Business leadership glossary
Clear, plain-English definitions of the leadership roles, finance terms, governance language and technology concepts UK founders, boards and scale-up leaders meet every day — written by the senior directors on our bench.
A
AI governance
AI governance is the set of policies, roles, processes and controls an organisation uses to make sure its use of artificial intelligence is safe, lawful, ethical and…
Technology and AIAIEO (AI engine optimisation)
AIEO (AI engine optimisation) is the practice of structuring a website's content so that AI answer engines, such as ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google AI Overviews and…
B
Bench (of directors)
A bench of directors is a pre-vetted pool of experienced senior executives that a fractional or interim leadership provider can deploy to clients quickly. Because…
Growth and governanceBoard pack
A board pack is the set of documents circulated to directors before a board meeting. It typically includes the agenda, previous minutes, management accounts, a cash…
FinanceBurn rate
Burn rate is the speed at which a business spends its cash, usually measured per month. Gross burn is total monthly cash outgoings; net burn is outgoings minus cash…
People and HRBusiness mentoring
Business mentoring is a relationship in which an experienced business leader shares knowledge, advice and perspective with a business owner or manager to help them…
C
Cash runway
Cash runway is the length of time a business can keep operating before it runs out of cash, assuming current spending and income continue. It is usually expressed in…
Leadership rolesCFO (chief financial officer)
A CFO, or chief financial officer, is the most senior finance executive in a business. The CFO owns financial strategy, funding, capital allocation, risk and investor…
Leadership rolesChief AI officer (CAIO)
A chief AI officer (CAIO) is the senior executive responsible for a company's artificial intelligence strategy, adoption, governance and risk. They decide where AI…
Leadership rolesChief data officer (CDO)
A chief data officer, or CDO, is the senior executive responsible for how a business manages and uses its data. The CDO owns data strategy, governance, quality and…
Leadership rolesCIO (chief information officer)
A CIO, or chief information officer, is the senior executive responsible for the information systems a business runs on. The CIO aligns technology with business…
Leadership rolesCISO (chief information security officer)
A CISO (chief information security officer) is the senior executive responsible for protecting an organisation's information, systems and data from cyber threats.…
Leadership rolesCMO (chief marketing officer)
A CMO, or chief marketing officer, is the senior executive responsible for how a business wins and keeps customers through marketing. The CMO owns brand, positioning,…
Leadership rolesCommercial director
A commercial director is the senior leader responsible for a company's revenue and the commercial terms it trades on. The role typically spans sales, pricing, key…
FinanceConstruction Industry Scheme (CIS)
The Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) is an HMRC scheme under which contractors deduct money from payments to subcontractors for construction work and pass it to…
Leadership rolesCOO (chief operating officer)
A COO, or chief operating officer, is the senior executive responsible for how a business runs day to day. The COO turns strategy into execution, owning operations,…
FinanceCost value reconciliation (CVR)
A cost value reconciliation (CVR) is a regular, usually monthly, construction-industry report that compares the value of work completed on each contract with the…
Leadership rolesCTO (chief technology officer)
A CTO, or chief technology officer, is the senior executive responsible for the technology a business builds and sells. The CTO sets technical strategy and…
Technology and AICyber Essentials
Cyber Essentials is the UK Government-backed minimum standard of cyber security for organisations of all sizes, developed by the National Cyber Security Centre.…
D
Day rate
A day rate is the fee charged for one day of a contractor's, consultant's or interim or fractional director's time. It is the standard pricing unit for senior…
Technology and AIDigital transformation
Digital transformation is the process of using digital technology, data and new ways of working to fundamentally change how a business operates, serves customers and…
Growth and governanceDue diligence
Due diligence is the structured investigation a buyer, investor or lender carries out on a business before committing money. It tests the financial, legal,…
E
EBITDA
EBITDA stands for earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation. It is a measure of a company's operating profitability that strips out financing…
Technology and AIEU AI Act
The EU AI Act is the European Union's law regulating artificial intelligence, set out in Regulation (EU) 2024/1689. It entered into force on 1 August 2024 and takes a…
People and HRExecutive coaching
Executive coaching is a structured, confidential one-to-one process in which a trained coach helps a senior leader improve their performance, decision-making and…
Growth and governanceExit planning
Exit planning is the process of preparing a business and its owners for a future sale, transfer or other exit, usually over two to five years. It covers maximising…
F
Finance director (FD)
A finance director, or FD, is the senior manager responsible for running a company's finance function. The FD makes sure management accounts, cash flow, statutory…
Leadership rolesFractional CFO
A fractional CFO is a senior chief financial officer who works with a business part-time, often a few days a month, to lead financial strategy, cash management,…
Leadership rolesFractional CIO
A fractional CIO is a senior chief information officer who works with a business part-time to lead IT strategy, systems, suppliers, data and security. They align…
Leadership rolesFractional CMO
A fractional CMO is a senior chief marketing officer who works with a business part-time to set marketing strategy, positioning and budgets, and to lead the team or…
Leadership rolesFractional commercial director
A fractional commercial director is a senior commercial leader who works part-time across pricing, sales, marketing alignment, key accounts and partnerships,…
Leadership rolesFractional COO
