Fractional CTO Services
Fractional CTO services from someone who still writes the code
A full-time CTO costs $300,000 to $500,000 a year once you count salary, equity, and benefits. Most companies under $20M in revenue need maybe ten hours a week of that role: the decisions, the architecture, the vendor calls, the "is this quote insane?" gut check. A fractional CTO gives you exactly that slice, for a fraction of the cost.
Where I differ from most fractional CTOs is simple. Plenty of fractional executives hand you a strategy deck and a Notion roadmap, then leave the building before anything gets built. I call them PowerPoint CTOs. When I recommend a system, I can also build it, because I've been shipping production software for clients for two decades. Websites, automations, integrations, AI workflows, all of it.
So you get one senior technical brain across your whole stack. Strategy on Monday, working code by Friday.
What a fractional CTO engagement includes
Technology strategy & roadmap
A plain-English plan tying every technology dollar to revenue. What to build, what to buy, what to kill.
Architecture & vendor decisions
Stack choices, build-vs-buy calls, and contract reviews, so you stop overpaying agencies and SaaS vendors.
Hands-on build capability
When the plan calls for a rebuilt website, an automation, or an AI workflow, I build it myself. Same brain, one invoice.
Team & agency oversight
Code review, hiring help, and honest QA of the work your developers and agencies deliver.
AI adoption that actually ships
Practical AI automation applied to your sales, marketing, and operations, with working software as the deliverable.
Proof, not promises
My client sites have produced a $23M attributed sales pipeline for one manufacturer and closed a $10M contract with a Fortune 100 electronics OEM for another. A media platform I rebuilt serves 398,000+ users with 18,000 concurrent at peak.
Frequently asked questions
What does a fractional CTO cost? +
Typical fractional CTO engagements in the US run $3,000 to $15,000 per month depending on hours and scope, versus $300,000 to $500,000 in total annual compensation for a full-time CTO. My flagship engagement, The Seat, is a flat monthly retainer on a 12-month term covering the full stack, strategy plus hands-on builds. Every engagement starts with the fixed-fee Technology Reality Audit, which gets credited in full against your first month.
How many hours per week do I get? +
Advisory engagements typically run 5 to 10 hours per week, and embedded engagements run deeper. We scope it to the outcomes you need rather than a timesheet, and because I build as well as advise, the same hours go further.
How is a fractional CTO different from a consultant? +
A consultant delivers a report and leaves. A fractional CTO owns outcomes on an ongoing basis: the roadmap, the vendors, the builds, the results. You're buying accountability that lasts longer than a deliverable.
Do you work with non-technical founders? +
That's most of my clients. My job is to be the technical brain you can trust, translating everything into revenue terms and protecting you from expensive mistakes.
Related services
Hire the judgment and the hands in one place.
Start with the Technology Reality Audit: two weeks, one fixed fee, fully credited if you take a seat. You keep the 12-month roadmap either way.