Fractional CTO Services

Growing companies, non-profits, and schools all need real technology leadership at some point. A full-time CTO often doesn't make sense for the stage or budget. As your fractional CTO, I provide the guidance, team development, and technical oversight that lets your organization make confident decisions without hiring a full executive.

With experience leading technology at organizations ranging from 3 to 300,000 employees, in roles from sysadmin to VP of Infrastructure, I can speak fluently to your board, your funders, your engineering team, and the curriculum committee, often in the same week.

My approach focuses on building internal capability rather than creating dependency. I work closely with your existing team to establish practices that stick, mentor emerging leaders, and write down enough of what we decide that the next person to walk into the role isn't starting from scratch. When our engagement ends, you'll have stronger processes and a more capable team.

What an Engagement Actually Looks Like

The biggest unknown for most clients is the shape of the engagement, so here's the honest version:

Most fractional CTO engagements run 4 to 12 hours per week, with the shape determined by what's actually happening at your organization rather than a fixed time block. A typical week might include a check-in with the founder or executive director, a longer technical session with the engineering team, asynchronous review of architecture decisions or vendor proposals as they come up, and standing time set aside for whatever's on fire that week.

For board-stage engagements, I'll prep board-deck technical sections and attend board meetings as needed. For non-profit engagements, I'll work through the unique constraints of grant-funded technology projects. For schools, I'll bridge the gap between what your IT vendor says and what the curriculum or operations teams actually need.

When You Need One (and When You Don't)

A fractional CTO is the right answer when your CEO or executive director is making technology decisions on instinct, when your engineering team is good but lacks senior strategic guidance, or when you need a real technology voice in board conversations and don't have one.

A fractional CTO is the wrong answer when you have a senior engineering leader who just needs more support, when you're a stable engineering organization that mostly needs hands-on execution, or when what you actually need is project management or hands-on DevOps work. I'll tell you in our first conversation if I think you're in one of those categories. I'll make sure that if we work together, we're working on the right stuff.

One of the most important jobs that a lot of fractional CTOs avoid is helping you hire a permanent one. I see this as the strongest endorsement I could receive, and I'll do it with joy in my heart. It means that not only have I earned your trust, but I've helped you grow to the point that you need more attention than I give you.