How is this different from a normal fractional CTO?

A normal fractional CTO advises and does not implement. That is the correct model if you have engineers. If you do not, you end up paying for a strategy you cannot execute. Here the same person does both, so nothing is lost in the handover and there is no second vendor to hire.

Can you work alongside a developer we already have?

Yes, though the fit changes. If you have one developer holding up a system nobody else understands and you need direction more than hands, that works well.

Do you sit in our meetings?

Where it is useful, yes. I am not going to fill a calendar with standups. The seat is for building, and most status can be a written update.

A fractional CTO for a company with no engineering team

A conventional fractional CTO chooses the route, picks vendors, and sets direction. That works when you have a development team to hand the decisions to. If you do not, it produces a well-reasoned plan and no way to execute it. This is the same role with the execution attached: you tell me the destination, I choose the route and build the vehicle.

What technical direction actually covers

Deciding what to build and what not to. Deciding what to buy instead of building. Reading vendor proposals and telling you which parts are real. Noticing the subscription nobody has questioned in two years.

It also covers saying no. A meaningful part of the value is telling you that the thing you asked for is not the thing you need, which is difficult for anyone paid per project to say.

Why this is not a hire

Hiring a senior developer means becoming a company that recruits, manages and retains developers, which is a different business from the one you are running. At the volume of work most operators actually have, it is also more capacity than you need.

A seat is month to month. Pause it when the list is empty and resume it when it fills up again.

What this looks like as a build

Deciding the order of work, and defending that order when it is unpopular
Architecture decisions you can live with after the engagement ends
Vendor and tooling assessment, including what to stop paying for
The build itself, because the decision and the implementation are the same job here

This is not a separate service with its own price

There is one thing to buy here: a build seat, from $7,500 per month. This page describes one of the things people point a seat at. You set the order, and the seat works one item at a time until each is done.

How the work moves What it costs Case notes

Questions about this kind of work

How is this different from a normal fractional CTO?: A normal fractional CTO advises and does not implement. That is the correct model if you have engineers. If you do not, you end up paying for a strategy you cannot execute. Here the same person does both, so nothing is lost in the handover and there is no second vendor to hire.
Can you work alongside a developer we already have?: Yes, though the fit changes. If you have one developer holding up a system nobody else understands and you need direction more than hands, that works well.
Do you sit in our meetings?: Where it is useful, yes. I am not going to fill a calendar with standups. The seat is for building, and most status can be a written update.

Start with a call, not a contract

Thirty minutes. You describe what broke, what it is costing you, and what you have already tried. I tell you whether a seat is the right answer, and I will tell you when it is not.

Book a 30 minute call See what it costs

Or reach me directly: +1 385-208-1781 scott@aetenum.com

If you are comparing quotes on price, I am not your cheapest option and I will not pretend otherwise.