Marco de Vecchi, fractional IT executive for SMEs
FRACTIONAL IT MANAGER AND CIO FOR SMEs

Strategic technology leadership alongside your team. For as long as you need it.

I work alongside SME management as a fractional IT manager, from technology direction through to execution, in Italy and abroad. Free 12-question check.

Take the Tech-CheckBook a call

12 questions · 3 minutes · instant report, free

30+
stalled projects turned around
Held up for months, then taken into production
€20M
in digital investments managed
Budgets I have been directly accountable for
€4M+
in savings generated
Optimised IT costs, with commercial and administrative processes streamlined
50+
companies supported
Manufacturing, services, energy and the public sector

You are probably here for one of these reasons

IT costs rise every year.

Subscriptions, licences and consultancy fees keep adding up, but the benefits remain unclear.

You have the data, but not the insight.

It sits in disconnected systems, and producing a single figure takes days.

The project is agreed, but it is struggling to move forward.

The budget is there and the objectives are clear. What is missing is experienced guidance to turn that decision into visible progress.

The international project is not moving.

Updates arrive on time and always say the same thing. To understand what is really happening, you need to get on a plane.

AI is being tested, but not embedded in the business.

A few experiments, plenty of demos, and then everything goes back to the way it was.

The team is not on board.

They have seen other projects launch before. They are waiting to see whether this one will be any different.

Six different symptoms, one shared root. Addressing it calls for a role that holds technology, processes and people together.

Take the Tech-Check

The Tech-Check identifies which of the six is costing you most

From decision to results

Four levers. The order is deliberate.

01

Direction

Where is the business going, and what must technology do to get it there?

The outcome is the IT Masterplan, covering where you are today, where you want to go and the path to get there. Built with the people who will put it into practice, not imposed from above.

€20M

in digital investments managed. The difficult part is staying on course when urgent demands, suppliers and slipping deadlines get in the way, more than choosing the direction in the first place.

The outcome is which processes the Masterplan affects, in what order, and how they must be redesigned to support where the business is heading.

over €250,000

per year. That is the value of reorganising back-office, accounting and sales processes in a 200-person SME.

The outcome is what you truly need to reach your goals, how much budget to allocate, and what you are already paying for without using.

25–35%

of the IT budget. That is the difference between a single-vendor stack and a hybrid or open-source solution. You get the same capability at a lower cost rather than less technology.

The outcome is a team that believes in the work because people understand where the business is going and why, together with a trained internal lead who can carry the work forward after I leave.

up to 50%

higher productivity, but only when tools become part of everyday work and expand the capabilities of every person on the team.

Direction determines whether technology is an investment or an expense. That is why I never start with tools. I do not stop at recommendations, because I am accountable for the outcome.

What changes when I step in

A concrete outcome for each of the four levers in the method.

Direction
12 → 3

From scattered effort to focus

12 concurrent initiatives reduced to 3 priorities that move forward every week.

Service company
Execution
4 months

From stalled project to go-live

An ERP project that had been stalled for 14 months went live in four.

Telecommunications
Technology
5 → 1

From fragmented data to a single source

Data fragmented across 5 systems was unified, allowing AI to start delivering value.

Facility management
People
over 80%

From ignored tool to everyday adoption

Adoption of the new ERP rose above 80% within a few months.

Manufacturing company

Real figures, anonymised contexts

Over twenty years across technology, business and institutions

About me

PhysicsConsultingBusinessExecutive MBABusinessConsulting

I started with physics and code, writing the first software my companies used. I then learned how to turn technology into products, contracts and results, first as an entrepreneur and later through an Executive MBA. This is why, when I assess a project, I consider its architecture, economic value and organisational consequences together.

I have written software, assessed architectures and led complex projects. I can tell whether a solution will genuinely work, what it actually depends on and which costs will emerge after the first year.

I have sold, bought and negotiated technology from both sides of the table. I know where the supplier's margin sits, what is genuinely negotiable and how to turn an agreement into a result that lasts.

