Clever Goat

SERVICE

Tech advisory / part-time CTO

Senior input for strategic technology decisions — architecture review, vendor oversight, decision support.

Let's talk about your projectWe'll reply within a few days with a concrete proposal.

What we deliver

What this looks like in practice.

Not a full project, but a recurring strategic presence. Architecture reviews, technology choice guidance, vendor and team oversight, decision support for leadership. Weekly or monthly cadence, so tech decisions are made proactively rather than reactively.

Weekly / monthly cadence

Regular 1–1.5 hour meetings with leadership and/or the tech team. Continuous presence, not ad-hoc firefighting.

Architecture reviews

Documented design-decision reviews, ADRs (Architectural Decision Records). Reviewable decision history.

Vendor evaluation

Supplier, SaaS platform, or consultant evaluation. Technical due diligence — we look behind the marketing.

Tech roadmap

Quarterly and annual priorities, milestones, dependencies. The board and the team see the same picture.

Team mentoring

Architecture training, code reviews, 1-on-1s with key people. Your team grows.

Board-level support

Concrete tech input for leadership decisions. Translating technical issues into business decisions for board and exec.

When you need this

This is where we come in.

#01

No full-time CTO

As a leader or founder, you've reached the point where tech decisions don't feel confident: which system to choose, who should build it, how much to invest. You don't have a full-time CTO, but you need someone who decides alongside you.

#02

Vendor selection

You have to choose between a dev shop, a SaaS platform, or a consultant. The proposals all look good, but you can't tell which is real value and which is marketing. An independent expert can spot the issues in hours.

#03

Architecture-level input

You have an in-house dev team, but the problems they face go beyond day-to-day development. Architecture, security, scalability — decisions that need a seen-this-before senior perspective.

A concrete example

What an engagement looks like in practice.

Anonymised, illustrative project example.

Starting point

A Hungarian manufacturer's leadership wants an AI transformation; no CTO, just an IT manager.

Weeks 1–2

Onboarding

Business workshop with leadership, stakeholder mapping. Three main tech goals identified: production optimisation, customer-facing AI, internal automation.

Weekly cadence

Strategy & decision support

Weekly 1-hour meeting, documented ADRs, board-level roadmap. Vendor evaluation for the deciding moments.

Quarterly

Strategic review

Comprehensive strategic review each quarter — what keeps focus, what drifts, recalibrate priorities.

6+ months

Self-sufficiency

The IT manager confidently leads the initiated projects, with board approval and independent vendor contracts.

Outcome

Multiple AI projects launched, vendor traps avoided, leadership more confident in tech-strategy decisions.

FAQ

Common questions

How often do we talk?

Usually a weekly or bi-weekly 1–1.5 hour meeting plus a deeper monthly review. Plus ad-hoc Slack/email for urgent decisions.

What specifically can you help with?

Architecture reviews, technology choices, vendor evaluation, team mentoring, decision support for board/exec. Strategic tech-level work — not day-to-day developer tasks.

How long is the engagement?

Usually a minimum of 3 months so the framing is meaningful. Monthly flexibility after that — we continue or pause based on need.

If you work with competitors, isn't that a conflict?

Within any one industry I work with at most one anchor project at a time. NDA and exclusivity terms recorded separately before we start.

Get in touch

Have a project in mind?

Let's talk about it. We'll reply within a few days, and a 30-minute call will tell us whether we're a fit.