Fractional CTO Scope of Work: What's Included (And What's Not)

"What does a fractional CTO actually do?"

It's a fair question. The answer varies significantly between engagements, which is part of why fractional CTO arrangements sometimes disappoint—expectations weren't aligned from the start.

This guide clarifies what typically falls within fractional CTO scope, what doesn't, and how to set up an engagement for success.

Standard Fractional CTO Responsibilities

Strategic Responsibilities

These are almost always in scope for a fractional CTO:

Technology Strategy

• Developing and maintaining technology roadmap
• Aligning technology investments with business goals
• Evaluating build vs buy decisions
• Assessing technology risks and opportunities
• Planning technology evolution (1-3 year horizon)

Architecture and Technical Direction

• Reviewing and guiding system architecture
• Making or advising on major technical decisions
• Establishing technical principles and standards
• Evaluating technical debt and prioritisation
• Overseeing scalability planning

Board and Investor Relations

• Representing technology in board discussions
• Preparing technology content for investor materials
• Supporting due diligence processes
• Communicating technology strategy to stakeholders

Vendor and Partnership Evaluation

• Evaluating technology vendors
• Reviewing major technology purchases
• Assessing partnership opportunities
• Negotiating technical terms in agreements

Leadership Responsibilities

Hiring and Team Structure

• Defining engineering roles and job descriptions
• Participating in senior technical interviews
• Advising on team structure and growth
• Helping evaluate candidates (technical assessment)

Mentoring and Development

• Mentoring senior technical staff
• Advising on career development paths
• Providing technical guidance to leads
• Supporting engineering managers

Process and Culture

• Advising on development practices
• Helping implement effective processes
• Shaping engineering culture values
• Facilitating team improvement initiatives

Operational Responsibilities (Varies by Engagement)

Technical Reviews

• Architecture review sessions
• Code review for critical systems
• Security assessment oversight
• Performance review

Crisis Support

• Incident response guidance (not first responder)
• Post-mortem facilitation
• Security incident advisory
• Major outage leadership support

Special Projects

• Due diligence preparation
• Technology audits
• Platform migration planning
• AI/ML strategy development

What's Typically NOT Included

Understanding what's out of scope is equally important:

Not Included: Hands-on Coding

A fractional CTO is not a developer. They don't:

• Write production code
• Debug routine issues
• Implement features
• Maintain codebases

Why not: CTO value comes from strategy and leadership, not code output. Paying CTO rates for coding is poor value. If you need development, hire developers.

Exception: Occasionally, a fractional CTO might prototype something to demonstrate a concept, but this is rare and limited.

Not Included: Daily Standups and Ceremonies

A fractional CTO typically doesn't:

• Attend every daily standup
• Run every sprint planning
• Participate in all team ceremonies
• Be available every day

Why not: Part-time role means selective involvement. Daily ceremonies are management activities, usually handled by engineering managers or tech leads.

What they might do: Attend key ceremonies occasionally to observe team dynamics, join sprint reviews for major milestones, facilitate retrospectives on specific topics.

Not Included: Direct People Management

Unless specifically scoped, a fractional CTO usually doesn't:

• Conduct regular 1:1s with all engineers
• Handle performance management
• Manage day-to-day team issues
• Make hiring/firing decisions (advice, yes; decisions, typically no)

Why not: People management requires consistent presence. Part-time CTOs can mentor and advise, but line management needs someone there daily.

Hybrid approach: A fractional CTO might do 1:1s with senior engineers or tech leads, but not manage the entire team.

Not Included: 24/7 On-Call

A fractional CTO is not:

• Your first call at 3am when things break
• Responsible for incident response
• On-call for production issues
• Expected to respond immediately to all issues

Why not: On-call requires dedicated commitment that conflicts with serving multiple clients.

What they can do: Provide guidance during major incidents, be available during business hours for escalation, help build incident response processes.

Not Included: Guarantee of Outcomes

A fractional CTO cannot guarantee:

• Fundraising success
• Product-market fit
• Team performance
• Zero technical problems

Reality check: A CTO—fractional or full-time—provides leadership and decisions. Outcomes depend on many factors beyond their control.

