Fractional AI Officer

An embedded AI leader for the operator who can't justify a full-time hire yet.

For multi-location independent operators doing $1M to $5M. We bring the strategy, the build, and the team training your competitors already have, at the price of one mid-level salary.

Who It's For

You're running a real business. The chains are pulling ahead.

Your competitors with corporate budgets have AI built into invoicing, scheduling, lead follow-up, and reporting. You're still doing those by hand because hiring a Chief AI Officer at $200K is not on the table. This service exists for that gap.

You're a fit if

  • You operate 2 to 10 locations of an independent, non-franchise business
  • Annual revenue is between $1M and $5M
  • You're the owner-operator with no COO, CTO, or chief of staff
  • You're spending hours on invoicing, follow-up, scheduling, and reporting
  • You want AI working for you, not another seminar telling you about it

You're not a fit if

  • You already have an internal AI or operations leader
  • You want a one-time training and you're done
  • You want software handed to you with no strategy behind it
  • You want the cheapest option in the market

The Framework

Strategy. Transformation. Education.

Three jobs the role does, in this order. Strategy decides what to change. Transformation actually changes it. Education makes sure your team can run it after we go.

S

Strategy

Where AI moves the needle for your specific operation. Where it does not. A 90-day roadmap built around your locations, your software stack, and your bottlenecks, not a generic playbook.

T

Transformation

We build the workflows, agents, and dashboards the strategy calls for. Invoicing follow-up, lead intake, customer communication, internal reporting, all wired to your existing tools.

E

Education

Your team learns to run what we build, and learns to think about AI the way an operator should. Hands-on sessions, not lectures. They use the tools live before we leave the room.

What's Included

Every month, on retainer.

Weekly Strategy Time

Standing executive session with the owner. Decisions get made, blockers get cleared, the roadmap stays on schedule.

Build & Implementation

Custom AI workflows, automations, and internal tools built and deployed against your roadmap each month.

Tool Stack Audit & Recommendations

Continuous review of what you're paying for, what you should add, and what to retire as the market moves.

Team Enablement Sessions

Live training built around the actual tools we deploy. Your team learns by using, not by watching.

Operations Dashboard

A single view across your locations: revenue, leads, cash, customer signals. Built for the owner, not for an analyst.

Vendor & Partner Liaison

We sit between your software vendors, agencies, and contractors so AI work actually ships instead of stalling in handoffs.

Investment

One tier. One number. No surprises.

$10,000/mo

Month-to-month. Cancel any month, like any other employee. No annual lock-in. No project minimum.

Book a Discovery Call

Process

From first call to running AI in 30 days.

01

Discovery Call

30 minutes. We talk about your operation, the bottlenecks you're feeling, and whether the model is a fit. No pitch deck, no pressure.

02

Operational Review

One paid working session with you and a key team member. We map the operation, your tool stack, and the highest-leverage AI moves.

03

90-Day Roadmap

You get a written roadmap with priorities, sequencing, and what each move is worth in time or revenue. You own this document either way.

04

Engagement Begins

We start the retainer. Weekly strategy time, building begins immediately on the highest-leverage item, team gets pulled in by week two.

About

Annette Washington

I have spent 35 years in food service operations and 14 years in digital marketing. I have run businesses, hired teams, fired vendors, and watched good companies stall because the operator could not move fast enough on technology that was already cheap. AI changes that.

The Fractional AI Office is the role I wish I had access to when I was the owner-operator. Strategic enough to talk with the CEO. Technical enough to actually build. Operational enough to know that nothing matters if the team won't use it.

"AI is the cheapest senior hire your business will ever make. The hard part is leading it. That's the job."

Based in Renton, Washington. Working with operators across the Pacific Northwest and beyond.

Common Questions

Things operators ask before signing.

How is this different from hiring a consultant?

A consultant tells you what to do. The Fractional AI Office does it with you, in your stack, every week. Strategy plus build plus training, on retainer, with the same person each month so context never resets.

Why $10,000 per month?

It is anchored against what a competent in-house AI lead would cost. A full-time hire at this level runs $180K to $250K loaded, before benefits and onboarding. The retainer is a fraction of that, with no recruiting risk and no ramp time.

Do I have to sign an annual contract?

No. The retainer is month-to-month. You can end it any month, the same way you would end any other staff relationship. No clawback, no penalty.

What if my software stack is a mess?

That is the normal starting point. The first 30 days usually include cleaning up tool sprawl, retiring duplicate subscriptions, and stitching together what stays. The savings often cover a meaningful portion of the retainer in month one.

Will my team be replaced by AI?

No. The goal is to remove the work your team hates so they can do the work that actually grows the business. Owners who try to replace people with AI usually fail. Owners who give their people leverage usually win.

What industries do you work with?

Multi-location independent operators across food service, dental and medical groups, salons and med spas, fitness, and regional service businesses. The model is industry-agnostic. The fit is about your operating profile, not your category.

Next Step

If this sounds like the role you've been trying to hire for, let's talk.

Discovery calls are 30 minutes. They are free. If we are not a fit, I will tell you on the call and point you somewhere that is.

Email Annette