Remote / Hybrid • MST Timezone

Fractional CTO in Denver

Expert technical leadership for Denver startups. CTO services in MST timezone. Build, scale, and transform your product without full-time CTO costs.

Why Denver Startups Choose Fractional CTO

Denver is one of the fastest-growing tech hubs in the US. The city attracts talented engineers with high quality of life, access to outdoor activities, and more affordable cost of living compared to coastal cities. The startup ecosystem specializes in Outdoor/Lifestyle Tech, HealthTech, and Enterprise Software.

The Denver market has its specifics: rapid growth creates competition for talent, but salaries remain lower than SF or NYC ($220K-$360K for a CTO). Local investors like Foundry Group and Techstars expect technical maturity. For many startups, a full-time CTO in the early stages is an unjustified expense.

Challenge

Challenges for Denver Startups

CTO salaries of $220K-$360K make full-time hiring expensive
Rapid ecosystem growth creates talent competition
Need for differentiation in niche markets
Challenges attracting venture funding outside coastal cities

CTO salaries of $220K-$360K make full-time hiring expensive
Rapid ecosystem growth creates talent competition
Need for differentiation in niche markets
Challenges attracting venture funding outside coastal cities

CTO salaries of $220K-$360K make full-time hiring expensive
Rapid ecosystem growth creates talent competition
Need for differentiation in niche markets
Challenges attracting venture funding outside coastal cities

How Fractional CTO Helps Solve These Challenges

Access to experienced CTO without Denver salary premiums ($130K-$280K+ savings annually)
Start immediately—no 3-6 month hiring process
Expertise in niche technologies (HealthTech)
Expertise in building distributed teams with remote-first focus
Global best practices for local market

What I do

Build Your MVP

Turn your startup idea into a working product

Tech stack selection for Colorado talent market
Launch in 3-4 months with scalable foundation
Architecture for niche markets (HealthTech)

Scale Your Product

Grow from seed stage to Series A

Handle 10x growth without downtime
Technical debt management and refactoring
Prepare for Denver VC due diligence

AI Transformation

Integrate AI/ML into your startup

LLM integrations and GPT-based solutions
ML systems for competitive advantage
Strategy, implementation, and MLOps

Technology Audit

Technical assessment before fundraising

Code quality and architecture review
Prepare for Colorado VC due diligence
Risk map and recommendations

Technical Due Diligence for Investors

For investors evaluating startups

Comprehensive technical risk assessment
Team and product scalability analysis
Reports for investment committees

Team Building

Hire your first 5-10 engineers

Navigate Colorado talent market
Build hybrid teams (local + remote engineers)
Establish engineering culture

Pricing

Packages for Denver Startups

Contract Length:

Currency:

Advisor CTO

$3,600per month

6 hours per week, 24 hours per month

For early-stage startups with an MVP or an idea that need oversight and support without full-time involvement.

2 strategic sessions per month (90 minutes each)
Technical stack and architecture audit
Slack support (48-hour response time)
Hiring support: candidate reviews and recommendations

What's included:

6-month technical roadmap
Architecture guidelines document

Outcome:A clear plan and recommendations for technology and team development without the overhead of a full-time CTO.

Contract term:1 month

Growth CTO

Scale CTO

$12,000per month

≈3 days per week, 80 hours per month

Series A+ startups with 15-20+ engineers preparing for the next funding round.

Everything from Growth CTO package
Participation in executive meetings and investor discussions
Building engineering management team (leads, engineering managers)
Due diligence support for fundraising
Organizational design: team structure, processes, rituals
Technical debt strategy and refactoring roadmap
Vendor and partner negotiations (AWS, third-party services, contractors)

What's included:

Engineering handbook and team culture code
Leveling and compensation framework
Engineering metrics dashboards (DORA, velocity, code quality, etc.)
Incident management and on-call rotation

Outcome:A mature engineering organization with clear processes, metrics, and a culture of product ownership.

Contract term:from 6 months

How Remote Work with Denver Startups Works

Time overlap: 7 hours daily overlap with 9am-6pm MST—sufficient for meetings and calls. Outside this window, available asynchronously via Slack and email for uninterrupted workflow.
Communication rhythm: Weekly strategic calls with founders. Bi-weekly team syncs. Daily communication via Slack. Emergency availability for critical issues.
In-person visits: Quarterly visits to Denver available for Scale CTO packages and above. Available for board meetings and investor presentations (remote or in-person).