Advisory
Regular access for founders, senior executives, investors, advisors and engineering leaders who want an experienced second opinion on important decisions and difficult problems.
Call me before you make the expensive decision.Most startup engineering problems aren’t new.
The pattern may be familiar, but the business stakes are specific to your company. I help founders, senior executives, investors and engineering leaders understand what is really happening, what it means for the business and what to do next.
Tell me the problemStart with the signal
| What you can see | What may be underneath | First question |
|---|---|---|
| Busy engineers | Work is too broad | What can be made smaller? |
| Slow delivery | A bottleneck elsewhere | What is actually holding work up? |
| Big technology bet | Cost of being wrong | What gets expensive if we’re wrong? |
| Uneven AI use | Uneven team adoption | Is the whole team getting better? |
| Scaling pains | Roles or structure | What does the next stage require? |
You don’t need a perfect brief.
Send a few lines about what you’re seeing, what changed and the decision or outcome at stake.
[email protected]- Start with the signalDescribe the visible problem and why it matters now.
- Find the causeUse the first conversation to understand what is really limiting progress and which trade-offs matter.
- Make the next step clearLeave with a better view of the problem and the next decision.
I’ve actually done the job.
I’ve written the code, designed systems, hired teams, managed performance, changed team structures, dealt with technical debt, missed deadlines, shipped products and sat in leadership meetings trying to work out what to do next.
Software engineer Founder & CTO Consumer technology CTO YC-backed Head of Engineering Engineering leader working with AI
About Dan and The Startup CTOWhat are you trying to fix?
Start with what you can see in the business or team. Each route suggests a useful starting point, not a pre-written answer.
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Engineering isn’t working as well as it should
Email Dan about thisDelivery is slow, quality is inconsistent, ownership is unclear, or Product and Engineering are not working well together.
Starting point: Engineering Health Check—an independent view of delivery, quality and ownership -
You need confidence in a big technology decision
Email Dan about thisArchitecture, technical debt, infrastructure, build vs buy, a vendor choice, a senior technical hire—or an investor needing an independent view of technology risk.
Starting point: Technical Strategy Review—options, risks and a clear recommendation -
Your team needs to get serious about AI
Email Dan about thisMove beyond scattered usage. Improve how work gets done, spread effective practice, set clear boundaries and measure business and engineering outcomes.
Flagship starting point: AI Engineering Review—a team-wide adoption plan -
You need to build a better engineering organisation
Email Dan about thisHiring, team structure, management, progression, performance, quality and leadership expectations.
Starting point: Organisation Review—clear roles, structure and hiring priorities
How I can help
Bring the decision or problem that matters. We’ll work out what is happening, explain the business and technical trade-offs, and make the next step clear.
Focused reviews
An independent review of a specific problem, leaving you with a plain-English explanation, the important evidence and a practical plan. The work can cover AI adoption, team health, delivery, organisation, technology strategy or hiring.
Deeper work
For unusually strong-fit, limited-scope or future opportunities, tell me what you need. Deeper work starts with a conversation, not a standard package.
Is AI making this engineering team measurably better?
The flagship AI Engineering Review turns scattered use into a practical plan: how work should change, where risk sits, what leaders need to enable and how progress will be measured.
Discuss the AI Engineering Review- Understand todaySee how the team uses AI now and where it could make a meaningful difference.
- Create the conditionsSet practical boundaries, support the team and spread effective ways of working.
- Measure and moveTrack outcomes that matter and sequence a practical 90-day plan.
How I think about engineering teams
Teams should understand why the work matters, own the outcome, maintain high standards and avoid unnecessary process. These are strong defaults, applied with judgement.
- Give engineers the problem, not just the ticket.
- Making work smaller is the easiest lever for speed.
- Clear boundaries create speed.
Tell me what you’re seeing.
A few honest lines are enough. We can work out the shape of the problem together.