A practitioner recently shared something with me that crystallized a pattern I’ve been tracking:
“The CFO didn’t complete the internal readiness assessment because she stated she didn’t fully understand everything – which was actually her indicator she wasn’t fully ready.”
“It’s positive the consultants are doing a readiness assessment. But does it peel back the onion enough? I’m more interested in execution capability, data readiness, and future state planning versus looking at demos first to shape requirements.”
“I just want to execute the basics for starters and have a roadmap over time – because based on my intuition, we have work to do to realize the potential outcomes.”
This practitioner sees what most organizations miss. They understand that transformation success isn’t about feature demonstrations – it’s about whether the organization can actually absorb and sustain change.
But here’s the uncomfortable question: What happens when a fractional leader’s clarity exceeds the organization’s readiness to hear it?
The fractional model promises flexible access to executive expertise. But the research reveals a structural tension: fractional leadership “falls short when there’s no internal alignment on the executive’s scope or authority” or when “teams aren’t prepared to integrate external leadership.”
The practitioner I quoted isn’t failing. They’re doing exactly what good fractional leaders do – identifying execution gaps before expensive failures occur. The question is whether the organization will listen before the case study decay sets in.
Average fractional engagement: 6-12 months.
Average ERP transformation timeline: 18-36 months.
Do the math.
-30-
The Compounding Failure Effect: Why Phase 0 Matters More Than Ever
Here’s what the industry doesn’t talk about: failure compounds. Each initiative that fails without a proper post-mortem and readiness assessment doesn’t just waste resources — it erodes the organizational muscle required for the next attempt. The baseline failure rate for ERP implementations sits between 55-75%. But that’s the first attempt baseline. Organizations that skip Phase 0 readiness assessment and proceed after a prior failure see their success probability drop dramatically — and this pattern will only accelerate as we move from Generative AI to Agentic AI to Autonomous AI. The math is unforgiving: by 2030, organizations without Phase 0 discipline will face near-zero success probability, while those who build readiness assessment into their transformation DNA will maintain 70%+ success rates across every technology wave.
Procurement Insights
The Fractional CPO Paradox: When Seeing Clearly Isn’t Enough
Posted on January 7, 2026
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A practitioner recently shared something with me that crystallized a pattern I’ve been tracking:
This practitioner sees what most organizations miss. They understand that transformation success isn’t about feature demonstrations – it’s about whether the organization can actually absorb and sustain change.
But here’s the uncomfortable question: What happens when a fractional leader’s clarity exceeds the organization’s readiness to hear it?
The fractional model promises flexible access to executive expertise. But the research reveals a structural tension: fractional leadership “falls short when there’s no internal alignment on the executive’s scope or authority” or when “teams aren’t prepared to integrate external leadership.”
The practitioner I quoted isn’t failing. They’re doing exactly what good fractional leaders do – identifying execution gaps before expensive failures occur. The question is whether the organization will listen before the case study decay sets in.
Average fractional engagement: 6-12 months.
Average ERP transformation timeline: 18-36 months.
Do the math.
-30-
The Compounding Failure Effect: Why Phase 0 Matters More Than Ever
Here’s what the industry doesn’t talk about: failure compounds. Each initiative that fails without a proper post-mortem and readiness assessment doesn’t just waste resources — it erodes the organizational muscle required for the next attempt. The baseline failure rate for ERP implementations sits between 55-75%. But that’s the first attempt baseline. Organizations that skip Phase 0 readiness assessment and proceed after a prior failure see their success probability drop dramatically — and this pattern will only accelerate as we move from Generative AI to Agentic AI to Autonomous AI. The math is unforgiving: by 2030, organizations without Phase 0 discipline will face near-zero success probability, while those who build readiness assessment into their transformation DNA will maintain 70%+ success rates across every technology wave.
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