.jpeg)
Best Fractional COO Services in Washington DC
Top Washington DC Outsourced COO Services & Fractional Chief Operating Officers (COOs) in The DMV
The Washington DC metro area—encompassing the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia (DMV)—has long been a hub for mission-driven organizations, high-impact startups, nonprofits, and complex institutions. What many of these organizations have in common is a need for sophisticated operations leadership—without the overhead of a full-time executive. That’s where fractional COOs come in.
These highly skilled operators step in on a part-time or interim basis to bring clarity, structure, and momentum to growing organizations. From setting up scalable systems and aligning cross-functional teams to supporting founders through high-growth transitions, fractional Chief Operating Officers (COOs) are quietly driving results behind the scenes.
At Digital Reference, we’re here to pull back the curtain on talent. We believe that great work deserves to be seen, verified, and remembered—especially for fractional leaders who build impact across industries, but often remain behind the spotlight. This guide is part of our ongoing mission to create a more transparent, human-centric, and efficient talent ecosystem.
Below is our curated list of DC-area fractional COOs who are making things happen in government-adjacent sectors, tech, nonprofit work, consulting, and more.
Our Methodology - How We Selected the Best Interim, Outsourced, and Fractional COO Services in Washington DC
To curate this list, we considered:
- Location: Each executive is based in or actively serving organizations within the DC, Maryland, and Virginia (DMV) region
- Role: Each professional offers fractional, part-time, or interim COO services
- Visibility: Evaluated based on public profiles, portfolios, or firm affiliations
- Alignment: Chosen for their alignment with Digital Reference’s values—transparency, reputation-based credibility, and practical impact
All of these leaders operate independently or through boutique consultancies. They are hired for their ability to bring structure to complexity and growth to mission.
Meet The Best DC Fractional COO & Outsourced COO Services in The DMV
Lindsey Englerth
Lindsey Englerth is a fractional COO who helps founders and mission-driven organizations translate vision into operations, providing clarity, alignment, and sustainable growth. She works with teams in the $2M–$10M range and 5–25 employees, bringing systems thinking and people-first leadership to dynamic organizations.
Highlights:
🏢 Strategy execution, people operations, and program scaling
📑 Systems thinking and operational prioritization for founders
💬 Experience across education, health, and community development
Lindsey enables founders to focus externally while she acts as their “second brain,” operationalizing the moving pieces behind the scenes to ensure alignment, sustainability, and team resilience.
Ije Jemie Nwabueze
Founder, Dreamcatchers Performance LLC
Ije Jemie Nwabueze provides fractional COO and executive team acceleration services for organizations scaling with purpose. She specializes in leadership development, process improvement, and operational alignment across fintech, healthtech, edtech, cybersecurity, digital media, foundations, and nonprofits.
Highlights:
🏢 Team development, operational excellence, and strategic alignment
📑 Helps leadership teams make faster, better decisions during crisis or growth
💬 Brings transformational leadership to scale organizational impact
Ije enables purpose-driven teams to build aligned, accountable leadership structures that drive scalable results while preserving culture and mission focus.
Rachel Nazhand
Rachel Nazhand is a cross-sector operations leader and social entrepreneur who helps mission-driven organizations operationalize strategy with equity, empathy, and impact. She brings inclusive leadership and systems-thinking to public health, policy, and nonprofit organizations.
Highlights:
🏢 Organizational design, operational strategy, and inclusive leadership
📑 Trusted advisor to social impact organizations and civic tech startups
💬 Combines systems thinking with empathy and justice
Rachel enables teams to grow with purpose, creating operational clarity while honoring organizational values and empowering people.
Brian Becker
Founder, Becker Growth Strategy
Brian Becker provides fractional COO services for startups and growth-stage companies, helping founder-led organizations transition from scrappy execution to structured, scalable operations. He works with tech firms, service businesses, and impact ventures in the DMV area.
Highlights:
🏢 Growth strategy, go-to-market planning, and operational execution
📑 Diagnoses operational roadblocks and creates actionable plans
💬 Combines MBA rigor with startup agility
Brian enables founders to move from owner-reliant to system-reliant operations, driving efficient, measurable growth.
Jeff Samford
Fractional COO & Business Advisor, Ascend Business Coaching
Jeff Samford provides fractional COO services and business advisory to growth-stage and family-run businesses across Northern Virginia and the DMV region. He blends process improvement, KPI tracking, and leadership coaching to help organizations scale sustainably.
Highlights:
🏢 Fractional COO and business coaching hybrid engagements
📑 Focused on process improvement, operational accountability, and KPIs
💬 Helps companies transition from founder-driven to system-driven operations
Jeff enables leaders to implement operational rigor while maintaining flexibility, creating sustainable growth and stronger organizational structures.