Customising Scope Based on Company Needs

For Pre-Seed to Seed Companies

Emphasis on:

• Technical validation and architecture
• Helping build the first team
• Investor readiness
• Technology foundation decisions

De-emphasised:

• Process implementation (team too small)
• Complex governance
• Formal documentation

Typical engagement: 1-2 days per month, advisory focused

For Post-Seed to Series A Companies

Emphasis on:

• Scaling team and processes
• Technical debt management
• Architecture for growth
• Hiring senior talent
• Due diligence preparation

De-emphasised:

• Hands-on technical work (team should handle)
• Early-stage validation (past that now)

Typical engagement: 2-4 days per month, more operational involvement

For Series A+ Companies

Emphasis on:

• Strategic technology direction
• Organisational design
• Executive alignment
• Full-time CTO transition planning
• Board-level representation

De-emphasised:

• Individual contributor mentoring
• Process implementation (should have internal capability)

Typical engagement: 2-4 days per month, strategic focus, possibly alongside VP Engineering

Sample Scope of Work Document

Here's a template for defining scope clearly:

FRACTIONAL CTO ENGAGEMENT SCOPE
================================

Company: [Company Name]
Engagement: [Start Date] - [End Date, or "Ongoing"]
Time Commitment: [X] days per month

PRIMARY OBJECTIVES
------------------
1. [Specific objective, e.g., "Prepare engineering team
   for Series A due diligence"]
2. [Specific objective, e.g., "Design architecture for
   10x user growth"]
3. [Specific objective, e.g., "Hire and onboard first
   VP Engineering"]

IN SCOPE
--------
Strategic:
□ Technology strategy and roadmap development
□ Architecture review and guidance
□ Board/investor technology updates

Leadership:
□ Senior technical hire interviews
□ 1:1 mentoring with tech leads
□ Team structure advisory

Operational:
□ Monthly architecture review sessions
□ Technical decision escalation point
□ Due diligence preparation

Meetings and Availability:
□ Weekly 1:1 with founder/CEO (1 hour)
□ Monthly team all-hands (optional)
□ Email/Slack response within 1 business day

OUT OF SCOPE
------------
□ Hands-on coding or development
□ Daily standup attendance
□ Direct line management of engineers
□ On-call or incident first response
□ Routine code review

SUCCESS CRITERIA
----------------
After [X] months, we will evaluate success based on:
1. [Measurable outcome, e.g., "DD package ready for
   investor review"]
2. [Measurable outcome, e.g., "VP Engineering hired
   and onboarded"]
3. [Measurable outcome, e.g., "Architecture documented
   and reviewed with team"]

COMMUNICATION
-------------
Primary channel: [Slack/Email]
Weekly sync: [Day/Time]
Escalation: [How to reach for urgent matters]

ADJUSTMENT
----------
Scope may be adjusted by mutual agreement based on
evolving company needs. Quarterly review of scope
alignment is recommended.

How Scope Evolves During an Engagement

Phase 1: Assessment (First 30 Days)

Initial scope is typically exploratory:

• Understanding current state
• Identifying priorities
• Building relationships
• Refining scope based on reality

Common discovery: Initial assumptions about needs shift once the fractional CTO has visibility into actual situation.

Phase 2: Stabilisation (Months 2-3)

Scope becomes more defined:

• Focus areas are clear
• Regular rhythms established
• Team knows how to work together
• Value delivery begins

Phase 3: Steady State (Months 4+)

Mature engagement patterns:

• Predictable involvement
• Proactive identification of issues
• Strategic planning integration
• Measurable impact

Scope Drift Warning Signs

Watch for:

• Creeping daily involvement (should be sustainable part-time)
• Becoming the "answer person" for everything (team should be empowered)
• Too much tactical, not enough strategic
• Displacing rather than developing internal capability

Regular scope reviews (quarterly) help catch and correct drift.

Setting Expectations: What You Can and Can't Demand

You Can Expect

Reliability:

• Consistent availability within agreed hours
• Timely responses to communications
• Showing up prepared for meetings

Expertise:

• Honest, expert advice
• Willingness to push back constructively
• Relevant experience applied to your situation

Investment:

• Learning your business and context
• Caring about outcomes (not just billing time)
• Advocating for your company's success

Professionalism:

• Confidentiality
• Ethical behaviour
• Clear communication about limitations

You Can't Expect

Full-time availability: A fractional CTO serves multiple clients. They can't be exclusively available to you.

Guaranteed results: Advice is advice. Execution is on you and your team. Results depend on many factors.

Mind-reading: If you don't share information, they can't help effectively. Be transparent.

Magic: Some problems take time to solve. A fractional CTO accelerates but doesn't instantly fix deep issues.

Staff replacement: A fractional CTO isn't a substitute for building your own team.

Getting Started with Clear Scope

Before engaging a fractional CTO, get clear on:

1. What specific outcomes do you want? Not just "technology help" but specific, measurable outcomes.

2. What decisions are you facing? These should be CTO-level decisions, not developer tasks.

3. What's your current capability? What internal resources exist? What's missing?

4. How much involvement do you want? Advisory (light touch) vs operational (heavy involvement)?

5. What's your timeline? Are you solving an immediate crisis or building long-term capability?

A clear conversation about scope before engagement starts prevents disappointment later.

If you're considering fractional CTO support and want to discuss what scope makes sense for your situation, a discovery call can help align expectations. No commitment—just clarity on what you need and whether fractional CTO support fits.

The right scope, clearly defined, makes engagements successful. Unclear scope leads to frustration on both sides.