A fractional COO is a senior chief operating officer who works with a business part-time to design and run its operations, processes, people structures and delivery.…
Leadership rolesFractional CTO
A fractional CTO is a senior chief technology officer who works with a business part-time to lead product technology, software architecture and engineering teams.…
Leadership rolesFractional data and AI director
A fractional data and AI director is a senior leader who works part-time to set and deliver a business's data and AI strategy. They cover data quality, reporting,…
Leadership rolesFractional director
A fractional director is an experienced senior executive who works for a business part-time, typically one to three days a week or on a monthly retainer, taking real…
People and HRFractional HR director
A fractional HR director is a senior people leader who works part-time, usually one or two days a week, to set and run a business's people strategy. They cover…
Leadership rolesFractional IT director
A fractional IT director is a senior technology leader who manages a business's IT on a part-time basis, typically one or two days a week. They own IT strategy,…
Leadership rolesFractional managing director
A fractional managing director is an experienced business leader who runs or co-runs a company on a part-time basis, typically two to three days a week. They take…
Leadership rolesFractional sales director
A fractional sales director is an experienced sales leader who works part-time, often one or two days a week, to build and run a business's sales function. They set…
H
Headless CMS
A headless CMS is a content management system that stores and manages content separately from the website or app that displays it. Content is delivered through an API…
People and HRHR director
An HR director is the senior leader responsible for a company's people strategy. The HR director makes sure the organisation has the right structure, talent, culture,…
I
Interim manager
An interim manager is a senior executive hired on a temporary, usually full-time basis to fill a leadership gap or deliver a specific change, such as a turnaround,…
People and HRIR35
IR35 is the common name for the UK off-payroll working rules. They apply where a worker provides services through their own limited company or other intermediary, but…
Technology and AIIT consulting
IT consulting is independent expert advice that helps a business plan, choose, implement and manage its technology. IT consultants assess current systems,…
Leadership rolesIT director
An IT director is the senior manager responsible for a company's information technology. The IT director runs the IT team and services, manages infrastructure,…
Technology and AIIT strategy
An IT strategy is a plan that sets out how an organisation will use technology, data and IT resources to support its business goals over the next few years. It…
M
Management accounts
Management accounts are internal financial reports, usually produced monthly, that show a business's profit and loss, balance sheet and cash position against budget…
Growth and governanceManagement buyout (MBO)
A management buyout (MBO) is a transaction in which a company's existing management team buys the business, or a controlling stake in it, from its current owners. The…
Leadership rolesManaging director (MD)
A managing director, or MD, is the most senior executive in a UK company, responsible for running the business as a whole. The MD leads the leadership team, delivers…
O
OKRs (objectives and key results)
OKRs (objectives and key results) are a goal-setting framework in which a team sets a small number of ambitious, qualitative objectives and, for each one, two to five…
Growth and governanceOperating rhythm
An operating rhythm is the regular, scheduled cycle of meetings, reviews and reports a business uses to set priorities, track performance and make decisions. It…
People and HROrganisational design
Organisational design is the deliberate shaping of a business's structure, roles, reporting lines, decision rights and ways of working so they support its strategy.…
P
Part-time finance director
A part-time finance director is an experienced FD who leads a company's finance function for a set number of days each month. They oversee reporting, controls, cash,…
Growth and governancePrivate equity-backed business
A private equity-backed business is a company in which a private equity firm has bought a significant, often controlling, stake using investor funds and usually some…
R
Retainer
A retainer is a fixed monthly fee paid to secure an agreed amount of a professional's time and availability. In fractional leadership, a retainer typically buys a set…
FinanceRetentions (construction)
Retentions in construction are a percentage of each payment, typically a few per cent, that a client or main contractor withholds from a contractor or subcontractor…
S
Sales director
A sales director is the senior leader responsible for a company's sales performance. The sales director sets the sales strategy and targets, builds and leads the…
Growth and governanceScale-up
A scale-up is a business growing fast and sustainably after proving its model. The ScaleUp Institute, using the OECD definition, describes it as a firm with average…
Technology and AIShadow AI
Shadow AI is the use of artificial intelligence tools, such as public chatbots, AI writing assistants or AI features in everyday apps, by employees without the…
Engagement modelsStatement of work (SOW)
A statement of work (SOW) is a document that sets out exactly what a contractor, consultant or fractional director will deliver, including objectives, scope,…
People and HRSuccession planning
Succession planning is the process of identifying and developing people to fill key leadership and specialist roles when current holders leave, retire or move on. It…
W
Work in progress (WIP)
Work in progress (WIP) is the value of work a business has started but not yet completed or invoiced. In manufacturing it means partly finished goods; in construction…
Technology and AIWorkflow automation
Workflow automation is the use of software to carry out a sequence of business tasks automatically, based on defined rules or triggers, with little or no manual…
FinanceWorking capital
Working capital is the difference between a business's current assets, such as stock, trade debtors and cash, and its current liabilities, such as trade creditors and…
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