Fractional CTO & Technology Advisor
Independent technology
strategy for retailers,
PE portfolios, and investors.
I work with mid-market to enterprise retailers navigating platform decisions, PE-backed portfolio companies building technology capability, and investment teams who need independent due diligence before they commit.
Trusted by teams at
What I do
Three ways I work with leadership teams
Every engagement is shaped around a specific decision or transition. I work at the intersection of strategy and execution — close enough to the detail to be useful, senior enough to hold the full picture.
AI & Platform Opportunity Audit
Clarity on where AI and platform decisions create genuine leverage.
For
Retailers, scale-ups, and enterprise teams evaluating AI tools, replatforming, or technology consolidation.
The problem it solves
Too many vendor pitches, too little independent perspective. Decisions stall or go sideways without someone who has seen this before from multiple angles.
Likely outcomes
- Clear view of where AI or platform change creates real business value
- Shortlist of credible options with honest trade-off analysis
- Decision-ready brief for your board or leadership team
Engagement: 2–4 week structured engagement, fixed-fee
Transformation Blueprint
A credible programme plan — not a strategy deck that lives in a drawer.
For
Businesses planning a major platform migration, operating model change, or multi-workstream digital transformation.
The problem it solves
Transformation projects fail when the plan is built on vendor promises and internal optimism. Most consultants hand over a deck and disappear.
Likely outcomes
- Sequenced programme roadmap your team can actually execute
- Vendor shortlist and procurement framework
- Resourcing model, risk register, and business case
Engagement: 4–8 week engagement, or ongoing advisory retainer
Fractional CTO Advisory
Senior technology leadership embedded in your business.
For
Growing businesses that need experienced technology leadership but are not at the stage where a full-time CTO makes financial or structural sense.
The problem it solves
Without a senior technology voice, decisions default to the vendor, the developer, or whoever shouts loudest. Strategy and execution drift apart.
Likely outcomes
- Consistent senior technology perspective across the decisions that matter
- Vendor relationships managed with commercial discipline
- Team capability built over time, not dependent on a single person
Engagement: Ongoing monthly retainer — typically 2 days per week
Where I operate
18 years building and rebuilding technology for commercial businesses
My perspective comes from operating inside the businesses I advise — as CTO, Head of Engineering, Platform Lead, and Technical Director. I've led teams through re-platforms, acquisitions, market expansions, and the messy middle of organisational change.
See where I've workedIndustries
E-commerce, retail, media, marketplaces, automotive, health & wellness
Capability areas
Platform architecture, AI readiness, vendor selection, team capability, delivery leadership, data strategy
Scale
Series B to ASX-listed. Teams of 5 to 200+. Revenue from $10M to $2B+.
Platforms I've led decisions around
VTEX, Salesforce Commerce Cloud, Shopify Plus, BigCommerce, Adobe Commerce, custom headless builds, Contentful, Segment, Braze, Snowflake
Selected work
What this looks like in practice
Retail & E-commerce · Fractional CTO — 9 months
Re-platforming a $200M+ multi-brand e-commerce operation
Led the technology strategy and vendor selection for a major Australian retailer moving from a monolithic legacy platform to a composable commerce architecture — without disrupting peak trading.
Retail & Consumer · Transformation Blueprint + Advisory — 5 months
Unifying customer data across a fragmented retail ecosystem
Designed and led the implementation of a customer data platform strategy for a national retailer with 12 disconnected data sources and no single view of the customer.
Marketplace & Technology · Fractional CTO — 12 months
Building the technology function for a high-growth marketplace
Stepped in as Fractional CTO to establish engineering capability, architecture, and delivery practices for a Series B marketplace platform scaling from 50 to 200+ employees.
Latest thinking
Insights
What a Fractional CTO actually does (and when you need one)
The fractional CTO model is growing in popularity, but the role is often misunderstood. Here's what it actually involves, when it works, and when it doesn't.
AI in retail: separating what works from what's theatre
After advising several retailers on AI adoption, here's what I've seen actually deliver results — and what tends to be expensive distraction.
How to choose an e-commerce platform without getting it wrong
Platform selection is one of the highest-stakes technology decisions a retail business makes. Here's a framework for making it well.
Advising retailers, PE portfolios, and investors on technology that creates value.
Whether you're evaluating a replatform, building technology capability in a portfolio company, or need rigorous due diligence ahead of an acquisition — I bring an operator's perspective to decisions that matter.