Field Notes from a Working CTO Practice
Practical posts on fractional CTO services, AI brain installations for founders, and leading engineering and AI-enabled teams. Written from the field, not the consulting deck.
If Your CTO Is Constrained by Delivery Capacity, They're Not Doing CTO Work
The fractional CTO capacity question assumes the CTO is the delivery bottleneck. A CTO's output is decisions, systems, and teams that function without them. The real constraint is context depth, not hours.
Fractional CTOWhen to Hire a CTO: Watch the Signal, Not the Round
Most founders hire a CTO twelve months too early or eighteen months too late. Here's the behavioural signal that actually tells you it's time.
AI BrainAI Cofounders Are the Wrong Framing. AI Roles Are More Useful.
The Forbes-fuelled AI cofounder trend sells a compelling story. But companies don't need a pretend partner. They need role-specific AI workspaces with defined jobs, real context, and recurring routines.
AI BrainYour Team Doesn't Need More AI Tools. It Needs AI Workspaces.
The gap between 'we use AI' and 'AI is part of how we operate' is stored context, role-specific instructions, and recurring routines. A workspace is the difference.
Fractional CTO7 Things I Believe About Tech Leadership That Most Founders Don't Want to Hear
Fractional CTO marketplaces, AI vendors, and VCs all sell founders a version of tech leadership that serves them. Here are seven contrarian opinions that have cost me work, and why I stand by them anyway.
AI BrainWhy AI Setups Rot (and What Survives)
Ruben Hassid just told 750,000 subscribers to delete the Claude Cowork setup he spent six months teaching. The failure wasn't the setup. It's the pattern behind every AI setup that rots, and the layer that doesn't.
AI BrainMy Brand Lived in One File. It Should Have Lived in Three.
Voice rules, colours, and positioning kept drifting across my own projects. Here's the three-tier system that fixed it, and the fix I'd install for you too.
Board RoomYour Board Wants an AI Strategy. Here's the Honest One-Page Version.
The AI strategy section your board actually wants to see is one page, not twenty. Here's the structure that holds up to investor scrutiny without overclaiming, written by a working CTO.
AI BrainThe AI Brain Audit: What Actually Happens in a Half-Day Diagnostic
The AI Brain Audit is a £700 half-day diagnostic. Here's the agenda I run, the artefacts you walk away with, and how to tell whether it's the right next step for you.
AI BrainAI for Coaches and Small Businesses: The Setup I Install for Clients
Most AI advice is written for founders. The same techniques unlock even more value for coaches and small business owners. Here's the setup I install for clients, what changes when you're not a founder, and a prompt library you can copy from.
AI BrainYou Don't Need a Content Team. You Need a System.
Most founders are slow at content not because they lack ideas, but because they're running a production process through a single chat window. Here's the fix.
WorkshopsComing Soon: Real-Time AI Workshops
A live, structured 7-day AI training programme with weekly sessions, a buddy to work alongside, and a one-on-one with Nick. Register your interest to be in the first cohort.
AI BrainStop Asking One AI to Do Everything. Build a Stack Instead.
Single-agent AI setups drift and break. The fix is narrow scope: three focused agents, clear inputs, defined outputs. Here's how to build a practical stack for founders.
Fractional CTOMore Than a Technologist: Why a Fractional CTO Is a Business Partner First
The most valuable thing a fractional CTO does isn't technical. It's understanding the business first, then making sure technology decisions support it, and translating between the two in language founders and boards can actually act on.
AI BrainWhy Most Founders Are Getting 5% From Their AI Tools
You're paying for Claude every month and wondering why it isn't saving more time. The problem isn't the tool. Nobody showed you how to set it up properly. Here's where to start.
ProcessThe First 90 Days: What a Fractional CTO Actually Does
A month-by-month breakdown of what a well-structured fractional CTO engagement looks like in practice, from day one through the end of the first quarter.
Fractional CTO GuideWhat is a Fractional CTO? The Complete Guide for UK Startups (2026)
A fractional CTO gives funded startups senior technology leadership on a part-time basis. Learn what they do, who needs one, and how to find the right fit for your stage.
PricingHow Much Does a Fractional CTO Cost in the UK? (2026 Pricing Guide)
UK fractional CTO pricing in 2026: typical retainer rates, day rates, what drives the variation, and a straight comparison to full-time CTO costs.
Fractional CTO GuideFractional CTO vs Interim CTO: What's the Difference?
Fractional and interim CTOs both provide senior tech leadership without a permanent hire, but they serve very different needs. Here's how to choose.
Engineering LeadershipPsychological Safety: The Most Underrated Engineering Leadership Tool
The research is clear: high-performing engineering teams share one quality above all others. Here's what psychological safety actually means in practice, and how to build it.
AI & Engineering LeadershipFrom Management to Orchestration: Leading Engineering Teams in the Age of AI Agents
AI coding tools are changing engineering. But the bigger shift is in how technology leaders need to think, moving from managing people to orchestrating agents, workflows, and humans together.
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