of €250k+ per year and lengthy recruiting cycles.

Accountability

T&M or fixed-fee project. Ends with the deliverable. No continuity.

6–18 month mandate with monthly SLA. Present at board meetings and strategic offsites. Handover to internal team at the end.

Full-time, indefinite contract. 100% of the time, 100% of the cost, even after the transformation.

Commitment

High day rate multiplied by full-time effort. Sales and structural overhead built in.

20–40% of the cost of a full-time CAIO. You only pay for actual days. No hiring burden.

€250k+ per year all-in. Plus recruiting time and cultural mismatch risk.

Cost

Starts from scratch every time. Copy-paste between clients, little memory of your business.

IMPACT framework validated on 50+ projects. Operational memory of your context. Applicable pattern library.

Vertical experience of one person, but limited to an individual career path.

Methodology

§ 03 First 90 days

From entering the C-suite
to the first pilot in production.

A validated protocol: assessment, roadmap, first operational pilot. Three phases, concrete deliverables, accountability shared with CEO and board.

Phase 01

0–30d

Audit & Baseline

Operational immersion: leader interviews, data and process audit, mapping of existing AI systems. A snapshot of current maturity.

Deliverables
Opportunity map · 20+ use cases
Baseline report
AI risk register (AI Act-ready)

Phase 02

31–60d

Roadmap & Governance

18-month plan presented to the board. Definition of governance framework, AI policy, shared KPIs. Selection of the first high-ROI use case.

Deliverables
18-month roadmap · ROI per use case
AI governance playbook
Business case for first pilot

Phase 03

61–90d

First production ship

Launch of the first pilot using the IMPACT methodology. Rapid build with continuous validation. First release in production within Q1.

Deliverables
Working prototype in production
Live KPI dashboard
Scale playbook for use cases 02–03

§ 04 Responsibilities

What they do, and what they answer for.

Four areas of operational accountability. Not optional activities, but the core of the mandate.

^N°01

AI Strategy

Definition of the 18-month AI roadmap, alignment with corporate strategy, use case selection, business cases, budget allocation and investment thesis.

^N°02

Governance & risk

AI governance framework, AI Act compliance, risk register, policies for data handling and model lifecycle. Liaison with legal, compliance, security.

^N°03

Pilot execution

Direct supervision of pilots following the IMPACT methodology. Rapid build, validation with real users, go/no-go decisions, scaling or sunset.

^N°04

Capability building

Leadership team training, structuring an internal AI CoE, coaching for your future internal CAIO or Head of AI. Handover at the end of the mandate.

§ 05 Engagement model

Three engagement models.

Choose the formula based on starting maturity and strategic moment. Each model can be extended or scaled to the next.

Model · A

AI Sprint

Kick-off

90 days· single cycle

Audit, roadmap, first pilot in production. Suitable for those who want to test the approach before an extended mandate.

2–4 days / month
Full IMPACT deliverables
First pilot in production
No commitment beyond 90 days

Ideal for · SMBs · Mid-market

Model · B

Fractional CAIO

Operational mandate

6–18 months· renewable

C-level inside the leadership team. Board presence, monthly SLA, supervision of 3–5 parallel pilots, handover to internal team.

3–5 days / month
Presence at board meetings
Direct accountability on KPIs
AI Center of Excellence at the end

Ideal for · mid-large companies

Model · C

Board Advisor

Long-term

12+ months· retainer

Board advisor focused on AI governance, risk management, M&A technology due diligence, strategic bets.

1–2 days / month
Permanent board seat
Quarterly strategic review
Ready for targeted escalations

Ideal for · PE · holdings · listed companies

§ 06Who leads the mandate

Who joins your leadership team.

Agostino Marengo. University professor in Computer Science. Co-founder of OSEL. Co-creator of the IMPACT framework.

Years of experience between academic research and tech entrepreneurship. Advisor to banks, energy, public administration, pharma and industry. Over 10,000 executives trained, 50+ AI transformations led personally, from board meeting to production release.

50+

AI Transformations

100+

Scientific publications

10k+

Executives trained

§ 07 FAQ

Frequently asked questions.

A traditional consultant produces external documents and recommendations. A Fractional CAIO joins the leadership team, has operational accountability for execution, and reports to the CEO like any other C-level, with a commitment of 2–4 days per month.

From 6 to 18 months, depending on starting AI maturity. The first 90 days cover assessment + roadmap + first pilot in production. From there it scales. At the end of the mandate there is always a structured handover to an internal CAIO or Head of AI.

Physical presence at board meetings and strategic offsites. Direct channel with CEO, CFO and CIO/CTO. Monthly SLA with concrete deliverables. For 3–5 days a month I sit alongside your team like any other C-level, with the same expectations, without the full-time contract.

Financial services, manufacturing, energy & utilities, pharma, public administration. Any organisation with structured data, repetitive processes and high-frequency decisions benefits from the IMPACT methodology. For highly vertical sectors (regulated life sciences, defence, quant finance) I assess engagements case by case.

The cost is typically 20–40% of a full-time CAIO (which starts at €250k+ per year, all-in). Fixed monthly fee tied to days, no sales overhead. The exact figure depends on scope, sector and intensity of the mandate. Initial briefing is free: I estimate budget and timing in 45 minutes.

No. Many mandates start from zero. If you already have a strategy, it becomes the starting point. If you don't, it's one of the first deliverables, written together with your leadership team, not handed down from above.

Each pilot starts with agreed KPIs: business metrics (revenue, cost, cycle time) plus technical metrics (accuracy, latency, adoption). Dashboard updated weekly, monthly review with CEO and board. ROI calculated at 12 and 18 months on a pre-project baseline.

§ 08Contact

Book an AI Executive
Briefing.

A call to understand where you are, where you can go, and whether it makes sense to work together as Fractional CAIO. Reserved for CEOs, board members, innovation leaders.

Book a briefing

Duration45 minutes

CostFree

FormatVideo call · confidential

It's for you if you are:

CEO & Board Member

You want a clear AI strategy, presentable to stakeholders, executable without the months of lead time of a full-time hire.

Innovation & Digital Leader

You have a portfolio of stuck POCs. You want a senior partner to push the right ones into production and close the others.

Entrepreneurs & Founders

You want to use AI to compete for real, with serious governance, without building an oversized structure.