Fractional CTO since 2015
Fractional CTO since 2015
You know your market. I bring the tech leadership.
Independent advice and hands-on leadership for your product, your developers, and your tech, from a founder and veteran CTO.
BuildPre-seed to Series A, solo founders welcome
From idea to paying customers
ScaleGrowth-stage startups and established companies
Tech and team that scale with you
0 to 3,000+
B2B customers at SiteOwl from 2017 to 2025
40x
contractors at TVT over 8 years without adding coordinators
20+
startups and growth companies advised since 2015
Case studies
0 to 3,000+B2B customers from 2017 to 2025
SiteOwl: the software the security industry was missing
In 2017, SiteOwl’s founder saw a gap: companies that install and maintain building security systems had no good way to keep track of them. As fractional CTO I turned his idea into a product, built the team and the process, and led the technology for eight years, through SOC 2 and the handover to a full-time CTO.
Read the case study →200 to 8,000linguist contractors, without adding coordinators
TVT: a platform for a small team and 8,000 contractors
TVT prepares movies and TV series for major broadcasters and streaming services. Over eight years as their technology advisor in Singapore, I led media management projects, moved their server room to the cloud, built a platform to manage their network of 8,000 contractors, and introduced AI for a first pass at compliance checks and subtitles.
Read the case study →What clients say
“Chris is exceptionally detailed and process oriented, and great at managing teams. This makes him a really great partner to work with. Additionally, he has the rare ability to direct teams tactically, while maintaining clear sight of the strategic direction. Under Chris’ leadership, we’ve been able to build a product that our customers love.”
“It was a pleasure to work with Chris: he asked insightful questions from the start, communicated clearly and concisely, and generated a detailed product requirements document that got to the heart of what we really needed from the platform.”
“I strongly recommend him to anyone looking for assistance building software or making sure an ongoing software project stays on track. Chris is someone who quickly grasps the business goals behind a project and is able to use his strong technical understanding to carry out the project with the team and meet those goals with top quality results.”
Ways to work together
- Product Planning“What exactly should we build, and in what order?”From €1,800
- Launch Readiness Review“Is my product ready for customers or does it need rework?”From €2,000
- Dev Team & Vendor Health Check“Why am I not getting results from my dev team?”From €2,500
- Hiring Your First Developers“Who should build my product and how do I find them?”From €1,800 per role
About
In 2007 I moved to Shanghai to lead an offshore development team. In 2014 I founded LingoQuest, an ed-tech startup in Singapore later acquired by its strategic investor. Since 2015 I’ve been a fractional CTO, including eight years each at SiteOwl and TVT.
My advice is based only on what fits you: I don’t sell development or take referral fees. I use AI every day and have built it into real products for thousands of users. Based in Milan, I work with clients in North America, Europe, and Asia.
Common questions
What is a fractional CTO?
A CTO who works with several companies instead of one. You get a CTO’s experience at the level of involvement you need: from a sounding board for your decisions to someone who leads all of your technology. You can scale it up or down as your company changes. Working with several companies also means I’ve already seen many of the challenges you’re about to face.
Can you work with our existing developers or agency?
Yes. Depending on the involvement you choose, I review their plans and proposals, give them clear direction and review what they deliver, or lead the whole team on your behalf. If you’re not sure whether the team is the problem or the solution, a Dev Team & Vendor Health Check gives you a candid picture first.
Should I start with a package or ongoing support?
A package fits when there’s one clear goal: finding out whether your product is ready to launch or why your team is stuck, planning what to build, or hiring the right people. Ongoing support fits when the decisions keep coming. A package is also a good way to get to know each other: half the fee of a Launch or Scale Readiness Review, a Dev Team & Vendor Health Check, or Product Planning counts toward ongoing support that starts within two months.
How do we start, and do you sign an NDA?
With a free discovery call: you tell me where things stand, and we work out whether a package, ongoing support, or something you can do yourself fits. If we go ahead, you get a fixed quote within two working days. And yes, I’m happy to sign your NDA before you share anything confidential.
Get in touch
Chris HennigfeldFractional CTO
Book a free discovery call
We talk through where things stand and what would help most. You leave with a clear next step, whether or not we work together.