Hire a
Fractional CTO
Complete guide to finding, vetting, and hiring the perfect fractional Chief Technology Officer for your business.
Where to Find Fractional CTOs
Six proven channels for finding pre-vetted, experienced fractional technology leaders.
Fractional Job Boards
Platforms like Fractional.Quest with pre-vetted fractional executives actively looking for engagements.
LinkedIn Search
Search for CTOs using hashtags #FractionalCTO, #PortfolioCTO, or "Fractional CTO" in titles.
Fractional Executive Networks
Agencies and networks that match companies with fractional technology leaders.
VC & Founder Referrals
Ask your investors, advisors, or founder network who they've used or heard of.
Tech Communities
Slack groups (CTO Craft, Engineering Leadership), tech meetups, or Stack Overflow.
Tech Conferences
Attend QCon, DevOps conferences, or engineering leadership events.
Pro Tip: Use multiple channels in parallel. The best fractional CTOs are often working with 2-3 companies and may not be actively looking—referrals help you reach them.
What to Look For in a Fractional CTO
Not all experienced engineers make good fractional CTOs. Here's what separates the best from the rest.
1. Relevant Tech Stack Experience
Have they built systems with your tech stack? A CTO experienced with enterprise Java won't be ideal for a Python/React startup. Look for experience with similar architectures, cloud platforms, and development methodologies.
Portfolio of similar tech stacks, architecture decisions at your scale, knowledge of modern dev practices
Only worked with legacy systems or completely different tech paradigms
2. Company Stage Experience
Have they scaled engineering at your stage? A CTO from a 500-person company won't know how to prioritize at a 5-person startup. Look for experience at companies 1-2 stages ahead of you.
Built teams from scratch, scaled from 5 to 50 engineers, experience at Series A/B companies
Only worked at large enterprises or never scaled a team past 10 people
3. Architecture & System Design
Can they design scalable, maintainable systems? Great fractional CTOs can whiteboard architecture, explain trade-offs, and make decisions about build vs buy, monolith vs microservices, and tech debt.
Clear architecture thinking, can explain past decisions and trade-offs, pragmatic about technology choices
Dogmatic about specific technologies or can't explain architectural decisions
4. Team Leadership & Hiring
Have they built and led engineering teams? A fractional CTO needs to hire, mentor, and manage people—not just write code. They should have hired at least 10-20 engineers and managed teams of 5-20 people.
Built teams from scratch, hiring process expertise, coaching/mentorship stories, structured engineering culture
Never managed people or prefers to code alone
5. Business & Product Alignment
Can they translate business needs to technology strategy? Great CTOs understand product roadmaps, revenue models, and can prioritize features that matter. They should speak business language.
Experience with product teams, can explain how tech decisions impact revenue, prioritization frameworks
Purely technical mindset, dismissive of business constraints
6. Fractional Working Model Fit
Do they know how to work fractionally? This requires discipline, clear communication, and asynchronous collaboration. Ask how they manage multiple clients, stay organized, and make impact in 2 days/week.
Works with 2-4 companies currently, systems for time management, clear communication cadence
First fractional engagement or working with 6+ companies (spread too thin)
Interview Questions to Ask
These questions separate strategic CTOs from individual contributors.
Architecture & Technical Questions
- "Walk me through how you architected [System X]. What trade-offs did you make and why?"
Listen for: Clear reasoning, pragmatic trade-offs, understanding of constraints - "How do you decide between build vs buy for a key system component?"
Listen for: ROI thinking, time-to-market considerations, maintenance cost awareness - "Tell me about a time you had to deal with significant technical debt. How did you prioritize?"
Listen for: Business alignment, pragmatic approach, incremental improvement - "How do you approach security and compliance in system design?"
Listen for: Security-first mindset, understanding of regulatory requirements
Scaling & Growth Questions
- "What technical systems need to be in place for a company at our stage?"
Listen for: Stage-appropriate thinking, not over-engineering, pragmatic priorities - "How do you structure an engineering team for a company with [X] engineers?"
Listen for: Understanding of team dynamics, scaling patterns, reporting structures - "Tell me about a time you scaled a system from handling X to 10X or 100X load."
