You're a non-technical founder with a great idea. You've validated the market. Now you need to build. But how?
Your Options
Option 1: Full-Time CTO **Cost**: $150K-300K/year (US) or $40K-80K/year (Egypt) **Pros**: Full dedication, equity alignment, long-term thinking **Cons**: Expensive, hard to find, risky if wrong hire
Option 2: Development Agency **Cost**: $50K-200K per project **Pros**: Get it built, no management overhead **Cons**: No strategic thinking, handoff problems, no ownership
Option 3: Fractional CTO **Cost**: $3K-10K/month **Pros**: Strategic guidance, technical leadership, flexible commitment **Cons**: Part-time attention, need to find the right fit
When to Choose Fractional CTO
A fractional CTO makes sense when:
- •You're pre-seed or seed stage
- •You need technical strategy, not just code
- •You can't afford or find a full-time CTO
- •You need to evaluate technical hires
- •You're preparing for fundraising
What a Good Fractional CTO Does
- **Technical Strategy**: Architecture decisions, tech stack selection
- **Team Building**: Hiring, evaluating, managing developers
- **Vendor Management**: Evaluating agencies, contractors
- **Due Diligence**: Preparing for investor technical reviews
- **Product Roadmap**: Translating business goals to technical plans
Red Flags to Avoid
- •No startup experience
- •Can't explain technical concepts simply
- •Pushes trendy tech over practical solutions
- •No references from founders
The Vibe Tech Approach
We offer fractional CTO services as part of our startup engineering studio. You get:
- •Weekly strategy sessions
- •Architecture reviews
- •Hiring support
- •Investor prep
- •Direct access to our engineering team
We've helped founders raise from $500K to $5M by getting their technical story right.
Book a free consultation to see if fractional CTO is right for you.