AI is the product
If AI is what you sell, you need a leader in the seat every day. Hire full time.
Comparison 04 · Full-time hire
Fractional AIvs a full-time hire.
A full-time Head of AI is the right end state for a lot of companies. Getting there takes a search that often runs 45 to 120 days, then a ramp of about six months. Fractional gets the program owned now, and the person you hire later inherits a running system instead of a backlog.
Book 30 minutes with Edwin
If you should hire full time now, I will say so.
01 · Side by side
Same questions.Both sides.
Full-time Head of AI
- Start. After a search that often runs 45 to 120 days, then a ramp of about six months.
- Cost. Senior-exec pay plus equity, priced against AI-native companies. By commonly cited estimates, a failed senior hire costs 2 to 3 times annual comp.
- Commitment. A permanent seat. Unwinding a wrong hire takes quarters.
- Range. One person's background. Candidates tend to lean toward strategy or toward engineering.
- Time on AI. Five days a week.
- Handoff. The leader is the system. When they leave, much of the knowledge leaves with them.
GAT →
- Start. A two-week diagnostic puts the plan on the table. The Fractional retainer picks up from there.
- Cost. From $12,000 a month for one day a week, up to three days. No equity.
- Commitment. 6-month minimum, with a 14-day mutual exit from day one.
- Range. Plan and build from one operator, plus the work between teams. As a Technical Program Manager at eBay, I worked with directors and engineering managers across roughly a dozen teams.
- Time on AI. 1 to 3 days a week. Enough to own the program before it fills a full-time seat.
- Handoff. I help scope the role and hire the person who takes it from me. The plan, the evals, and the runbook stay with your team, and AI Workforce Training gets everyone using it.
Before you askEvery engagement starts with the AI Program Diagnostic: $2,500 flat, two weeks, credited in full if you move to the build or a retainer within 30 days. The Fractional retainer runs from $12,000 a month for one day a week, up to three days, 6-month minimum, with a 14-day mutual exit from day one.
02 · What to look for
Settle thesebefore you open the req.
- Is the role written for the program you have? The shape of AI leadership has moved twice since most job descriptions were written. A plan first tells you which leader you need.
- Is there five days of work? If the program fills two days a week, a full-time seat pays for three you do not use yet.
- Who owns AI while the search runs? Every month the seat sits empty, pilots keep running with no baseline and no kill list.
- Can the budget hold the market rate? Candidates who pass the technical bar price themselves against AI-native companies.
03 · Hire full time
When a full-time hireis the right call.
You have an AI team to manage
Three or more AI engineers need a manager, a hiring plan, and career paths. That is a full-time job.
The program fills the week
Several workflows in build at once, with vendor and board work on top. One to three days a week stops being enough.
The budget and the search are ready
Comp is approved and a recruiter is on it. Run the search. Fractional can still own the program while it runs.
04 · Pick GAT
When I amthe right call.
If two or more of these show up, start fractional and hire later.
Nobody owns AI today
Pilots are running and spend is climbing, and no one has a baseline. A plan in two weeks beats an empty seat for a quarter.
The search is stuck
The role has been open 45 days or more. I own the program while you keep hiring. How the bridge works.
You are not sure which leader you need
The diagnostic maps the work first. The job description gets written from the plan instead of a template.
Your whole team has to use it
AI Workforce Training trains the exec layer and the builders first, then everyone else. The knowledge stays with your team when the leader changes.
05 · The path
Fractional now.Full time later.
Fractional engagements like this usually end inside 9 months, when the full-time hire lands. I help scope the role and hire the right person, then hand over the plan, the evals, and the runbook. Your new Head of AI starts with a running program and a baseline on every line.
06 · FAQ
Questions.
What is the difference between a Fractional Head of AI Transformation and a full-time Head of AI?
A full-time Head of AI is a permanent exec seat, five days a week, found through a search that often runs 45 to 120 days. A Fractional Head of AI Transformation owns the same program 1 to 3 days a week, starting after a two-week diagnostic, with a 6-month minimum and a 14-day mutual exit. Many companies start fractional and hire full time once the program fills the week.
When should we hire a full-time Head of AI?
When AI is your product, when you have an AI team to manage, or when the program fills five days a week. If the budget and the search are ready, hire. Fractional can still own the program while the search runs.
Does fractional compete with our full-time search?
No. The retainer is the bridge to that hire. I help scope the role and hire the person who takes it from me, and they inherit the plan, the evals, and the runbook.
How much does fractional cost compared to a full-time Head of AI?
The Fractional retainer runs from $12,000 a month for one day a week, up to three days, after a $2,500 diagnostic. A full-time hire carries senior-exec pay, equity, and usually a search fee. By commonly cited estimates, a failed senior hire costs 2 to 3 times annual comp.
GAT.
Your room. I'll name the fit. Even when it isn't me.
If you should hire full time now, I will say so and help you write the role.
Book 30 minutes with EdwinWeighing other options? See the other comparisons.