CTO Services & Technical Consulting
Strategic technical guidance to help you make the right decisions. Whether you need interim leadership or investor due diligence — we bring deep expertise and objective analysis.
Consulting Success Stories
Real results from companies we've advised on technical strategy and leadership
Series B Due Diligence
Conducted comprehensive technical due diligence for Series B investment. Evaluated codebase quality, architecture scalability, team capabilities, and security practices.
Fractional CTO for SaaS Startup
Provided fractional CTO services for growing SaaS company. Set technical direction, managed development, built engineering team, and architected scalable platform.
Post-Acquisition Integration
Led technical due diligence and post-acquisition integration. Evaluated target technology stack, planned migration strategy, and executed seamless integration.
Our Consulting Approach
A systematic methodology to deliver actionable insights and measurable results
Discovery & Assessment
Deep understanding of your technical challenges, business goals, and current state. We identify gaps, risks, and opportunities for improvement.
Analysis & Strategy
Comprehensive analysis of code, architecture, processes, and team. We develop data-driven recommendations and strategic roadmaps aligned with business objectives.
Recommendations & Planning
Present findings with prioritized recommendations, effort estimates, and ROI analysis. We help you make informed decisions with clear action plans.
Execution & Support
Support implementation of recommendations, whether through hands-on leadership, ongoing advisory, or team training. We ensure successful execution.
Technical Capabilities
- Fractional CTO services for startups and growing companies
- Technical due diligence for investors and M&A transactions
- Architecture reviews and technical debt assessment
- Technology stack evaluation and selection
- AI/ML strategy and implementation planning
- Team assessment, hiring support, and technical recruiting
- Technical roadmap and milestone planning
Use Cases
- Pre-investment technical due diligence
- Post-acquisition technical integration planning
- Architecture review for existing systems
- Technology strategy for new product lines
- Interim CTO leadership during transitions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does fractional CTO services cost?
Fractional CTO services typically cost $150 - $500 per hour, with monthly retainers ranging from $3,000 - $10,000/month. Annual costs run $36,000 - $120,000, compared to $300,000+ for a full-time CTO (40-60% of startup runway). Pricing models include: hourly ($200-300/hr typical), monthly retainer with set hours, project-based fixed fees, or equity arrangements (common for startups). You get experienced leadership at 10-25% of full-time cost, making it ideal for companies needing expertise but not ready for full-time executive hire.
When should a startup hire a fractional CTO vs full-time CTO?
Hire a fractional CTO when: you have $500K+ ARR but can't afford full-time executive, you have 5+ developers needing leadership, your founding team lacks technical expertise, you're between Seed and Series A funding, you need help defining technical roadmap, or you're in transition/growth phase. Hire full-time CTO when: you have 50+ employees, consistent product-market fit with scaling needs, $5M+ ARR, require daily on-site leadership, or have complex ongoing technical challenges. Many companies use fractional for 6-12 months while recruiting full-time CTO.
What does technical due diligence for investors involve?
Technical due diligence is comprehensive assessment for investors and M&A. We evaluate: code quality and architecture (scalability, maintainability, technical debt), team capabilities (skills, experience, retention), security and compliance practices, infrastructure and DevOps maturity, product development processes, technology risks and blockers, IP and open source compliance, and scalability projections. Deliverables include risk assessment with severity ratings, technical debt quantification ($ estimate), team evaluation, recommendations with ROI analysis, and go/no-go investment insights. Typical timeline: 2-4 weeks.
What's included in architecture review services?
Architecture reviews evaluate your system against business requirements and best practices. We assess: scalability and performance bottlenecks, security vulnerabilities and compliance gaps, technology stack appropriateness, integration patterns and dependencies, data architecture and flow, deployment and infrastructure, code organization and modularity, testing and monitoring practices. Output includes: prioritized recommendations with effort estimates, technical debt roadmap with cost/benefit analysis, refactoring strategies, migration plans if needed, and best practices implementation guide. Reviews take 1-3 weeks depending on complexity.
How do you help with technology stack selection?
We evaluate technology choices objectively based on your specific needs, not trends. Analysis includes: business requirements (time-to-market, scalability needs), team expertise and hiring market, ecosystem maturity and community support, long-term viability and vendor risk, total cost of ownership (development, hosting, maintenance), performance benchmarks, integration capabilities, and compliance/security needs. We provide: comparative analysis of 2-3 options, recommendation with rationale, risk assessment for each choice, implementation timeline estimates, and team training considerations.
Can fractional CTO help with technical hiring and team building?
Yes. Technical hiring is a core service. We help with: defining technical roles and seniority levels, creating accurate job descriptions, designing technical interview processes, developing coding challenges and assessments, participating in interviews (technical deep-dive), evaluating candidates' actual capabilities (not just buzzwords), assessing cultural fit for technical teams, making competitive offers, onboarding new technical hires, and organizing teams for maximum effectiveness. We've helped scale teams from 5 to 25+ developers, ensuring quality hires that fit your culture and technical needs.
What's the difference between fractional CTO and technical advisor?
Fractional CTO is hands-on leadership: sets technical direction, manages development teams, makes architecture decisions, leads technical planning, attends meetings regularly, and has decision-making authority. Technical advisor is consultative: provides guidance and recommendations, reviews decisions but doesn't make them, available for specific questions, less time commitment, no direct reports, and advisory role only. Fractional CTO is operational - involved in day-to-day execution. Technical advisor is strategic - provides expertise on-demand. Choose fractional CTO if you need someone running technical operations. Choose advisor if you have a team but need periodic expert guidance.
How does AI/ML strategy consulting work?
AI/ML strategy starts with assessing whether AI is actually the right solution (it's not always). Process includes: problem assessment (can AI solve this cost-effectively?), data evaluation (do you have quality data?), approach selection (ML, rules, AI agents, RAG, fine-tuning), cost-benefit analysis (development vs ongoing costs), implementation planning (data pipelines, deployment, monitoring), team evaluation (can you maintain this?), and risk assessment (bias, compliance, reliability). Deliverables: go/no-go recommendation, technology roadmap with phases, cost estimates (development + infrastructure vs operational), team requirements, proof-of-concept plan if appropriate, and success metrics. We focus on practical AI that delivers business value, not hype.
What is post-acquisition technical integration consulting?
Post-acquisition integration ensures technical success after M&A. Services include: technical due diligence before close (identify integration challenges), integration planning (how systems will merge), architecture decisions (keep, migrate, or replace), team assessment and retention strategy, cultural integration for engineering teams, data migration planning, security and compliance alignment, cost optimization (redundant systems, licensing), and timeline and milestone planning. We've managed integrations saving $500K+ annually through consolidation. Critical for private equity and strategic buyers to realize acquisition value and avoid technical pitfalls that destroy value.
How long does fractional CTO engagement typically last?
Engagement length varies by need: Short-term (3-6 months) for specific projects like architecture review, technology selection, or team recruitment. Medium-term (6-12 months) for interim leadership during transition, setting technical foundations, or helping recruit full-time CTO. Long-term (12+ months) for ongoing strategic guidance without full-time cost. Many companies use fractional CTOs to bridge gaps - whether that's during a search for full-time leadership, during critical growth phases, or for specialized expertise (AI, security) that doesn't warrant a full-time executive. We can scale engagement up or down as your needs change, ensuring you get right-sized leadership at every stage.