COO vs. Chief of Staff: What’s the Difference, and Which Do You Need?
As your business grows, so does the complexity. Suddenly, what used to be a manageable set of moving parts becomes a tangle of priorities, decisions, people, and projects—all needing leadership, structure, and forward momentum.
It’s at this inflection point that many leaders start asking:
Do I need a COO? Or a Chief of Staff? Or… both?
The two roles can overlap—but they’re not the same. Each plays a different function in helping you lead more effectively and scale more sustainably.
Let’s break it down.
The Chief of Staff: Your Strategic Amplifier
A Chief of Staff (CoS) is often thought of as the “force multiplier” for the CEO or founder. It’s a highly adaptive, cross-functional role focused on helping the leader work more efficiently, stay focused on the highest-value work, and keep the entire operation moving in sync.
A strong Chief of Staff:
Anticipates issues and surfaces decisions before they become roadblocks
Keeps key projects on track without becoming the center of attention
Supports internal communications, meeting prep, and strategic prioritization
Filters and organizes incoming demands to protect leadership focus
Builds connective tissue between leadership and teams
This role is ideal when the founder or CEO is still highly involved in all areas of the business but needs help creating space, structure, and clarity.
The COO: Your Operational Leader
A Chief Operating Officer (COO) is more execution-driven and focused on owning business functions and scaling operations. The COO builds infrastructure, leads teams, and ensures delivery across departments.
A strong COO:
Oversees daily operations and department-level execution
Owns KPIs, operational metrics, and performance reporting
Designs and enforces systems, processes, and policies
Manages leaders of functional areas (e.g., product, marketing, HR)
Drives cross-functional alignment toward company goals
This role is best when the company has multiple functions or departments that need a unified operational engine and a leader focused on delivery at scale.
So, Which Do You Need?
It depends on the stage of your business, how involved you are in the day-to-day, and where you’re feeling the most friction.
Needs and the role you might need…
A partner to help manage your time, priorities, and projects: Chief of Staff
Someone to own and optimize company-wide operations: COO
A leader to connect strategy with execution, without managing teams: Chief of Staff
A leader to manage and scale functions like sales, finance, or ops: COO
Strategic thought partnership and behind-the-scenes support: Chief of Staff
Operational oversight and accountability for key results: COO
Sometimes, It’s a Bit of Both
In many growth-stage businesses, especially founder-led ones, the ideal solution is someone who can start with a Chief of Staff lens and grow into COO-level leadership as the business evolves.
At In Good Company Consulting, that’s often the model we provide:
Fractional support that blends strategic thinking, operational clarity, and executional leadership—right-sized to where your business is today, and flexible enough to evolve as your needs grow.
Not Sure Which Role You Need?
Let’s talk it through. In a complimentary consultation, we’ll explore what kind of support will create the most leverage for you and your business right now—whether that’s a fractional COO, a Chief of Staff, or a hybrid in between.
