What Is a Fractional CPO? (And Why “Ignoring Privacy” Is No Longer a Strategy)

A Fractional Chief Privacy Officer (CPO) is an experienced privacy professional who provides executive-level privacy leadership without the full-time salary, benefits, or “why is this role suddenly so expensive?” moment. You get the expertise of a seasoned CPO, but only for the amount of time your business actually needs, which is ideal because most companies don’t need a full-time privacy executive… they just need someone who actually knows what they’re doing.

A Fractional CPO handles the privacy work that tends to live in the “we’ll deal with that later” pile. That includes building a real privacy compliance strategy, keeping you aligned with laws like HIPAA and state privacy regulations, making sure your website isn’t quietly violating anything, reviewing vendors who swear they’re secure, and stepping in when an incident happens and everyone suddenly wants to know what’s reportable, who needs to be notified, and how fast regulators expect to hear from you.

This role also exists to prevent your organization from learning about privacy obligations through a very unpleasant email from a regulator. A Fractional CPO translates legal requirements into actual, usable guidance, helps leadership make informed decisions about data, and keeps privacy from becoming a chaotic mix of panic meetings, outdated policies, and crossed fingers.

If your company collects personal data, doesn’t have an in-house privacy expert, is growing faster than its compliance program, or keeps saying “we should probably look at that someday,” a Fractional CPO is for you. It’s especially helpful for startups, healthcare practices, and growing businesses that need serious privacy leadership but not a full-time executive wandering the halls.

Hiring a full-time CPO can be great, but it’s also expensive and often unnecessary. A Fractional CPO gives you the same level of expertise, scaled to your size and risk, without overbuilding a role you don’t need yet. Same brain, fewer overhead costs, no drawn-out executive search.

At the end of the day, a Fractional CPO helps your business stay compliant, reduce risk, and make smarter decisions about personal data without turning privacy into a constant state of emergency. It’s privacy leadership that works in the real world, and not just on paper