Interim CTO coverage while you hire the permanent one
Fractional CTO at $8,500 a month. Board-ready technical strategy, architecture review, hiring for the next 10 engineers, Series B prep.
Who this is for
Series A founder whose CTO left, or whose VP Eng is strong but needs cover at the CTO level.
The pain today
- The board is asking hard technical questions the founder cannot answer.
- The engineering team is shipping but strategy is drifting.
- A permanent CTO search takes 4-6 months and the team cannot wait.
- A VP Eng is strong operationally but not yet ready for the board table.
The outcome you get
- Board-readable technical strategy in the first 60 days.
- An architecture review with prioritized remediation items.
- A hiring plan and an active pipeline for 5-10 engineers.
- A clean handover package for the permanent CTO when they arrive.
Interim CTO vs permanent search
A permanent CTO search at Series A is a 4-6 month exercise. The board wants coverage in the meantime. An interim fractional CTO at $8,500 a month sits in the exec team, owns the technical strategy, and runs the permanent search alongside the founder. The team gets consistent leadership, the board gets a technical voice, and the search gets run by someone who understands what the permanent CTO actually needs to inherit. I have stepped into this role at three different Series A companies and the playbook is the same.
What the board needs in 90 days
In the first 90 days I deliver three things to the board: the architecture health report (what works, what does not, what to fix in order), the hiring plan and pipeline (5-10 engineers across the year), and the Series B technical story (what the team will build and how it supports the gross margin and growth narrative). These three documents become the technical spine of the Series B deck when the time comes. Without them, the founder walks into Series B with a story and no backing.
Reviewing existing architecture without breaking morale
Taking over as interim CTO is delicate. The team built what they built. A review that reads as a critique kills trust in week one. I approach every architecture review as: what did this team build, what were the constraints, what should change and in what order. I write the review as a roadmap the team helps prioritize, not a verdict. In 16 years this has worked every time. Teams want clarity on priorities, not judgment on past decisions.
Handover plan to the permanent CTO
The handover is planned from day one. I write an onboarding packet for the incoming CTO: team overview, architecture map, hiring pipeline status, board relationship notes, open strategic questions. The incoming CTO spends two weeks pairing with me before I exit. This is the most common failure mode of interim engagements: the permanent leader arrives to chaos. Mine arrive to a documented system.
Recent proof
A comparable engagement, delivered and documented.
Unified payment orchestration across Asia and Europe
Delivered the payment orchestration platform at bolttech, a $1B+ unicorn, with 40+ integrations across multiple regions.
Frequently asked questions
The questions prospects ask before they book.
- How fast can you start as interim CTO?
- One to two weeks from signed agreement. Urgent cases (CTO exited last Friday) can start the following Monday.
- Will you take board calls?
- Yes. I join the board meeting in an interim CTO capacity for the duration of the engagement. Non-voting observer, not a board seat.
- Can you manage a 20-person engineering team?
- Yes. I manage via the existing VP Eng or engineering managers. I do not insert myself between the VP and their team. I manage strategy and the managers manage execution.
- What if the permanent CTO search takes longer than expected?
- We extend. Month-to-month, cancel anytime. Most interim engagements run 4-8 months.
- Can you become the permanent CTO?
- No. I am a solo consultant practice. The fractional CTO role is a bridge, not a permanent chair.
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