Listen for: Specific technical solutions, monitoring approach, incremental scaling - "How do you balance feature development with platform/infrastructure work?"
Listen for: Business alignment, stakeholder communication, prioritization frameworks
Leadership & Team Questions
- "How would you structure hiring for our engineering team over the next 12 months?"
Listen for: Stage-appropriate team structure, clear hiring priorities - "How do you evaluate engineers and set up performance management?"
Listen for: Clear frameworks, growth mindset, feedback culture - "Tell me about translating business requirements to engineering priorities with non-technical stakeholders."
Listen for: Communication skills, business understanding, stakeholder management - "How do you stay effective working 2 days/week vs embedded full-time?"
Listen for: Async communication, clear frameworks, delegation
The Fractional CTO Hiring Process
From first conversation to start date in 2-4 weeks.
Brief
Tell us about your needs, company stage, and what you're looking for in a fractional executive.
Match
We curate a shortlist of pre-vetted fractional executives who match your specific requirements.
Meet
Interview your top candidates. We handle scheduling and provide interview frameworks.
Start
Your fractional executive begins within days. We support onboarding and ongoing success.
Brief
Tell us about your needs, company stage, and what you're looking for in a fractional executive.
Match
We curate a shortlist of pre-vetted fractional executives who match your specific requirements.
Meet
Interview your top candidates. We handle scheduling and provide interview frameworks.
Start
Your fractional executive begins within days. We support onboarding and ongoing success.
Timeline Breakdown
Week 1: Define & Source
- Define technical requirements (Day 1-2)
- Post on job boards, ask for referrals (Day 2-3)
- Review candidates, shortlist 5-10 (Day 4-7)
Week 2-3: Interview & Select
- First-round interviews (45-min calls)
- Second round: technical deep-dive or architecture review
- Reference checks (2-3 calls)
- Make offer and negotiate terms
Week 4: Onboard & Start
- Contract signing and admin setup
- Share codebase access, architecture docs
- First week: technical audit and team intros
- Begin roadmap and priority alignment
First 90 Days: Deliver
- Month 1: Technical audit, quick wins
- Month 2: Architecture improvements, team structure
- Month 3: Scale, hire, measure results
- Decide to extend or part ways
Contract Terms & Structure
Standard terms for fractional CTO engagements.
Standard Contract Template
Engagement Model
- Day rate: £900-£1,600 per day (based on experience)
- Commitment: 1-3 days per week (specify exact days)
- Monthly retainer option: £4,000-£6,500 for predictable billing
Term & Notice
- Initial term: 3-month trial period
- Renewal: Auto-renew to 12-month rolling contract after trial
- Notice period: 30 days either side (standard)
Scope of Work
- Responsibilities: Technology strategy, architecture, team leadership, technical roadmap
- Deliverables: Architecture documentation, tech roadmap, hiring plan, code standards
- Exclusions: Day-to-day coding (unless scoped), on-call support (unless agreed)
IP & Confidentiality
- IP ownership: Company owns all code, architecture, and documentation
- Confidentiality: Standard NDA terms, survives termination
- Non-compete: Usually not applicable (fractional works with multiple companies)
Optional: Equity
- Advisory shares: 0.2-0.5% for long-term engagements (12+ months)
- Vesting: Quarterly or annual vesting
- Cash reduction: If equity included, day rate may reduce 10-15%
Cost Comparison: Fractional vs Full-Time vs Agency
Understand the total cost of each CTO hiring option for your business.
| Cost Factor | Fractional CTO | Full-Time CTO | Dev Agency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual Cost | £90k - £160k | £180k - £300k | £200k - £500k |
| Days per Week | 2-3 days | 5 days | Project-based |
| Notice Period | 30 days | 3-6 months | Contract end |
| Employer NI/Benefits | None | £35k - £60k | None |
| Equity Required | Optional (0.2-0.5%) | 1-3% | None |
| Time to Hire | 2-4 weeks | 3-6 months | 2-4 weeks |
| Cross-Industry Experience | High (multiple clients) | Limited | High |
| Best For | Startups needing strategic tech leadership | Large orgs with complex tech | One-off development projects |
Sources: Glassdoor UK, Tech Nation, Market research
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