[02] Engagements · Austin, TX · Remote US
Senior engineering leadership 1 to 3 days a week: technical strategy, org design and hiring, delivery cadence, and AI and agentic engineering. I led 100+ engineers as VP of Software Engineering at Talent Systems, grew PublicSq. from 4 to 24 engineers in under a year, and I still ship production code.
What I do
Most clients have engineers but no technical executive, or a technical founder who needs a peer. I cover the seat and stay close to the code.
Engagement models
Scope, cadence and pricing are written down before we start. Engagements are scoped by the quarter and renew if the numbers say they should.
How it starts
[01]
Architecture, team, delivery process and spend. Listen first, then map value, risks and unknowns.
[02]
Priorities, owners, checkpoints and metrics. Minimal, sufficient, written down.
[03]
A weekly operating rhythm, visible metrics, and staffing adjustments where they are needed.
Recent fractional work
A few current engagements. The full list, including products I own, is on the work page.
Fractional CTO, AI enablement
Embedded with engineering orgs to make AI a working part of how software gets built, not a demo. Agent workflows, skill files, review gates, and cost controls that the teams own after I leave. The measure is proficiency across the whole team and shorter cycle time, not one hero engineer with a fast laptop.
Fractional CTO
One app for a surf town: the morning surf check, a local marketplace with delivery, bookings, stays, and real estate. Fractional CTO for the team building it, owning architecture, delivery cadence, and the path from launch to the next towns.
Fractional CTO
An AI legal platform for law firms in Mexico, Panama, and Colombia: drafts contracts for attorney review, answers client email, writes filings, and researches the law. Fractional CTO on platform, security, and accuracy as the product moves from waitlist to firms.
Signal
From people who worked with me at Talent Systems, Envoy and on client projects. More on the testimonials page.
I worked with Kris for around 2 years at Talent Systems. I'm proud to recommend him because he was one of the most effective leaders I've worked with in my time in the tech industry. He led our organization through numerous large and challenging initiatives under intense time pressure while remaining calm and inspiring the best in myself and other members of the team. On top of keeping the business moving he always has time to check in on his reports at a personal level and cares about our success in the office and outside. He will be a valuable asset to any organization.
Kris embodies excellence in leadership. I had the privilege of working with him and his team on multiple projects in my time at Envoy. Kris leads with composure, empathy and tact even under extreme pressure. In the face of tight timelines, limited resources and multiple stakeholders he makes great work happen. In addition to excellent leadership, Kris has a vast lexicon of technical knowledge. He and his team create beautiful experiences in online commerce, web applications and IoT products. His mastery over a wide range of disciplines is unmatched. Kris is not only a gifted leader and technical mind, but also a wonderful person. Anyone who has the pleasure to work with Kris should count themselves lucky.
Kris has an amazing ability to understand not only the full scale of the technology he works with but also the people and personalities he's dealing with. How he retains all the information about multiple products, projects and teams is frankly beyond me and he does it in such a humble and friendly way.
FAQ
The full list, with filters by topic, is on the FAQ page.
A fractional CTO gives you senior engineering leadership part time: technical strategy, architecture decisions, hiring and org design, delivery cadence, platform and vendor choices, and executive reporting, without a full-time executive salary. I stay hands-on. I review code, sit in planning, and ship when that is what unblocks the team.
Most engagements run 1 to 3 days a week. We start with a short discovery of the architecture, team, delivery process and costs, agree on a 90-day plan with owners and checkpoints, then run a weekly operating rhythm with visible metrics. Engagements are scoped by the quarter and renew if the numbers say they should. Advisory can be a few hours a month. Scope, cadence and pricing are written down before we start.
Both. I am based in Austin, TX and work remotely with teams across the US on Central Time, with flexible overlap for EU and AMER teams. I come on site for kickoffs and planning sessions when it helps.
I embed with the engineering org and make AI a working part of how software gets built, not a demo. That means agent workflows, skill files, review gates, verification loops and spend controls the team owns after I leave. The measure is proficiency across the whole team and shorter cycle time, not one fast engineer. I run the same stack on my own product, PeptIQ, and publish the live telemetry on the /now page.
Startups and mid-sized companies with roughly 2 to 100+ engineers. I have led orgs across that range: 4 to 24 engineers at PublicSq., 10 to 24+ at Envoy, and 100+ as VP of Software Engineering at Talent Systems. Fractional clients have been SaaS, health tech, AI legal tech and consumer apps.
Send a note through the contact page or book a 20-minute intro. Tell me the goal and the constraint. You get a short written proposal with scope, cadence and pricing. Advisory can start right away; larger programs usually start within one to two weeks.
Next move
Send the goal and the constraint. You get a short written proposal with scope, cadence and pricing. Advisory can start right away; larger programs usually start within one to two weeks.
See also: CTO consulting, engineering leadership consulting, resume, testimonials, how I operate, and contact.