Service 05
Senior technology judgment, a few hours a month.
This is for owners who do not need a full-time executive but do need someone experienced to call when a vendor pitch smells wrong, a migration is getting risky, or a decision has bigger consequences than it first appears.
What this is
Fractional CTO is a standing retainer for technology judgment. Not generic advice. Not ticket support. Not another software salesperson with a framework. It is senior review, prioritization, and calm when the business needs someone who can see around corners.
Most clients use it when they are between stages: too complex to wing it, too small to hire a full-time technology leader, and too busy to keep evaluating every decision from scratch.
What the retainer covers
- N.01Vendor review before you sign something annoying and expensive
- N.02Second-opinion calls on tools, migrations, security, and AI pitches
- N.03Prioritization when too many technology problems show up at once
- N.04Quarterly stack review so the business does not drift into mess again
- N.05Small strategic fixes and delegated follow-up where needed
- N.06Senior judgment without hiring a full-time technology executive
What an engagement looks like
How a typical engagement runs. The first two weeks are diagnosis. The next two are planning. Everything after that is either fixed work or a rolling retainer — depending on what the audit finds and what makes sense for the business.
Start with the ops scorecard if you need the first diagnosis.
The retainer makes sense once the shape of the problem is clear. If it is not clear yet, the audit is the right first step and often the thing that decides whether a retainer is even necessary.
Take the ops scorecard