Fractional Leaders feat. Jon Munson

In this ‘Fractional Leaders’ blog, we chat with Jon Munson, an experienced Fractional Ops & Delivery Director who helps digital agencies and scaling teams build high-performing operations.

Read on to learn about Jon’s journey, proudest achievements, and practical advice for businesses navigating the challenges of growth.

Can you please introduce yourself and your journey to becoming a Fractional Leader?

I’m Jon, and I help digital agencies and scaling teams build calm, high-performing operations. My background spans over 15 years in digital – from frontend development and UX strategy to project management, delivery leadership and operations.

I’ve worked in roles across the entire lifecycle of digital product and service delivery — from developer to Delivery Manager to Head of

Ops — for brands like LEGO, Roche, MediaCorp, Faccenda, and even UK government departments like the Home Office. I’ve led teams in fast-paced agencies and worked remotely with global teams long before it was popular.

After several years consulting on delivery and operational challenges, I realised I missed being in the trenches – not just advising, but doing. That led me into fractional work, where I now support 2–3 agencies at a time, embedding into teams to fix delivery bottlenecks, implement smarter systems, and give founders the space to actually lead.

Fractional gives me – and the agencies I work with – the best of both worlds: senior-level thinking and hands-on leadership, but without the overhead of a full-time hire.

You can find more about how I work at jonmunson.co.uk or connect with me on LinkedIn.

Let’s talk impact, what achievements are you proud of the most?

One of the biggest things I’ve helped teams do is shift from chaos to clarity – whether that’s rebuilding delivery systems, coaching project teams, or rolling out lightweight operational frameworks that actually stick. Often, systems and processes are built up over time, and having someone come in with a fresh perspective can really simplify the day to day.

I’ve supported an agency during a critical growth period where they needed to mature their delivery model fast – helping them stabilise their portfolio, define ownership, and improve margin. I’ve helped a start-up prep for investment by cleaning up their operational foundation. And I’ve coached project teams to lead more effectively under pressure (having been the resident firefighter over Xmas/New Years many times, this one is close to my heart).

I also love integrating automation and AI into everyday workflows – finding the repetitive tasks that are eating up valuable human time and simplifying them, so people can focus on the work that matters.

Across it all, what I’m proudest of is helping people feel in control again – replacing overwhelm with momentum, and firefighting with forward motion.

Based on your work with start-ups and scale-ups, do you have any pieces of wisdom you could share with businesses in scale-up mode?

Absolutely – here’s what I’d say to any founder or leadership team in that “just-about-holding-it-together” phase:

If you’re still managing ops and delivery yourself, you’re limiting your business’s potential.

It’s totally normal – most founders stay deep in the work because they feel they have to. But if you’re always in the weeds, you can’t focus on the work that only you can do: building partnerships, setting vision, leading the business. You need to be able to zoom out.

Letting go doesn’t mean losing control. It means setting up systems, accountability, and team ownership – so that things don’t fall apart when you step back.

One last thing: You don’t need complex frameworks to scale. You need clarity, consistency, and a structure that actually fits your team — not one copied from a much bigger org.

Start small, but start deliberately. A few focused changes can free up massive capacity – and give your team (and yourself) room to breathe.

If you’re a business interested in hearing more about our Fractional Leadership offering you can:

Find out more here

If you are a fractional leader and would like to be featured as part of the “Fractional Leaders” series please get in touch.