IT depends on one person
Knowledge, decisions, and vendor relationships are concentrated in one employee.
FRACTIONAL CIO · EXTERNAL IT LEADERSHIP
I take ownership of IT strategy, budget, architecture, team, vendors, resilience, and the AI initiative portfolio — 1–3 days per week, without an immediate full-time CIO hire.
A confidential 30-minute conversation to determine whether you need a Fractional CIO, a focused diagnostic, or a specialist AI audit.
25 years in IT · Estée Lauder · Zielinski & Rozen · 50+ stores · 6 warehouses · international programs
EXECUTIVE CONTROL LOOP
PORTFOLIO
7 initiatives●
2 need a decision
RISK
4 critical✓
owners assigned
BUDGET
plan / actual✓
full-year forecast
SERVICE
critical systems✓
availability view
50+
stores
6
warehouses
500+
users
WHEN YOU NEED A FRACTIONAL CIO
When an external CIO becomes necessary
The signal is operational complexity rather than headcount: several channels, stores and warehouses, ERP or 1C, e-commerce, critical vendors, and revenue dependence on system availability.
Projects compete without clear priorities
ERP, e-commerce, warehouse, analytics, infrastructure, and AI compete for the same budget and team.
IT spend grows while value remains unclear
Management sees invoices and incidents, but not a transparent technology investment portfolio.
Systems do not form one landscape
1C, POS, WMS, e-commerce, data, and vendor solutions evolve independently.
Incidents and cyber risk threaten revenue
Availability, access, backup, and vendor quality directly affect business continuity.
A temporary leader or support for the current IT lead is needed
The company is between CIOs, scaling rapidly, or preparing a major transformation.
THE FIRST 90 DAYS
From limited visibility to a governed portfolio and first decisions
The plan is refined after the diagnostic, but the management logic remains the same: see clearly, agree the rules, and begin execution.
DAYS 1–3001
Visibility
Build one executive view of technology.
- interviews with the CEO, CFO, COO, and IT team
- systems, integration, and critical dependency map
- vendor and cost inventory
- critical-risk register
- project portfolio review
- initial executive IT dashboard
DAYS 31–6002
Management model
Set priorities, decision rules, and ownership.
- IT strategy and priorities
- 12-month roadmap
- budget structure
- architecture principles
- vendor governance, SLA, and escalation model
- team roles and business/IT decision rights
DAYS 61–9003
Execution
Launch change and establish the governance rhythm.
- launch two or three priority initiatives
- stop or re-plan low-value projects
- establish the executive IT steering cadence
- create the team-development plan
- establish the resilience and cybersecurity plan
- create a governed automation and AI portfolio with business metrics
ACCOUNTABILITY
One point of accountability for the technology function
A Fractional CIO connects systems, people, vendors, and risk to the economics and priorities of the business.
01IT strategy and investment roadmap
02budget and value realization
03architecture and application landscape
04team, roles, and capability development
05vendors, contracts, SLA, and sourcing
06reliability, continuity, and cybersecurity
07ERP, 1C, POS, WMS, e-commerce, data, and analytics
08transformation and AI initiative portfolio
09executive reporting and decision support
A Fractional CIO is not an outsourced Service Desk or 24/7 first line. It is executive accountability for direction, decisions, and outcomes.
ENGAGEMENT FORMATS
The format follows the management problem
0110–15 working days
Executive IT Diagnostic
An independent view of systems, costs, vendors, risks, team, and project portfolio, with 90-day priorities and a 12-month roadmap.
Pricing depends on scale and involvement. The range is agreed after the initial discussion.
024–6 working days per month · minimum 3 months
Fractional CIO
An ongoing management model covering strategy, budget, architecture, team, vendors, resilience, executive reporting, and key transformations.
Pricing depends on scale and involvement. The range is agreed after the initial discussion.
032–3 days per week · 3–9 months
Interim / Transformation CIO
Leadership between CIOs, during rapid scaling, a major ERP/1C/WMS/POS replacement, or preparation for a permanent technology leader.
Pricing depends on scale and involvement. The range is agreed after the initial discussion.
043 weeks or part of the IT portfolio
AI Audit and AI Transformation Office
Opportunity register, business cases, data readiness, architecture, security, vendor selection, pilot governance, and scale/stop decisions.
€3,000–€4,800
SELECTED CASES
Experience leading complex technology environments
International premium retail IT operating model
50+ stores, 6 warehouses, 3 offices, 500+ users, 100+ POS terminals, 7,000+ SKUs, and multi-country operations.
strategyportfolioITSM
Warehouse, data, and omnichannel scaling
Retail and e-commerce operations with distributed warehouses, mandatory marking, a large product master, and several sales channels.
warehousedataintegration
Regional technology transformation at Estée Lauder
A regional CIO role across Eastern and Northern European markets, with distributed teams, vendors, and global and local programs.
regional leadershipERPautomation
AI · PORTFOLIO
AI is part of the technology portfolio, not a standalone magic trick
I help determine where AI can change process economics and where data, ownership, architecture, or the process itself must be fixed first.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
A CIO who can work with both the board and the engineering team
Technology leadership across international FMCG and premium retail, enterprise systems, warehouses, POS, data, infrastructure, risk, and distributed vendors.
25
years in IT
50+
stores
500+
users
7 000+
SKU
PRINCIPLES AND BOUNDARIES
Independent advice aligned with the business
No vendor commission and no hidden license resale incentive.
Partnership with the existing IT leader, never a secret audit against them.
Every initiative has an owner, metric, business case, and stop condition.
First-line and 24/7 support remain with the internal team and specialist providers.
NEXT STEP
Start with the situation, then choose the right format
A confidential conversation with no obligation to buy. The goal is to understand the management problem and identify the right next step.