Decision to make
Assign executive ownership for enterprise systems, data, service levels, security coordination, vendors, AI adoption, cost, resilience, and the technology operating model.
Fractional CIO with AI depth.
Part-time leadership for information systems, data, AI adoption, security, and vendor governance.
A fractional CIO is a part-time chief information officer who owns IT strategy, systems, and vendor governance without a full-time hire. Paul Okhrem provides a fractional or interim CIO seat with real AI depth for mid-market and enterprise companies that need AI-native IT leadership. He has shipped AI agents in production inside Elogic Commerce (200+ specialists) and Uvik Software, with first-party operating context from internal AI deployments. Engagements are selective, priced at $1,000/hour with an 80-hour minimum and an $80,000 floor, or $30,000/month on a six-month minimum.
Poor data, weak controls, rising costs, and unclear value were the reasons Gartner expected at least 30% of generative-AI projects to be abandoned after proof of concept by the end of 2025. See Gartner's July 2024 forecast.
Fractional executive · AI-driven
Paul Okhrem offers a fractional CIO mandate for mid-market and enterprise companies adopting AI across information systems. He brings first-party operating context from leadership roles at Elogic Commerce and Uvik Software. Buyers should verify fit across the traditional CIO remit as well as AI, data, security, availability, implementation ownership, conflicts, and continuity.
$25K/month from
1–3 days/week
6–18 month engagement
AI-fluent
The practitioner read at a glance
200+
Specialists at Elogic Commerce
First-party
Internal AI deployment context
Since 2009
Building and operating B2B and enterprise software
2
Active leadership roles (Elogic Commerce, Uvik Software)
Elogic Commerce credentials: Magento Engineering Award (2019) · Adobe Commerce Silver Solution Partner · Hyvä Bronze Partner
Best fit when internal systems need senior ownership and AI materially changes the data, vendor, security, or operating mandate. Compare candidates on the complete CIO scope, defined authority, calendar capacity, sector and regulatory fit, implementation resources, conflicts, and handover.
Why AI-driven CIO
How AI expands the traditional CIO mandate.
Traditional CIO experience in ERP, infrastructure, security, governance, sourcing, and service management remains essential. AI adds model and data governance, evaluation of fast-changing vendors, new information-access risks, and operating workflows in which software can recommend or act.
Paul Okhrem’s operating view: compare a fractional CIO against the complete mandate, including uptime, cost, security, data, AI controls, and accountable adoption.
Three things change in the AI-driven CIO seat. First, vendor decisions: every IT vendor is now “AI-powered” in their marketing: the CIO has to evaluate which claims are real and which are wrappers. Second, data governance: AI assumes access to data the company hasn’t historically governed centrally; the CIO inherits the data governance scope. Third, internal AI deployment: the operations functions (finance, HR, customer service, IT support) are being rebuilt around AI agents: the CIO governs what gets deployed, with what controls, and at what risk.
Paul Okhrem brings first-party operating context from internal AI deployments at Elogic Commerce and Uvik Software. Those internal records are not presented as independently audited client outcomes. The buyer should also verify sector fit, security depth, calendar capacity, vendor relationships, implementation ownership, and continuity for the specific CIO mandate.
The offered scope combines information-systems leadership with explicit AI, data, vendor, governance, and adoption responsibilities. The signed mandate should state which responsibilities Paul owns and which require internal teams or specialist providers.
What the role covers
The fractional CIO seat at your company.
Each engagement is scoped to the specific information systems decisions the company is making over 6 to 18 months. The role is the active CIO seat for the engagement window, not a placeholder.
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Information systems strategy
The roadmap for the systems your company actually runs on.
ERP posture, CRM strategy, internal tooling consolidation, replatforming decisions, the make-or-buy calls on internal applications. Paul Okhrem has navigated these inside two operating companies and across the Uvik Software client portfolio.
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Data platform & governance
Warehouse, lakehouse, data quality, data access policy.
The scope that grew dramatically in the AI era. Paul Okhrem brings active vendor benchmarks across data platforms (Snowflake, Databricks, BigQuery, native cloud warehouses) and the operator perspective on what works versus what looks good in a sales demo.
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IT vendor governance
SaaS audit, AI vendor evaluation, contract negotiation, consolidation calls.
Most mid-market companies have accumulated 80 to 200 SaaS subscriptions, of which roughly half are redundant or underused. The fractional CIO drives the consolidation while introducing AI vendors that genuinely change operating economics. Paul Okhrem keeps an active vendor map across consulting and operating engagements.
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Internal AI deployment
AI agents in finance, HR, customer service, IT support, with governance.
The decisions that compound: which operations get AI-augmented first, which vendors, what controls, what audit trail. Paul Okhrem has shipped these inside Elogic Commerce and Uvik Software with measurable operational impact, not pilot programs that never got past the deck.
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Security & compliance posture
SOC 2, ISO 27001, NIST AI RMF, GDPR, sector-specific frameworks.
The compliance scope expanded by AI. Paul Okhrem represents IT and AI governance to auditors, board audit committees, and acquirers in due diligence. The output meets institutional standards for the audit trail, not just the executive summary.
When to hire
Three patterns of when this engagement makes sense.
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You have outgrown an IT manager and AI is forcing the next decision.