Deep technology expertise and over twenty years of experience
Leadership and team development
Business strategy and execution
Experience as an entrepreneur and founder
Projects and negotiations across seven countries

I have gained experience in environments where reliability and accountability are non-negotiable, working on projects for Ferrari, the Office of the Italian Prime Minister, the Italian Navy, Leonardo, Enel, Eni, Telecom Italia, Poste Italiane and the Office of the President of Mexico.

These names are not there for show. They represent environments in which I learned to make decisions with incomplete information, coordinate different skills and interests, and deliver mission-critical projects. I now bring that experience to SMEs, which means fewer mistakes, stronger decisions and greater control over technology.

Marco de Vecchi, fractional IT executive for SMEs

Fractional manager, interim manager or consultant: what is the real difference?

These three roles address different needs. This comparison will help you identify which one fits yours.

Fractional manager

Interim manager

Traditional consultant

What you keep afterwards
Decisions made and an internal manager equipped to carry them forward
What you keep afterwards
An urgent situation brought under control
What you keep afterwards
An assessment and a plan
Who is accountable if it does not work
I am, directly to the board
Who is accountable if it does not work
The interim manager, but only for the duration of the assignment
Who is accountable if it does not work
No one, since execution remains your responsibility
How much time they spend in the business
A few days each month, over an extended period
How much time they spend in the business
Full-time, for as long as the assignment lasts
How much time they spend in the business
Only as long as the assessment requires
When it is genuinely the right choice
When you need ongoing leadership without hiring a full-time executive
When it is genuinely the right choice
When a key role is vacant and must be filled immediately
When it is genuinely the right choice
When you need an independent opinion and already have the capability to execute internally

How we can work together

Four ways to get started. The first is completely free.

Tech-Check

To understand where you are losing the most value before making any decisions.

Free
12 questions, 3 minutes
  • A quantified assessment of the six areas where value is being lost
  • An immediate report, with no call required
  • No commitment and no sales follow-up
Take the Tech-Check

Masterplan

For businesses that need to decide where to invest over the next two years.

from €5,000
Defined engagement, fixed price
  • Where you are today, where you want to go and the path to get there
  • Priorities in the right order, including the cost of inaction
  • A line-by-line budget allocation
Book a call
Most common engagement

Leadership and execution

For businesses that already have a plan and need someone to deliver it.

from €3,000
Per month, renewable engagement
  • I join as an executive, not as an external consultant
  • I report progress directly to the board
  • I coach the internal manager who stays on after I leave
Book a call

International assignment

For businesses with an international project they cannot manage effectively from a distance, or one they need to launch on the ground.

Wherever needed
Duration, on-site presence and price are agreed case by case
  • I go where the project is and stay for as long as necessary
  • I oversee the technical, commercial and partnership side of the work
  • Your project moves forward every week, as if you were there yourself
Book a call

Fixed price, agreed after the Tech-Check and introductory call. The scope is tailored to your business. The price follows the agreed scope and does not change during the engagement.

Questions people often ask me before deciding

Clear terms from the outset, so you always know what to expect.

What commitment am I making, and how can I end it?

The Masterplan has a defined end point, so once I deliver it you are free to proceed as you choose. Monthly assignments renew one month at a time and can be ended with thirty days' notice. There is no minimum term and no penalty.

No, and I do not create overlapping responsibilities. I work across functions, so that the people who decide have better information to decide on and the team has clear priorities and accountability. Your people remain in place, and when I leave, they are stronger than before.

I work with SMEs as well as organisations employing up to two thousand people. Size matters less than it may seem, because what counts is having a genuine project to move forward and someone within the business who will take ownership alongside me. If either is missing, I will tell you during the initial call, not three months later.

You can, and sometimes that is the right choice. However, a local manager will work to the standards that are usual in that market, and those may not be the ones you have in mind. As a European manager I understand the processes and the level the outcome has to reach, and I make sure it is met on your behalf by being there in person.

No. I have an experienced team that can support me whenever the project calls for it.

I work with a limited number of clients at any one time, so I can give each one the time, attention and presence needed to support them properly.

Ready to move forward?

Let's start with a conversation and see where it leads.

Book a callmarco.devecchi@pm.me