Tech Health Check
Fixed price in £, agreed upfrontYour systems, data, security, spend and suppliers reviewed. A short report and a 90-day plan, presented in person in London or on a video call.
Ask about this →Your business runs on tech. Nobody's in charge of it.
These are the problems founders and owners bring me. If one sounds like you, it's exactly what I fix.
“Our agency builds what we ask for, but nobody asks if it's the right thing.”
An independent senior view on what to build, buy and stop.
“Investors want a tech due diligence, and we're not ready.”
I get you ready for it, and sit in the room when it happens.
“The board wants a tech strategy and a budget.”
A 12-month roadmap and budget the board can sign off.
“Cloud and software bills keep climbing.”
An audit of every subscription and cloud bill, and a plan to cut them.
“Everyone's talking about AI. Where do we even start?”
AI on two real jobs, set up safely and within UK GDPR.
“Our developers need a lead, but a full-time CTO is too soon.”
I lead the team a few days a month, and help you hire.
“A big client sent a security questionnaire we can't answer.”
Security basics, Cyber Essentials and GDPR put in order.
“Our numbers live in a dozen spreadsheets.”
One live dashboard that updates itself.
“We're growing, and our tech is holding us back.”
A plan, and someone senior to deliver it.
Free · 2 minutes · nothing stored
How healthy is your tech?
Ten yes-or-no questions I'd ask on day one. Answer honestly: your answers never leave your browser.
At the end you get a score, your gaps and a quick fix for each.
Question 1 of 10
Tip: press Y or N
A senior CTO, only for the days you need.
A full-time CTO in London costs about £140,000 a year before recruiter fees, and takes months to hire. Most growing businesses don't need one yet. They need senior decisions, made well, a few days a month, by someone who isn't selling them anything.
Hire a full-time CTO
~£11,700 a month, all in, before recruiter fees
- Months to find, hire and onboard
- Recruiter fees, often 20–30% of first-year salary
- A permanent role, for what is often part-time work
Leave it to your agency
Hidden in every quote and change request
- Each supplier advises on its own work
- Nobody looks at the whole picture
- You end up in the middle, making the calls
Bring me in
Fixed monthly price in pounds, agreed before we start
- 2, 4 or 8 days a month, on site in London when it matters
- Travel to London included: no expenses on your invoice
- 20 years: banks, the Commonwealth Games, NGOs, a launch into China
- Impartial: I don't resell software or take supplier commissions
- Starts within a week. Three-month minimum, then month to month
Full-time figure: average CTO base salary in London of about £121,000 (Payscale, 2025), plus around 15% employer National Insurance and pension, divided by 12.
Four ways in. Fixed prices.
No CTO on your team yet? That's the seat I fill.
AI Quick Start
Fixed price in £, agreed upfrontAI set up on two jobs your team does every day, like replies, reviews, quotes or admin. Plus a one-page AI policy that keeps client data private, and a team session.
Ask about this →AI & Data Sprint
Fixed price in £, agreed upfrontYour data connected and put to work: a live dashboard, AI on two or three real workflows, a UK GDPR-safe policy.
Ask about this →Fractional CTO
Fixed price in £, agreed upfront2, 4 or 8 days a month, on site in London when it matters. Strategy, suppliers, data, hiring, security and roadmap. Three-month minimum.
Ask about this →Fixed prices in pounds, with travel to London included. Invoiced from Spain with no VAT added (UK reverse charge). Every engagement starts with a fixed written proposal. On the Costa Blanca? Spain prices →
Tested on three continents
20 years. 3 continents. One route.
Banks, the Commonwealth Games, highly regulated industries, NGOs and startups. Tap a stop.
Proven where it can't fail.
Bank-grade·Games-scale·Startup-fast·Internationally tested
12M page views a dayCommonwealth Games 2018
On the official Games site I led.
~5K bank usersAccenture · Banking
On one bank's Google Cloud platform I architected, under regulation in NL, the EU, Australia and Brazil.
Data platform leadRNW Media · NGO
Built on Airflow, BigQuery and Metabase.
0→1 built from zeroCTO · Suru
A music platform working across Europe and Asia.
Call to first result in under two weeks.
A 30-minute call
Free, on a video call. You tell me what's slowing the business down.
A fixed proposal
Within two days: scope, price and what you'll have at the end.
We start
Usually within a week, in your office or remote, with plain-English updates and decisions you can act on.
Take something with you.
Free guide · 1 page
AI quick wins for small businesses
12 everyday jobs to hand to AI this week, and 5 things never to paste into it. In plain English, ready for your team.
Download the guide
For partners & boards · 2 pages
My CV
Twenty years of roles, stacks and results, from the Commonwealth Games to banking cloud platforms to Suru.
Download my CV
About
Engineer. Data artist. Your CTO.
I don't do ties or jargon. I do clear decisions: what to build, what to buy, what to switch off. I treat data like raw material and shape it into dashboards, decisions and products people actually use.
British, based on the Costa Blanca in Spain, a short flight from London. In your office when it matters, remote the rest.
Before you book
What is a fractional CTO?
A senior technology leader who works with you a set number of days a month. You get the judgment of a CTO, the person who decides what to build, buy and fix, without a full-time salary.
Are you in London?
I'm British and based on the Costa Blanca in Spain, a short flight away. I'm in your office for the days that matter, like kick-offs, workshops and board meetings, and remote the rest. Travel is included in my UK prices.
How do you invoice?
In pounds, as an independent business registered in Spain. No VAT is added to the invoice: VAT-registered UK businesses account for it under the reverse charge.
What about UK GDPR?
Before I see any personal data, we sign a data processing agreement that covers UK GDPR. I work inside your systems wherever possible and keep no copies.
Do you write code?
When it helps, yes. Mostly I lead: I set the approach, manage developers and agencies, and make sure what gets built is right for the business.
Are you an agency?
No. You work with me directly, and I have no software to resell, so my advice isn't tied to a product.
Let's talk.
A free 30-minute video call. Tell me what's on your mind and I'll reply within one working day.
alex.noakes@gmail.com