Questions we get asked.

What does The Fractional Syndicate do?

The Fractional Syndicate helps manufacturers and distributors fix operational problems across sales, operations, accounting and IT. We draw out the real problem and design the solution. Our sister company, Syndicate Systems, builds it, either on our platform or inside the client’s own systems. Services include quote-to-cash process fixes, ERP data and reporting, margin and pricing analysis, AI data readiness, MSP transitions, and fractional CIO leadership.

Each one has its own page: quote to cash, ERP data and reporting, margin and pricing analysis, AI data readiness, MSP transitions, and fractional CIO leadership.

Who is Cody Durden?

Cody Durden is the founder of The Fractional Syndicate, based in the Houston area. He works with manufacturers and distributors to find what’s slowing their business down, from quote to cash, and design the fix. He understands sales, operations, accounting and IT, and specializes in ERP data, margin and pricing analysis, and getting businesses ready for AI.

More on the About page.

What is a fractional CIO, and when does a manufacturer need one?

A fractional CIO is a senior technology leader who owns your roadmap, your vendors and your data, and is accountable for fixing what isn’t working, without being a full-time hire. A manufacturer needs one when technology decisions keep landing on someone who already has another full-time job, or when real money is about to be spent and nobody is accountable for it.

That ongoing arrangement is described on the fractional leadership page.

Do I need clean data before using AI in my business?

Yes. AI is only as good as what you feed it. If your ERP, your spreadsheets and your other systems don’t agree, AI just gives you wrong answers faster. Getting your data clean, connected and trustworthy is the work that makes AI useful, and it pays for itself even if you never turn AI on.

More on AI data readiness.

Why don’t my ERP, sales and accounting numbers match?

Usually because each department keeps its own version. Sales quotes from one place, the floor tracks another, and accounting reconciles after the fact. The numbers were entered at different times, under different rules, with manual steps in between. The fix is agreeing on one source for each number and removing the re-keying.

More on ERP data and reporting.

How do I find out which orders actually make money?

Tie real cost back to each order: material, labor, freight, and the time nobody logs. Most ERPs already hold the data but will not report it that way without work. We rebuild margin and pricing analysis so leadership can see what an order earns while there is still time to act on it.

More on margin and pricing analysis.

What’s the difference between The Fractional Syndicate and Syndicate Systems?

The Fractional Syndicate finds the problem and designs the fix. Syndicate Systems builds it and keeps it running, either on their platform or inside your own environment. The same people are in the room for both, so nothing gets re-explained. You can also take the design to your own team or vendor.

Can you work with our existing IT team or MSP?

Yes. Most clients keep their provider. We back up your IT team instead of replacing it: projects come off their plate, and they see the design before the build and get the documentation after. With an MSP, we make the boundary explicit and hold the contract to it, or run a clean exit.

More on MSP transitions.

Do you work with Macola or Prophet 21?

Yes, both, hands on, for years. That includes reporting, margin and pricing analysis, data cleanup, upgrades and full migrations. We get answers out of ERPs that were not built to give them up easily, and we plan cutovers so the business keeps running while the move happens.

More on ERP data and reporting.