Question 1

What does "fractional engineering leadership" mean?

Accepted Answer

It means you get experienced technical leadership without a full-time hire. I embed with your team — joining standups, reviewing architecture, making hiring decisions, managing engineers — at whatever commitment level makes sense for your stage. You get the same strategic guidance without the $300K+ total comp of a full-time executive.

Question 2

How is this different from hiring a dev shop or agency?

Accepted Answer

Agencies build what you spec and hand it off. I become part of your team — I own the technical decisions, manage your engineers, and stay accountable for outcomes. I'm not billing hours to build features; I'm providing leadership that makes your entire engineering org more effective.

Question 3

Do you actually write code, or just advise?

Accepted Answer

Both, depending on the stage. For pre-seed companies without engineers, I'm hands-on building the MVP. For growth-stage companies with existing teams, I'm primarily leading — architecture decisions, code reviews, hiring, process — and writing code only when it makes sense strategically.

Question 4

What's the typical time commitment?

Accepted Answer

It depends on the engagement. Some clients need a few hours a week of architectural guidance; others need near full-time involvement during an MVP sprint. We scope it together during the consultation, and it adjusts as your needs change.

Question 5

How does pricing work?

Accepted Answer

It depends on the engagement. Monthly retainers for ongoing leadership, project-based pricing for defined deliverables, or hourly for advisory work. No surprise invoices — we agree on the structure upfront. Fill out the form and we'll discuss what makes sense during the consultation.

Question 6

What does the process look like?

Accepted Answer

Quick form, 30-minute consultation call, custom proposal. No lengthy procurement cycles or SOW negotiations. Once we agree on scope, onboarding is lightweight — I can usually start within the first week.

Question 7

What if we eventually need a full-time CTO?

Accepted Answer

That's a natural evolution and a sign of success. I can help you define the role, source candidates, and ensure a smooth transition. The goal is to get you to the point where a full-time hire makes sense — not to make myself permanently indispensable.

Question 8

How do you work with our existing engineers?

Accepted Answer

I slot into whatever structure you have. If you have senior engineers making good technical decisions, I focus on management and strategy. If you need more architectural guidance, I provide it. I'm not going to come in and rewrite everything — I work with what you have and improve it incrementally.

Question 9

What about confidentiality and IP?

Accepted Answer

Standard NDA and IP assignment agreements. Your code, your data, your IP — full stop. I treat every client engagement as confidential unless explicitly told otherwise.

Question 10

What's your availability like?

Accepted Answer

I take on a limited number of clients at a time to ensure each gets genuine attention. If I'm at capacity, I'll tell you upfront rather than overcommit. Fill out the form to check current availability.

Question 11

What if the offshore team doesn’t work out?

Accepted Answer

I personally screen every hire to minimize this risk. Recruiting firms provide 90-day replacement guarantees. If someone isn’t performing despite proper screening, I help manage the transition and find a replacement. This is built into the process, not an exception.

Question 12

What do you mean by ‘recruiters’ in this context?

Accepted Answer

I partner with specialized recruiting firms in each region (India, Mexico, Colombia, etc.) who have local networks and source candidate pipelines. They handle initial outreach and first-round screening, then send qualified candidates to me for technical interviews, culture-fit assessment, and final decisions. The recruiting firms typically charge a one-time fee (around 20% of first-year salary) with a 90-day replacement guarantee if a hire doesn’t work out.

Question 13

Can you help us prepare for fundraising?

Accepted Answer

I can prepare for technical due diligence, create technical roadmaps investors want to see, and represent the technical side in investor meetings. I don’t do fundraising itself, but I make sure the technical story is solid and defensible under scrutiny.

	Fractional	Full-Time Hire
Annual cost	$60-120K retainer	$300-450K total comp
Commitment	Monthly, flexible	Full-time + equity vesting
Ramp-up time	Days	3-6 month search + onboarding
Experience breadth	Multiple companies/contexts	Deep in one company
Risk if not a fit	End the retainer	Severance, re-search
Best for	Pre-seed through Series A	Post-Series B with 20+ engineers

	Fractional	Dev Shop
Accountability	Owns outcomes long-term	Delivers to spec, hands off
Team building	Hires and manages your team	Uses their own developers
Knowledge retention	Stays with your org	Walks out the door
Technical debt	Incentivized to prevent it	Not their problem after delivery
Pricing model	Flexible — retainer, project, or hourly	Hourly or per-project (scope creep)
Best for	Building a lasting company	One-off projects with clear specs

Frequently Asked Questions

How It Compares

Fractional vs. Full-Time Hire

Fractional vs. Dev Shop / Agency