An engineering lead for your hardware startup, before you can hire one
Early hardware companies often have a founder with the vision and a few engineers, but nobody who has run a hardware program end to end. I fill that role part-time: I set the technical direction, make the hard calls with you, and still do engineering where it matters most.
What I do
Architecture and direction
The system architecture, the technical risks ranked, and the decisions written down so the team stops relitigating them.
Plan, schedule and budget
A program plan with real gates, from someone who has run a $28M development program to its baseline schedule and budget.
Vendors and partners
Part, vendor and contract manufacturer decisions, and the specifications and statements of work that go with them.
Your team
Help hiring your first engineers and leading the ones you have. I've managed teams of up to 20 engineers and turned around a struggling one.
Investors and customers
A technical story and diligence material that hold up when an investor's engineer asks hard questions.
How it starts
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1
A 20-minute call
You tell me what you're building and where you're stuck. No cost.
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2
A small, fixed-scope start
One defined problem at a fixed fee, so you can judge the work before committing to more.
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3
Build, with clear gates
Larger work runs in phases. You see progress at every gate and decide whether to continue.
Fractional engagements usually run one to two days a week on a monthly retainer with a three-month minimum, agreed up front.
Questions founders ask
- How much of your time do we get?
- Typically one to two days a week, agreed up front, with a three-month minimum so there's time to make a difference.
- Will you still do hands-on work?
- Yes, where it matters most: architecture, first prototypes and bring-up. Routine work goes to your team or to specialists I bring in.
- What happens when we hire a full-time CTO?
- I help you hire them and hand over cleanly. The goal is to make the role easy to fill, not to keep it.
Start a conversation
Tell me what you're building. I reply within one business day.