Why DC & the DMV Region Need Fractional COOs
The DMV region is unique—home to a confluence of policy, tech, mission-driven entrepreneurship, and federal contracting. This ecosystem thrives on complexity—and that’s where fractional COOs shine.
Why fractional is a fit for DC:
- Many orgs are grant-funded, donor-funded, or contract-dependent, requiring flexible leadership
- Startups and nonprofits often need senior leadership without a full-time commitment
- Founders want to focus on vision, advocacy, and fundraising
- Growing orgs must navigate regulations, remote teams, and high accountability environments
Fractional COOs provide structure, direction, and results—without the rigidity of traditional models.
What Makes a Great Fractional COO?
Across every city we’ve studied, the best fractional COOs share these traits:
- Adaptability: They move between strategy and operations with ease
- Empathy: They build trust quickly, especially with cross-functional teams
- Clarity: They simplify the complex and design systems people actually use
- Execution: They don’t just advise—they build, implement, and improve
Great fractional COOs leave behind repeatable systems, elevated leaders, and measurable outcomes.
The Digital Reference Lens
At Digital Reference, we know that fractional professionals need more than a good LinkedIn bio. They need:
- Proof of work—structured, verifiable references from real clients
- A place to collect video testimonials and outcome-based stories
- Tools to showcase portable, authentic professional credibility
We believe the future of work is modular, mission-aligned, and built on reputation—not resumes. That’s why we build tools to support professionals like the ones featured here.
Want More Ops or Fractional Content?
If this list got your gears turning, we recommend exploring these pieces next:
- Operations Consultants & What They Actually Do?
- Fractional COOs by Region and Country
- Fractional COO or Outsourced COO - Choosing the Right Fit for Your Business
Final Thoughts
The DC area continues to grow in its complexity, connectivity, and pace. That’s why interim and fractional leaders are more vital than ever—especially operators who can support mission-driven teams, government-adjacent businesses, and fast-scaling startups.
These fractional COOs in the DMV region bring the best of what modern leadership looks like:
- Impact without ego
- Execution with empathy
- Structure without bureaucracy
Whether you're hiring your first ops lead or looking to professionalize a fast-growing team, this list is your launchpad.
Check Out Our Local Directories of Fractional COO, Outsourced COO Services & Interim COOs by City
Ann Arbor, MI - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
Ann Arbor startups and research-driven firms are turning to fractional ops leaders for precision execution and growth strategy.
Atlanta, GA - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
In a city that blends enterprise and startup energy, Atlanta companies lean on COOs who can unify vision and operations.
Boston, MA - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
From biotech to B2B SaaS, Boston’s ops leaders bring structure and speed to innovation-heavy teams.
Chicago, IL - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
COOs in the Windy City are helping companies align their back-end systems with bold front-end goals.
Denver, CO - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
Denver’s scale-ups are calling in fractional execs to professionalize their operations without slowing their culture.
Detroit, MI - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
With roots in manufacturing and momentum in mobility, Detroit companies rely on fractional COOs for systems that scale.
Houston, Texas - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
Houston’s operational ecosystem is evolving fast. More startups are scaling. More nonprofits are serving complex needs.
London, United Kingdom - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
Fractional COO Services are sky-rocketing in popularity in London as labor costs go up and time to market is accelerating.
Los Angeles, CA - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
In LA, creative industries meet tech—and fractional COOs bring the operational clarity these hybrid teams need.
Philadelphia, PA - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
Fractional COO Services in Philly are ensuring East Coast startups and high growth companies have the right structure to survive.
Phoenix, AZ - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
Phoenix-based COOs help founders transition from hustle to structured scale with systems that grow.
San Francisco, CA - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
Bay Area COOs are stepping in to help tech companies streamline, automate, and stabilize post-funding growth.
Seattle, WA - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
In Seattle’s product-driven landscape, ops leaders drive alignment between engineering, GTM, and finance.
Sydney, Australia - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
Home to Canva, growing base of purpose-led enterprises, and increasing demand for agile executive leadership, Sydney has become a hotbed for operational talent that doesn’t require a full-time seat.
Toronto, Canada - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
Toronto doesn’t just build startups—it builds systems. It’s a city where public meets private, where the startup ecosystem is growing alongside government programs, universities, and a rising impact economy. But for all its innovation, hiring executive talent in Toronto has always come with nuance.
Washington, DC (DMV Area) - Part-Time COOs & Fractional COO Services
DC-area operators bring rigor and regulatory awareness—perfect for mission-driven orgs and gov-adjacent teams.
Explore their services. Reach out. And when you're ready to build with credibility, transparency, and trust—start with Digital Reference.
– The Digital Reference Team
Subscribe to our newsletter
We'd love to have you follow our journey, learn about to new features and functionality, and get access to talent ecosystem news.
