Fractional CTO · from $8,000/month
A CTO for the decisions that matter, without the full-time hire.
I embed in your team part-time to set direction, unblock engineers, make the hard architecture and vendor calls, and tie the technology to the business numbers.
Get my optionsFree 20-min call: whether I can help, a typical price range, no pressure.
Already have a quote, a plan or an idea, and just want an expert's read on it?
A Software Second Opinion is 90 minutes with a senior engineer and a written summary. $500.
When you need a CTO but can't hire one yet
- Technical decisions are piling up and nobody senior owns them.
- Your developers or agency need direction, not more tickets.
- Hiring, vendor and build-vs-buy calls are expensive to get wrong.
Good fit
- Founders who need a CTO but aren't ready to hire one full-time
- Companies between CTOs that need someone to hold the fort
- Teams whose engineering is stuck: slow releases, technical debt, no clear owner
Not a fit
- Staff augmentation without technical leadership
- Enterprise RFP processes
What you get
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A technical roadmap tied to business goals
What to build, in what order, and why it moves the numbers that matter.
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Architecture decisions, written down
So the reasoning survives after I'm gone.
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A hiring pipeline
Role definitions, interviews and a team that can run without me.
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Vendor and build-vs-buy evaluations
Expensive choices made with numbers, not vibes.
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Team process improvements
Weekly syncs, async updates, shared repos. You always know where things stand.
How it works
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Optional first step
A CTO sprint
A five-day Scoping Sprint that produces a 90-day technical roadmap and makes the first decisions.
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Monthly
Retainer
Advisory (me, about a day a week), or CTO + engineer when you also need implementation capacity.
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Every month
Review and adjust
Scope and days per week follow what the business needs.
3-month minimum, then month to month.
Pricing
Advisory from $8,000/month
Me, about one day a week: strategy, architecture, hiring and vendor oversight.
CTO + engineer from $18,000/month. I lead, and a vetted contractor does the implementation under my supervision, about 80 hours a month.
Timeline: 3-month minimum, then month to month
Book an options call, or start with a CTO sprint to get a 90-day roadmap before committing to a retainer.
Free 20-min call: whether I can help, a typical price range, no pressure.
Why work with me
Mischa Serlin
Fractional CTO · zCube8
I build AI automation and software that grows revenue and takes manual work off your team. Then I keep it running.
- Technical authority for 50+ Realtor.com engineers across web, iOS, Android, backend; none reported to me
- Solely responsible for every technical decision at the company for three years
- Rebuilt the engineering team twice without interrupting service to the enterprise client
- Led engineering at TopHap, Realtor.com's implementation partner on Google Maps Platform Source ↗
FAQ
What does fractional CTO mean?
What's the difference between the two tiers?
How long is the commitment?
Can you help us hire a full-time CTO?
Start with a free 20-minute call.
If it's a fit, the next step is a 5-day Scoping Sprint, $2,500 (founding-client price, regular $5,000), credited in full if we keep going.
Get my optionsFree 20-min call: whether I can help, a typical price range, no pressure.
Not ready to talk? Rate my workflow (2 min)