A productised first ninety days as your Fractional CTO, with fixed scope, fixed outputs, and a fixed end date.

You have arrived at a moment when senior technology leadership is needed — after a CTO departure, an acquisition, a funding round, a major incident, or a step-change in the business. What you do not need is an open-ended retainer with unclear deliverables and no end date.

The First 90 Days is a fixed, productised engagement: I act as your Fractional CTO for three months, with defined outputs at week four, eight, and twelve. After that, we either continue as an open-ended Fractional CTO retainer, or the engagement ends — with the artefacts handed over for whoever takes the work forward.

That is what this engagement is.

€30,000. Ninety days. Fixed scope, fixed outputs, fixed end date.

Fixed fee. Fixed scope. Fixed end date. No automatic continuation. No implementation work taken on. No commissions.

Start a Conversation Start with the Technology Control Assessment — €4,950

First 90 Days infographic using a relay race metaphor to illustrate a structured executive technology leadership transition. The image is arranged around a running track and divided into three sections representing the starting situation, the ninety-day engagement itself, and the future state after the engagement concludes. The visual communicates that the engagement provides temporary but accountable technology leadership during periods of organisational transition, with defined outputs, fixed scope, and a fixed end date.

On the left, a runner is handing over a relay baton. This section is labelled "The Moment" and represents the events that typically trigger the engagement. Listed examples include a CTO departure, a funding round, an acquisition, the appointment of a new CEO, a major technology incident, or a regulatory event. The outgoing runner symbolises the previous state of leadership, while the baton represents responsibility, accountability, and continuity of technology leadership. Supporting text explains that senior technology leadership is required during this period of transition.

At the centre of the image, a runner labelled "Fractional CTO" carries the baton along a running track. This central section represents the First 90 Days engagement itself. Four key characteristics are highlighted: fixed scope, fixed outputs, fixed fee, and fixed end date. Three milestone markers appear along the track, representing the structured outputs delivered during the engagement. The first milestone, at week four, is a Baseline Assessment identifying the current state of the technology function, stakeholders, risks, and immediate priorities. The second milestone, at week eight, is Priorities and Roadmap, providing leadership with a sequenced plan and governance direction for the following twelve months. The third milestone, at week twelve, is Status and Handover, documenting progress, outstanding actions, and the recommended next steps. A continuous reporting line beneath the milestones emphasises board attendance and reporting throughout the engagement.

On the right, a receiving runner prepares to take the baton. This section is labelled "The Next State" and represents the possible outcomes after the ninety-day period concludes. Three destination options are shown. The first is a Permanent CTO, representing a successful transition to a long-term technology leader. The second is a Fractional CTO Retainer, representing continuation under a separate ongoing engagement. The third is Internal Team Ownership, representing the existing leadership team or technology function assuming responsibility with the roadmap and governance structures already established. Supporting text emphasises that the engagement is designed to end rather than create dependency.

Across the bottom of the image, a summary banner describes the engagement as defined executive leadership during periods of transition. Supporting themes include focus, stability, direction, and transfer. These represent the intended outcomes of the engagement: providing leadership attention where it is most needed, maintaining stability during change, establishing a clear strategic direction, and ensuring a structured handover at the conclusion of the ninety-day period.

The overall image illustrates the central premise of the First 90 Days engagement: it is neither a permanent hire nor an open-ended consulting arrangement. Instead, it provides a bounded period of senior technology leadership designed to carry responsibility safely through a transition, deliver defined executive outputs at structured milestones, support board-level decision-making, and leave the organisation with a clear path forward when the engagement concludes.

Why clients commission a First 90 Days

The engagement is usually triggered by a specific moment. Most often, one of these:

A CTO or technology lead has just departed and the board needs interim cover with defined accountability.
A funding round has closed and senior technology accountability is required for the first quarter.
An acquisition has completed and a ninety-day technology integration assessment is needed.
A board has appointed a new CEO who needs senior technology counsel during transition.
A major incident or regulatory event has surfaced the need for senior technology oversight.
The business is exploring whether to hire a permanent CTO and wants to test the role first.
An owner is preparing the business for sale and needs senior technology presence during the diligence period.
An investment committee or board cycle requires senior technology presence for one quarter.

If one of these is the position you are in, the engagement is built for it.

Who this is for

Owners, MDs, and CEOs in transition moments who need senior technology presence for a defined period, with defined outputs.

Boards filling a CTO vacancy and needing interim accountability with a clear end date.

Newly-appointed CEOs in their first quarter who need senior technology counsel without committing to a permanent hire.

Acquirers post-deal who want a ninety-day technology assessment and action engagement combined.

