I just got back from FRAK 2023, and my mind is racing. This wasn't just another business conference - it was the very first gathering dedicated entirely to fractional executives. Being in a room full of people who "get it" was both validating and energizing.
The fractional executive model is still new to many, but everyone at FRAK understood the power of this approach. We're not consultants who drop in, give advice, and leave. We're not full-time employees tied to a single company. We're something different - experienced executives who embed ourselves in multiple companies, bringing enterprise-level expertise to businesses that couldn't otherwise afford it.
Did I learn groundbreaking new strategies? Not really. But that wasn't the point. The real value was in the conversations between sessions, the shared challenges over coffee, the realization that we're all pioneering a new way of working. Every fractional CFO, CMO, and CTO there had stories about clients who were skeptical at first but became believers when they saw results.
What struck me most was the diversity of backgrounds. Former Fortune 500 executives working with startups. Entrepreneurs who built and sold companies now helping others do the same. Technical experts who realized their skills could impact multiple organizations simultaneously. We're all taking different paths to the same destination - reshaping how businesses access leadership talent.
The energy in that room confirmed what I've believed for years: the traditional employment model is evolving. Companies need expertise, not employees. They need results, not resumes. And fractional executives deliver both. FRAK 2023 wasn't just a conference - it was a movement taking shape.
As I build Profit Leap, this fractional mindset influences everything. We're not just providing software or consulting - we're becoming an integral part of our clients' financial operations. We're fractional CFOs powered by technology, and FRAK showed me we're not alone in reimagining how business gets done.