Fractional CGO for digital agency leaders in Quebec and Canada. I've co-founded, sold and operated agencies since 2002 — I know exactly where they cap and how to unblock them. Based in Montreal. Maximum two active mandates at a time.
The title is recent. The function is not: someone in the leadership team who treats growth as a system — not as a list of tactics.
An executive responsible for the company's overall growth: positioning, offer, sales, pricing, margins, retention, team. A CGO doesn't just own marketing (that's the CMO) or revenue (that's the CRO) — they work on every lever at once, because pulling on one usually derails the others.
A Chief Growth Officer engaged part-time. Instead of hiring a senior executive full-time (CAD 250K+ per year, plus equity), an SMB pays for a fractional engagement — typically a few days per month, on a defined commitment. The right model for an agency between 5 and 30 people that needs senior thinking, not another seat at the table.
For Quebec-based agency leaders, working with a Chief Growth Officer in Montreal changes the conversation: local budget sizes, English vs French market dynamics, team structures, available talent, vendors and partners. Time zones are aligned and in-person meetings remain possible when a workstream calls for it.
The big mandates — you're the one closing them. Your team delivers, but nobody else knows how to position, defend a price, or turn a lukewarm opportunity into a signature. The result: your pipeline is 80% predictable — as long as you are there. The moment you're pulled elsewhere, it slows down.
On paper, projects are profitable. In reality, rushes, AR (accounts receivable), scope creeps and seniors doing junior work are eating your profit. You feel the agency makes less at 15 people than it used to at 8 — but nobody is looking at those numbers the right way.
When you compete against a specialized agency (a boutique SEO, a Shopify shop, a Meta Ads pure-play), you lose the best mandates — despite often broader expertise. Specializing feels risky: you might lose 40% of your current revenue. But staying the course means accepting the ceiling.
| Classic consultant | Fractional CGO | |
|---|---|---|
| Engagement | One-shot mandate, deliverable, then exit. | Present over time, embedded in your decisions. |
| Posture | Recommends. You execute. | Decides with you. Sometimes executes themselves. |
| Portfolio | 10 to 20 clients in parallel. | Two active mandates, maximum. |
| Accountability | Bills the time spent. | Aligned on your growth objectives. |
| Context | Has read about agencies, sometimes advised a few. | Has co-founded, run and operated agencies. Knows margins, AR and rushes from the inside. |
Every mandate starts with a discovery call — no pitch. Then we choose the format that matches your stage and what's blocking.
For the agency leader who wants a thinking partner every week — without an execution commitment.
On engagement. Rate discussed on the call.
Learn more — book the callFor the leader who wants strategy and tangible monthly movement — on the initiatives that actually unblock growth.
On engagement. Rate discussed on the call.
Learn more — book the call
3-month engagement, opt-out clause at day 30.
If at the end of the first month the format doesn't meet your expectations, you can end the engagement. Only the first month is owed.
"François doesn't come with a template. He arrives with 20+ years of agency experience — he knows what isn't working before you even say it. He's a decision accelerator, not another consultant."
Patrick Sauvageau
President — Groupe Pro Marketing
Web and marketing projects delivered since 2002 — first as founder, then as partner.
François is a key partner for any agency aiming for growth. The quality of his services, his availability and his professionalism are remarkable. A guaranteed investment.Hugo Mailloux UGO B2B
Canadian agencies supported in white-label between 2014 and 2018.
In our line of work, finding the right partner is rare. François is that rarity: impeccable ethics, creative, delivers what he promises. A partner you'll want to keep, not another vendor. Stop looking.Françis St-Pierre VUSAC
Co-founder, COO, operator — I've sat in all three seats.
It's a real pleasure to work with François. Very available and collaborative, he never hesitates to propose ideas even beyond the mandate. We've experienced remarkable growth and I'm thrilled to have chosen him.Sally Prosser WHC
You lead a digital agency of 5 to 30 people in Quebec or Canada — web, digital marketing, PPC, SEO, full-service or dev.
Your agency runs, your teams are full, but you feel you're capping — with no clear plan to reach the next stage.
You're ready to open the numbers, margins, AR and blind spots to someone external who has already operated in your world.
You want a partner who decides with you on priorities — not a consultant producing a pitch deck.
You're looking for a task executor — ads, SEO, dev — without touching strategy and leadership decisions.
You're starting out: under $500K in revenue, no validated model, you need a full-time operator rather than a fractional partner.
You want a 30-day solution, no commitment over time.
You prefer deciding alone, without a sparring partner, without opening the numbers and strategy to a third party.
7 questions to diagnose what's really capping your agency — founder dependency, margins, pricing, positioning, retention. 5 minutes. Personalized result. Zero pitch.
I've been building on the web since 2002. I founded and sold my first agency in 2007. Then I was COO of another. Between 2014 and 2018, I supported about fifty Canadian agencies in white-label — I saw their numbers, their deals, their rushes, their margins breaking down. Their founders burning out.
I've watched brilliant agencies cap at $1.5M. Others get acquired for next to nothing. Others collapse because the founder could no longer carry the pipeline alone.
Today I co-run Kasvu — a digital agency I know from the inside, every day — and I take two personal Fractional CGO mandates at a time. Because agency growth gets decided in the trenches, not in a PowerPoint.
— François Painchaud, Montreal
Most of the work happens over video — weekly calls, monthly reviews, exchanges between sessions. When a workstream calls for it (pricing review, positioning workshop, leadership committee), we meet in person. Shared workspace downtown or at your office, whichever serves the work best.
The agency market in Quebec has its own rules: budget sizes, French vs English dynamics (and Canadian vs US mandates), team structures, available talent, client expectations. A Chief Growth Officer who hasn't operated in this context will propose strategies that work in San Francisco — and cap out in Montreal. This is where I've worked since 2002.
I also take mandates in Toronto, Vancouver, Quebec City, and across Canada. Occasionally in the US. The only criterion that really matters: aligned time zones so we can talk when it's urgent.
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We look at where you stand, what's blocking, and whether working together makes sense. If not, you'll walk away with a clear angle on your next decision.
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