Who this is not for

Businesses wanting an open-ended Fractional CTO retainer from day one. See Fractional CTO instead.

Replacements for a permanent CTO over the long term. The engagement is ninety days, with continuation as a separate decision.

Engagements requiring deep technical implementation. This is executive technology leadership, not engineering delivery.

Engagements where the work is purely advisory and ongoing. See Mentoring instead.

What you receive

The engagement delivers four things over ninety days: continuous senior technology presence, structured outputs at each cycle, board-grade reporting throughout, and a clean handover at the end. Five deliverables, sequenced across the quarter.

First 90 Days deliverables infographic showing a structured ninety-day executive technology leadership engagement divided into three phases. The timeline begins with onboarding and stabilisation activities, including stakeholder mapping, governance review, risk identification, and immediate stabilisation actions. At week four, a Baseline Assessment delivers a written understanding of the technology function, identifying strengths, weaknesses, stakeholders, governance structures, and immediate priorities. At week eight, a Priorities and Roadmap deliverable provides a board-ready twelve-month technology roadmap, investment priorities, governance recommendations, and decision framework. At week twelve, a Status and Handover deliverable documents completed actions, work in progress, outstanding priorities, and recommended next steps. Throughout the engagement, board attendance and executive reporting provide continuous senior technology leadership. The engagement concludes with one of three outcomes: transition to a permanent CTO, continuation under a Fractional CTO retainer, or handover to an internal leadership team. The image illustrates a productised executive engagement with fixed scope, defined outputs, structured milestones, and a clear end date.

A week-four baseline assessment. What is actually here, what is working, what is not. Stakeholders mapped, immediate stabilisation actions identified, governance forums established or refreshed.

A week-eight priorities and roadmap. Where to invest, where to control, where to leave. A twelve-month roadmap calibrated to the business’s actual position, board-ready and decision-ready.

A week-twelve implementation status and handover. What has been done, what is in flight, what needs to follow. The document a successor — or the leadership team — can pick up and run with.

Board-cycle attendance and reporting throughout. Presence at the technology committee, board meetings, and investor sessions during the ninety days. Reporting in your existing format, not ours.

A final handover session. A two-hour session with the leadership team — or the incoming permanent CTO — to walk through everything, answer questions, and confirm the path forward.

Typical outcomes

Most engagements conclude in one of four ways.

A permanent CTO hire is the right next step. The engagement concludes. The artefacts brief the incoming permanent hire and the recruitment cycle proceeds with clarity about what the role actually needs.

An open-ended Fractional CTO retainer is the right next step. We continue under a new arrangement, with the First 90 Days outputs becoming the foundation of the ongoing work.

The internal team is ready to carry the work. The engagement concludes with handover. A senior internal lead steps up, with the roadmap and governance structures in place to support them.

Significant restructuring is needed. Recommendations made, leadership decides path. The engagement concludes with a clear decision framework rather than an immediate next step.

The engagement is designed to end. The question is what follows from it.

How the engagement runs

Ninety days, in three phases.

Phase one — land (weeks one to four). Stakeholder mapping, baseline assessment, immediate stabilisation. By the end of week four, leadership has a written reading of where the business stands and what cannot wait.

Phase two — prioritise (weeks five to eight). Roadmap, governance, board-cycle establishment. By the end of week eight, leadership has a sequenced twelve-month plan and the forums to govern it.

Phase three — hand over (weeks nine to twelve). Implementation status, transition planning, final outputs. By the end of week twelve, the engagement closes — or continues under a clearly different arrangement.

Everything is written before it is said. Nothing reaches the board that has not been reviewed first.

What this is not

An open-ended Fractional CTO retainer. See Fractional CTO for ongoing engagement.

A consulting project with a single output. The engagement is executive presence with defined outputs, not a written report alone.

A permanent CTO role. The engagement is bounded to ninety days; continuation is a separate decision.

Hands-on engineering, implementation, or system administration. The engagement is executive leadership.

The First 90 Days is not a hire and it is not a project. It is a productised executive engagement with a fixed end.

The purpose of the engagement is not to become indispensable. It is to give the business defined senior technology presence for one quarter — and to leave with either a clear continuation, a permanent successor, or a stable team carrying the work forward.

Proof

References available on request. Anonymised excerpts from prior reviews available on request.

What happens next

Start a Conversation

Thirty minutes. We confirm scope, timing, and the moment you are in. You decide whether to proceed. No proposal is sent unless you ask for one.

Start with the Technology Control Assessment — €4,950

A scored framework reading in five working days. The right starting point if you want to test the working relationship before committing to ninety days of executive engagement.

For an open-ended retainer arrangement, see Fractional CTO.

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