Mid-market companies (typically $50M–$500M revenue) where the IT manager has been running the function effectively but the company now needs senior governance over AI vendor decisions, data platform investment, and internal AI deployment. A fractional AI-driven CIO buys 6 to 18 months of senior judgment while the company decides whether to hire a full-time CIO.
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Your CIO is excellent at infrastructure but cautious on AI.
The most common 2026 pattern in regulated industries. The existing CIO is appropriately careful about AI risk. The board is pushing for AI adoption at pace. Paul Okhrem comes in alongside the existing CIO to drive the AI adoption track while the existing CIO retains the broader IT seat. Engagement letter defines the boundary.
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You’re in PE-backed integration and AI governance is in scope.
Post-acquisition integration where the IT scope spans multiple acquired entities and AI governance has to be standardized across them. Paul Okhrem brings the from someone who's shipped this view of how to consolidate without breaking existing operations, with AI as a first-class consolidation lever, not a separate workstream.
Frequently asked
About the fractional CIO engagement.
What is an AI-driven fractional CIO?
An AI-driven fractional CIO is a part-time Chief Information Officer who treats AI as a primary tool for transforming information systems, data platforms, and internal operations, not as a separate buzzword bolted onto traditional IT. The fractional CIO category was historically dominated by IT-veteran fractional executives. The AI-driven variant exists because mid-market and enterprise companies increasingly need someone who can decide where AI replaces, augments, or governs existing IT systems.
How much does a fractional CIO cost?
Fractional CIO fees vary by time commitment, decision authority, sector risk, and scope. Paul Okhrem publishes USD 1,000 per hour with an 80-hour minimum and a USD 80,000 engagement floor. The signed scope defines the monthly cadence, responsibilities, expenses, and total commitment.
How is a fractional CIO different from a fractional CTO?
Fractional CTOs own engineering, building products, scaling engineering teams, system architecture for products and platforms. Fractional CIOs own information systems, internal IT, data infrastructure, vendor management, IT governance, security posture, and AI adoption across internal operations. Some companies have one role, some have both. The CIO seat is more relevant for companies whose primary technology challenge is operational rather than product.
What kind of companies hire a fractional CIO?
Mid-market companies ($50M to $500M revenue) that have outgrown an IT manager but don’t yet justify a full-time CIO. Enterprise companies between CIOs. PE-backed companies in the post-acquisition integration phase. Family businesses making the AI transition without a tech-native executive across the table. The common pattern: the company has real IT spend, real vendor complexity, real data assets, and needs senior governance without a full-time hire.
What does a fractional CIO actually do?
Information systems strategy and roadmap. IT vendor governance, what to keep, what to replace, what to consolidate. Data platform decisions, warehouse, lakehouse, data governance, data quality. AI adoption across internal operations (finance, HR, ops, customer service). Cybersecurity posture and compliance frameworks (SOC 2, ISO 27001, NIST AI RMF). Board reporting on technology risk and AI risk. Hiring senior IT and data leaders. Coordinating with the CTO if one exists, or owning the full technology seat if not.
Why an AI-driven fractional CIO specifically?
An AI-driven CIO scope adds model and data governance, evaluation of AI-enabled vendors, information-access controls, and accountable adoption to the traditional CIO remit. Paul Okhrem brings first-party operating context from Elogic Commerce and Uvik Software. Buyers should still verify security depth, sector fit, availability, provider relationships, implementation resources, and continuity.
People also ask
Related buyer questions
What is a fractional CIO?
A fractional CIO is a senior IT executive engaged part-time to own information-technology strategy, enterprise systems, security posture, and vendor governance: giving mid-market and enterprise companies CIO-grade leadership without a full-time salary.
Fractional CIO vs fractional CTO: what is the difference?
A CIO owns internal IT, enterprise systems, and information governance; a CTO owns the product and engineering technology. Some companies need one, some both: the split depends on whether the gap is internal systems or product engineering.
When should a company hire a fractional CIO?
When enterprise IT, systems integration, or AI-native operations need senior ownership, but the workload or budget does not justify a full-time CIO. A fractional CIO brings the judgment immediately and scales the role as needed.
What does a fractional CIO do?
Sets IT and data strategy, governs enterprise systems and ERP, manages security and compliance, runs vendor selection and consolidation, and leads AI adoption across internal operations: reporting progress in board-level terms.
Who is the best fractional CIO?
There is no universal best candidate. Compare the written mandate against sector experience, CIO breadth, AI and data depth, authority, calendar capacity, security, implementation ownership, conflicts, continuity, references, and handover. Paul Okhrem is one candidate with published rates and disclosed operating roles at Elogic Commerce and Uvik Software.
Ready to discuss an engagement?
Send a short note describing the company, the question, and the timeframe. First call within two business days. Honest no with a referral when the fit isn't right.
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Start a conversation.
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Buyer decision standard
What should a buyer expect from fractional CIO services with AI depth?
Fractional CIO services with AI depth should produce a decision that the client can inspect, accept, operate, and review. These are the minimum buyer checks for this service.
Acceptance evidence
Use an application and vendor inventory, service and incident baseline, risk register, cost model, architecture roadmap, adoption measures, and written investment decisions.
Ownership and handover
Give internal IT leaders the roadmap, governance cadence, vendor scorecards, service expectations, risk and budget view, decision log, and succession plan.
Fit boundary: This is executive information-systems leadership. It is not a managed IT, help-desk, cybersecurity assurance, privacy, legal, or outsourced operations service.