By Laas NuryMany companies know they should be doing more with AI and have nobody to lead it. IT is busy keeping the systems running, the business has no time, and a permanent AI hire feels premature when nobody knows yet what that person would do all day. That is the gap an interim or fractional AI lead fills: someone who comes in for a set period, gets the first things running and leaves the company able to continue.
This article explains when that makes sense, what such a person should deliver, how to judge candidates and what to settle up front.
Three ways to get AI going
| Consultancy | Interim or fractional AI lead | Permanent hire | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What you get | An analysis, a recommendation, sometimes a build | Someone who does the work inside the organisation until it runs | Someone who runs AI every day, for the long term |
| Best when | The question is clearly scoped | You need to get something going and have nobody to lead it | AI already runs in several processes and needs daily care |
| Typical duration | Weeks | Three to nine months, often part-time | Permanent |
| Risk | A report that nobody implements | Dependence, if handover is not planned | Hiring for a role you cannot yet describe |
Many companies use all three over time: an interim lead to get started, a consultancy or builder for specific questions, and a permanent role once it is clear what that role needs to be.
When interim makes sense
- You are at the start, and need someone to choose the first processes and get them live.
- A project has stalled after the pilot, and needs someone to push it through the last, hardest part.
- You are preparing a hire, and want to know what the role actually involves before you recruit.
- You need AI and the operation in one person: someone who can talk to the order desk and the IT supplier in the same afternoon.
In the Netherlands the role is often called an AI kwartiermaker: someone who sets things up so that others can take over.
What they should deliver in 90 days
A good interim AI lead works towards results you can see, not towards a roadmap alone:
Days 1 to 30: understand and choose.
- A list of the AI already in use, with owners (the start of the AI register).
- The three to five processes with the most potential, scored on readiness.
- One process chosen, with an owner, a measure of success and agreed rules and exceptions.
Days 31 to 60: build and test.
- The first solution running in the background next to the team, on real cases.
- The AI policy and a short introduction for everyone who uses AI.
- Clear figures: accuracy, time saved, the exceptions.
Days 61 to 90: go live and hand over.
- The first process live, step by step: drafts first, then acting within limits.
- Governance in place: one owner, the register, the check before anything new goes live.
- A handover: who runs it from now on, what the next process is, and whether a permanent role is needed.
If after 90 days nothing runs in the daily operation, something went wrong in the choice of process, the ownership or the person.
How to judge candidates
- Ask what they got into production, not what they advised. Ask how long it ran and who runs it now.
- Ask how they handle exceptions. Everyone can describe the straightforward case.
- Ask how they hand over. A good interim lead plans to leave from the first week.
- Check they can talk to both sides: the people on the floor and the IT supplier.
- Check how they build. Do they build themselves, work with a partner, or only advise? All can work, as long as you know which one you are buying.
What to settle up front
- The goal and the measure of success, in writing: which process, which result, by when.
- Days per week and duration, with a review moment halfway.
- Who owns what is built, including the rules and the configuration.
- Access and confidentiality: which systems and data, under which agreement.
- The handover: to whom, and what documentation.
- How the assignment is set up under Dutch rules on self-employment. Since 2025 the Dutch tax authority has again been enforcing the rules on false self-employment, with penalties returning fully after 2026. An assignment set up around a defined result, with the interim working independently, keeps this clear. When in doubt, have it checked.
What it costs
That depends on experience, the number of days per week and whether the interim lead also builds or only leads. Our article on what AI consultants charge gives the rates on the Dutch market and what drives them. Compare the cost with what the first process saves, not with a salary: an interim lead who gets one high-volume process into production usually pays for the assignment within months.
Where to start
Before you look for someone, do the AI readiness assessment on two or three processes. It tells you whether you need someone to prepare the ground or someone to build, and it gives any candidate a concrete starting point. And read from AI pilot to production: the step an interim lead is usually hired to take.
