The short answer
An interim CMO takes full responsibility for marketing in a mid-sized company for three to nine months: full time, with budget and decision rights, then a handover. That is the better choice when the marketing lead is missing, when a growth push is coming that needs more than campaigns, or when agencies deliver but nobody steers. Costs: usually €1,000 to €1,600 per day, so €20,000 to €32,000 per month. That is more than an agency, but often less than a year of agency fees without results. If the need is two days a week or less, a fractional CMO is usually enough.
I ran marketing at Evernest as CMO and built teams at Engel & Völkers and Sotheby's. Today I mostly work as a fractional CMO with fixed days per week, but in some intro calls I recommend something else: an interim CMO, meaning full time for a fixed term. In mid-sized companies that comes up more often than you would think, because marketing runs alongside the CEO's job for a long time and eventually hits a wall. This post is for managing directors facing exactly that question.
How you know an agency is no longer enough
An agency delivers campaigns, websites, ads. What it does not deliver is the decision about which of those you need, and responsibility for the result. Typical signs:
- Three providers work side by side, nobody holds the plan.
- You have paid agency fees for a year, but nobody can say what an enquiry costs.
- Sales complains about lead quality, marketing complains about sales.
- Decisions on positioning, budget and channels sit with the CEO, who has no time for them.
These are not agency problems, they are leadership problems. The full list is in the post seven signs your marketing needs experienced leadership.
Three situations where interim wins
1. The marketing lead has left or never existed
Resignation, parental leave, illness, or the role was never filled because the company started small. A team of four to ten people needs someone who is available every day, approves budgets, sets priorities and resolves conflicts. A permanent hire in a mid-sized company takes six to nine months. The interim CMO bridges that time, and in the best case shapes the role so the successor can simply take it over.
2. A growth push that needs more than campaigns
New market, new product, acquisition, investor on board. In such phases a lot has to happen at once within a few months: sharpen positioning, renew brand and website, build channels, hire a team, select providers. That does not work with two days a week, and an agency cannot do it because it needs decisions inside the company. This is where full time pays off, limited to the phase.
3. Marketing without steering
There is budget, there are agencies, there are even numbers, but nobody brings it together. The interim CMO cleans up: which channels stay, which contracts end, what gets measured. This work is uncomfortable because it costs providers and breaks habits. That is why it is often better when someone from outside does it, with a mandate and a clear end.
What happens in the first 90 days
- Days 1 to 30: assessment and first decisions. All contracts, all numbers, all conversations with sales, team and providers. At the end of the month three decisions are on the table, not thirty slides.
- Days 31 to 60: restructuring. Cancel or renegotiate contracts, set up measurement, clarify team and roles, launch the first own campaign. This is where most resistance appears, and where the CEO's mandate is needed.
- Days 61 to 90: operations and handover preparation. Weekly reporting that runs without the interim CMO, documented processes, a job profile for the permanent hire or transition to a fractional model.
The roadmap resembles that of a fractional CMO, only compressed. What is realistic in 90 days and what is not is covered in the post on the first 90 days with a fractional CMO.
What it costs
Interim managers at CMO level in Germany usually charge €1,000 to €1,600 per day. At 20 working days that is €20,000 to €32,000 per month, so €60,000 to €96,000 for three months. The German interim association DDIM expects demand and day rates to rise again in 2025; across Europe, average day rates across all interim roles were most recently just under €1,000, with leadership roles above that.
For comparison: an agency on retainer often costs a mid-sized company €5,000 to €15,000 per month, €60,000 to €180,000 a year, without anyone making decisions. A permanent CMO costs €140,000 to €220,000 in annual salary plus employer costs plus six to nine months of search. Three months of interim are more expensive per day, but fixed-term, available immediately and with a clear result. The calculation works if structures remain afterwards that run without the interim CMO.
Interim or fractional?
The rule of thumb: if you need someone who is there every day, leads a team and changes a lot within a few months, go interim. If one to three days a week over a longer period is enough, go fractional. Many engagements start as interim and move to a fractional model after three to six months, once the restructuring is done and only steering is needed. The full comparison is in fractional, interim or agency.
Five questions before the engagement
- What should be different after 90 days, in one sentence?
- Does the interim CMO have budget and decision rights, or only an advisory role?
- Who takes over afterwards: a permanent hire, a fractional CMO or the existing team?
- Which numbers count as success: cost per enquiry, share of qualified leads, revenue from marketing sources?
- Is the management willing to back uncomfortable decisions, such as ending agency contracts?
If you can answer these five questions, you are ready for an interim engagement. If you cannot, you first need a conversation about strategy, and that is usually cheaper than three months of full time.