Fractional CMO for B2B SaaS, AI, and Technology Startups
For over fifteen years I've worked with founders through paid fractional CMO engagements and as a mentor and advisor across Founder Institute, Techstars, Builders + Backers, W.E.Build and Act House, supporting 300+ founder relationships across stages, sectors, and geographies.
I partner with companies to clarify positioning, strengthen messaging, align go-to-market strategy, and provide embedded marketing leadership as a Fractional CMO to help them scale.
I don't show up with a playbook. I show up with the right questions. With deep experience at inflection points where messaging, alignment, and customer strategy must work as one, I know which questions change the trajectory.
Fractional CMO
B2B SaaS, AI, and technology companies
MBA in Global Management
Thunderbird School of Global Management, Europe
15+ Years
Advising founder-led and growth-stage companies
Experience Across
Fintech, SaaS, AI, mediatech, ISP, sports tech, FemTech, Arts, CPG, and entertainment
300+ founders
Across paid engagements, Founder Institute, Techstars, Builders + Backers, W.E.Build, and ACT House
N America, UK, EU, Africa, Caribbean, and LATAM
What I actually fix
Most founder-led companies at growth inflection points have the same underlying problem, even if it looks different on the surface. Messaging, internal alignment, and customer needs are pulling in different directions. The deck says one thing, the sales team pitches another, and marketing produces content that doesn't convert.
That disconnection is expensive. It slows decisions, confuses buyers, and makes it impossible to invest in growth with any certainty.
I close that gap. Not by taking over, but by bringing a 360-degree view that connects what you say, what you sell, and what your customers actually need, until they're all telling the same story.
Maria brings a strong strategic perspective and a deep understanding of the innovation and tech landscape. She is well-versed in go-to-market strategy, positioning, and broader industry dynamics.
Maggie Lusk, Founder
Saela
Common Problems I Help Solve
Positioning
Unclear or too broad.
No Clear Path to Growth
There's traction, but no clear path to its next stage of growth.
Enterprise-wide Inconsistency
The pitch deck, website, and sales story don't align.
Tactics Without Strategy
The team is executing before the strategy is aligned
Lack of Conversion
Marketing is active but not working.
Misalignment
Stakeholders are not aligned on action.
Solo Founder
Marketing and sales depend too heavily on the founder.
How I work
I join at pivotal moments. When early traction exists but the marketing hasn't caught up with the ambition. When positioning is unclear and every team has a different answer to "what do we actually sell." When a founder knows something needs to change but isn't sure what to fix first.
The work usually includes
Go-to-market strategy
Website and pitch narrative alignment
Marketing roadmap and execution priorities
Positioning and category clarification
ICP and customer segmentation
Messaging architecture
Offer and value proposition refinement
I work through it with you, not around you
That means asking hard questions early enough to change direction. Challenging assumptions that have gone unexamined. Connecting marketing to product, narrative to sales motion, brand to investor story. The strategic view and the execution discipline that follows it.
Founders I've worked with describe the shift in similar ways
Before: Feeling out to sea, fragmented strategy, marketing happening around the company.
After: Clear direction, aligned teams, a coherent story that works from the pitch deck to the sales call to the homepage. And the certainty to invest in what comes next.
The background
My earlier career in media and production taught me how to align complex teams, manage competing stakeholders, and turn abstract ideas into stories people understand. That experience still shapes how I work with founders: the strategy has to be clear enough for the team, the market, and the buyer to act on it.
I founded FWD Action after earning my MBA in Global Management at Thunderbird in Europe. My career started in media and moved into international business and marketing leadership across North America, the EU, the UK, Africa, and Latin America.
Over fifteen years, I've worked with founder-led and growth-stage companies across fintech, SaaS, mediatech, ISP, sports tech, Femtech, Arts and entertainment. Different sectors, same underlying moment: a company ready to grow that hasn't yet aligned around what it's selling, to whom, and why it wins.
That cross-sector pattern recognition makes the work faster and more precise than starting from scratch within a single vertical.
Is this the right moment?
You may be post-seed, Series A, or founder-led with real traction. Something is working, but the marketing has not caught up with where the company needs to go.
You may be preparing to launch, reposition, enter a new market, raise capital, or build a more mature growth engine.
You are not looking for someone to execute random tactics. You need a strategic partner who can see the whole board, ask better questions, and help build the clarity required to invest in growth with confidence.
If that's where you are, let's talk.
Frequently Asked Questions
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I work with founder-led B2B SaaS, AI, technology, fintech, healthcare technology, mediatech, educational, coaching and growth-stage companies.
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A company should consider a fractional CMO when it needs to embed senior marketing leadership, clearer positioning, stronger messaging, and a practical growth strategy but is not ready to hire a full-time CMO.
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Yes. I typically work with post-seed, Series A, and founder-led companies that have traction but need stronger marketing strategy and leadership.
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A fractional CMO partners with senior leadership and owns positioning, messaging, go-to-market strategy, demand generation, marketing team leadership, sales alignment, and growth planning.
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I work with companies across the US, UK, EU, and LATAM.