Every agency report is green, but revenue is flat. Here's why agencies can't measure the whole picture, what walled gardens and last-click attribution hide, and when a fractional CMO pays for itself.

After two decades as a marketing professor, I retired from academia in 2020 and stepped into fractional CMO work for premium DTC, healthcare, telehealth, and B2B services brands. It's the best job I've ever had. Which is exactly why I feel comfortable telling you the truth about the friction, the budget conversations, and the coaching nobody puts in the engagement letter.