Practical, answer-first articles from Maresa Friedman on fractional strategy, revenue growth, leadership, brand, AI, and keynote speaking.
- What Does a Fractional Chief Strategy Officer Actually Do?
A Fractional CSO is a senior strategic executive who works inside your company part-time and owns the strategic function of the business — not as an outside observer, but as someone accountable for outcomes.
- Why Most 7-Figure Businesses Stall (And How to Break Through)
The founders who break through the 7-figure plateau don't work harder. They rebuild the architecture of how the business creates and captures value.
- The Difference Between Strategy and Marketing (Most Founders Confuse This)
Ask a founder what their growth strategy is and you'll almost always get a marketing plan. More content. Better SEO. A stronger LinkedIn presence. Those are tactics, not strategy.
- Sales as the CEO: Why Founders Must Lead Revenue
The founder who removes themselves from sales before the sales system is built doesn't free themselves from sales. They just lose visibility into why revenue is declining.
- How to Build an Exit-Ready Business (Even If You Never Sell)
Exit-readiness is not about selling. It's about building a business that performs without being entirely dependent on you personally holding it together.
- The Hidden Cost of Misalignment in Leadership Teams
Strategic misalignment doesn't have drama. It doesn't announce itself. It just steadily bleeds the business of speed, margin, and momentum while everyone stays genuinely busy doing the wrong version of the right things.
- AI Can't Fix a Broken Business Model
AI can do remarkable things. But it cannot fix a broken business model. It can only accelerate whatever is already happening — including the broken parts.
- The 90-Day Momentum Framework for Scaling Companies
Annual plans fail not because planning is bad — but because the time horizon is wrong. Here's the 90-day framework that actually produces execution.
- Why Your Brand Isn't Converting (Even If You're Visible)
You're showing up. The content is consistent. People know your name. And the revenue doesn't reflect any of it. Here's the real diagnosis.
- From Hustle to Architecture: The Shift Every Founder Must Make
Hustle has a ceiling. It's not a character flaw — it's a physics problem. Here's what the shift from founder-as-engine to founder-as-architect actually looks like.
- Why I'm Co-Hosting RESET France — And Why I Think You Should Be in the Room
I don't say yes to many things. My calendar is intentional. My commitments are few and deep. Here's why I said yes to RESET France.
- The Difference Between a Fractional CSO and a Strategy Consultant (And Why It Costs You If You Confuse Them)
A strategy consultant gives you a recommendation and leaves. A Fractional CSO embeds in your leadership team and stays accountable for whether the strategy actually moves.
- Why Your Referral Program Isn't Working (And It's Not Because Your Clients Don't Like You)
Most referral programs fail not because clients don't like you — but because you haven't made it easy for them to refer you. Here's the structural fix.
- What Athletes Get Right About Brand Building (That Most Founders Get Wrong)
The discipline that makes athletes dangerous on the field is the same discipline that makes them dangerous in business. Here's what founders can learn from it.
- The Free Program Problem: Why Charging Nothing Destroys Accountability (And What to Do Instead)
When I served as Entrepreneur in Residence at the Jacobs Center, the program was free — and that was the problem. Here's what I learned about accountability architecture.
- You Consider Everyone. Who Considers You?
There is a specific kind of hurt that comes with being the person who always considers others — and realizing the consideration isn't coming back. This is about naming it.
- What Working With the NFL Taught Me About Brand Strategy (And What Every Founder Gets Wrong)
Four NFL teams. Dozens of players. One consistent lesson: the organizations that win off the field do the same thing the ones that win on it do — they build systems, not moments.
- What Fortune 100 Companies Do Differently in Strategy (That Mid-Market Companies Can Actually Copy)
The gap between a Fortune 100 company and a $10M business isn't budget. It's discipline. Here's what that actually looks like in practice.
- Why Community Organizations Struggle to Scale (And What the Ones That Don't Do Differently)
Every community organization I've worked with has the same conversation: 'We need more funding.' Almost none of them have the conversation they actually need to have: 'We need a better model.'
- The GTM Mistake That Kills Mid-Market Companies (And How to Fix It Before It's Too Late)
Most GTM failures aren't strategy failures. They're alignment failures. The product team, sales team, and marketing team are all executing — just on different strategies.
- What the Port of San Diego Taught Me About Stakeholder Strategy (And Why Most Companies Get It Backwards)
The Port of San Diego has 17 miles of waterfront, five member cities, and more stakeholder groups than most Fortune 500 companies. Working with them taught me that stakeholder strategy is a competitive advantage — not an administrative burden.
- Why Your Speaking Career Isn't Growing (And It's Not Because You're Not Good Enough)
The speaking business is not a meritocracy. The best speakers don't get the most stages. The speakers with the best systems do.
- The Referral Economy: How to Build a Business on Word of Mouth (Without Leaving It to Chance)
Referrals are the most powerful growth channel in professional services. They are also the most mismanaged. Here's how to build a referral engine that works without being awkward about it.
- What Working With Google Taught Me About Brand Speaking (And Why Most Speakers Are Leaving the Stage Empty-Handed)
Being a Google Brand Speaker changed how I think about every stage I stand on. Here's the lesson that applies whether you're speaking for a Fortune 500 or a local chamber of commerce.
- How Much Does a Fractional CSO Cost? What You Are Actually Paying For
A Fractional Chief Strategy Officer is not a task-based contractor. Understand what determines the investment, what the mandate should include, and how to evaluate the value beyond an hourly rate.
- What Does a Fractional CSO Do in the First 90 Days?
The first 90 days of a Fractional CSO engagement should produce a diagnosis, difficult decisions, and an operating cadence—not a pile of slides no one uses.
- Do You Need a CSO, COO, CRO, or CMO? A CEO's Constraint Map
A practical framework for CEOs deciding whether their company needs strategic direction, operational rigor, commercial leadership, or market attention.
- What Should an Executive Offsite Produce? Decisions, Not a Group Photo
The outputs that make an executive offsite worth the time and cost: clear decisions, tradeoffs, ownership, and a rhythm that holds after everyone goes home.
- How Do You Measure the ROI of a Keynote Speaker?
A practical 30–60–90 framework for event leaders who want to evaluate a keynote by retained learning, applied behavior, and strategic momentum—not applause alone.
- How to Launch a Brand When You Have No Trust Signals
When a new brand has no portfolio, media, or social proof, it needs an authority architecture—not just a louder landing page. Here is how to build borrowed trust responsibly.
- How to Promote a Hiring Event Without a Big Ad Budget
How guerrilla community outreach can help a job fair earn real attention when generic flyers and institutional social posts are not enough.
- How to Choose a Keynote Speaker for a Corporate Event
A speaker-selection framework for corporate event leaders who want more than a polished performance: clear audience relevance, usable ideas, and momentum that lasts after the stage lights go down.