Fractional Quality Manager
A quality manager's brain without a quality manager's salary. Your system, run by a professional, for the hours you actually need one.
The problem this solves
Most shops under 75 people can't justify a $95-130K quality manager. So quality gets bolted onto the ops manager's job, the system decays between audits, and every surveillance visit turns into a fire drill. Until now the options were bad: hire too early, let the cert slide, or call a consultant in a panic every audit season.
An outsourced quality manager is the fourth option. A standing part-time arrangement where we own the system. Documents stay current, audits get run, corrective actions get closed, suppliers get held to account. All for a fraction of a full-time cost.
Engagement tiers
| Tier | What it covers | Typical fit |
|---|---|---|
| Maintain | Monthly upkeep: document control, CAPA follow-through, KPI reporting, standing check-in | Certified shops that want the cert to stop being scary |
| Audit Season | Everything in Maintain, plus the internal audit program, management review, and hosting the surveillance audit | The 2-3 months around registrar visits |
| Interim | Acting quality manager on a schedule while you search, or while we search for you | Sudden QM departure, or growth outpacing the system |
Priced monthly, scoped after a short assessment. Cancel with notice. If we're not obviously worth it, you shouldn't keep paying us.
Fractional vs. full-time hire
| Full-time quality manager | Fractional | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual cost | $95-130K plus benefits plus a recruiting fee | A fraction of that. You pay for output, not presence |
| Ramp time | 3-6 months learning your system | Zero if we built your system. Weeks otherwise |
| Coverage | One person's experience | Someone who works in many systems and audits every year |
| Risk | A bad hire puts the certificate at risk | Replaceable engagement with a documented handoff |
The build-then-staff path nobody else offers: we implement your QMS, run it fractionally while it matures, and when the workload justifies a full-time hire, we recruit your permanent quality manager and hand them a documented, working system. One firm, accountable end to end.
Common questions
Is a fractional quality manager enough to keep our ISO 9001 certificate?
Yes. Registrars care that the system runs and improves, not who runs it or how many hours they clock. Most shops under 50 people need far fewer QM hours than a full-time seat provides.
On-site or remote?
Most of the work runs remote on a set cadence, with visits scheduled where they earn their keep, like audit weeks. We're based in Houston.
What happens when we outgrow it?
That's the goal. We write the job spec against your actual system, recruit the hire, vet them, and hand over current documentation. Ramp time collapses.