Fractional CTO
Architecture and platform decisions, vendor management, hiring and oversight, roadmap and budget — and hands-on when needed.
- 1–3 days/mo
- Retainer
Fractional CTO · Technical due diligence · Vendor evaluation · Roadmap
Senior technical judgment without the full-time CTO salary.
For founders, owners, and acquirers who need someone who can read the code, question the vendor, and set the roadmap — a few days a month. Reed Dynamic's founder has built and run production eCommerce, mobile, and integration systems since 2010, and still does.
Typical engagements
- Fractional CTO — 1–3 days/month: architecture, vendors, hiring, roadmap
- Technical due diligence — buying or investing in a software-dependent business
- Vendor / RFP evaluation — sanity-check a $200k proposal before signing
- Rescue assessment — a project is late and nobody can tell you why
- Compliance readiness — SOC 2, HIPAA, PCI scoping before the auditor arrives
Reed Dynamic provides fractional CTO and technical due diligence services from Ann Arbor, Michigan: part-time technical leadership (architecture, vendor and agency evaluation, hiring, roadmap, budget) on a monthly retainer of $3,000–$15,000, and fixed-scope technical due diligence for acquisitions and investments ($7,500–$40,000) covering code, architecture, security, infrastructure, and team risk.
Advisory services
Technical due diligence
Code, architecture, security, infrastructure, licensing, and key-person risk in a written report with remediation estimates.
- M&A
- Investors
- Lenders
Vendor & RFP evaluation
Draft the RFP, score proposals, check references, and pressure-test the architecture before you sign.
- RFP
- Scoring
- References
Rescue assessment
Independent read on a late or failing project: what's real, what's salvageable, what it takes to land it.
- Assessment
- Recovery plan
Fractional CTO FAQs
What does a fractional CTO do?
Provides senior technical leadership for a fraction of the week: decides architecture and platforms, evaluates vendors and agencies, sets roadmap and budget, hires and oversees developers, and is the person who can read the code when something is going wrong. For companies with a $200k–$3M technology budget who can't justify a $250k+ full-time CTO.
How much does a fractional CTO cost?
Retainers run $3,000–$15,000 per month depending on hours (typically 1–3 days per month) and whether hands-on engineering is included. Technical due diligence engagements are $7,500–$40,000 fixed-scope. See pricing.
What does technical due diligence cover?
Codebase quality and maintainability, architecture and scalability, security posture, infrastructure and cost, dependency and licensing risk, team and key-person risk, and product/roadmap realism — delivered as a written report with red flags, remediation estimates, and questions for the seller. For buyers, investors, and lenders.
Why Reed Dynamic rather than a consultancy?
Because the advice comes from someone who still ships. Drew Reed has built and operated eCommerce, mobile, and integration systems since 2010, so recommendations are grounded in what it actually costs to build and run — and we can step in and build if you want.
Can you evaluate a proposal from another agency?
Yes — RFP drafting, proposal review, reference checks, and architecture sanity checks. We'll tell you if the other shop is the right choice.