ALL SOLUTIONS / FRACTIONAL CTO
Fractional CTO services for companies that need senior technical leadership now
A part-time CTO from Latin America who owns your architecture, your engineering roadmap and your technical hiring, on US hours. CTO-level judgment in the room today, without committing to a full-time executive before your company needs one.
TRUSTED BY TEAMS WHOSE CLOUDTASK HIRES HAVE STAYED 5 TO 8 YEARS
How it works
How do I hire a fractional CTO?
You do one thing: interview. We handle everything else.
Post the role
5 minutes. The role, the motion, the tools, the comp band. That is all we need to start.
Review your matches
3 to 5 matches in 48 hours.
Interview and hire
We coordinate interviews. On Managed Staffing, we also handle payroll and compliance across LATAM.
WHY TEAMS TRUST CLOUDTASK
What you get with every hire
CTO-level judgment, part time
A CTO who sets the architecture, the engineering standards and the roadmap, for the share of the week your stage actually needs.
Your hours, your team
Latin America and the Caribbean overlap the US working day, so decisions, reviews and unblocks happen while your team is working.
Screened on a live call
Every candidate is screened on a live call against your brief, the stage of your company and the scope you need covered, before you see a profile.
Replacement guarantee
24 months on Managed Staffing, 6 months on Direct Hire. If the fit is wrong, we replace the person, so your technical direction does not stall while you start over.
WHY CLOUDTASK
Staffing with numbers behind it
10,000+
hires placed
since 2016
85%
still in seat
past 90 days
24 months
replacement guarantee
on Managed Staffing
12
countries
across Latin America and the Caribbean
THE HARD PART ABOUT HIRING
Why companies wait too long for a CTO, and what a fractional one changes
Most companies need CTO-level decisions long before they can justify a full-time CTO. A fractional CTO closes that gap.
The Problem
Hiring a full-time CTO takes months and a senior executive package, often before the product can support one.
The Fix
You get 3 to 5 matches in 48 hours and bring in technical leadership for the share of the week your stage needs.
The Problem
Founders end up making architecture, vendor and hiring calls alone, and pay for them later in rework.
The Fix
A fractional CTO owns those decisions, explains the tradeoffs and writes them down for the team that comes next.
The Problem
Developers or an outside agency ship without a technical owner, and quality depends on who happens to be available.
The Fix
A fractional CTO sets the standards, reviews the work and holds everyone who builds your product to the same bar.
PRICING MODEL
Managed Staffing.
Managed Staffing is open to every role we place. We find the person, handle payments and compliance, and stay involved after the hire with check-ins, visibility, and escalation when something is off. You get the person. We keep the machine running. For roles that create demand, outbound SDRs, BDRs, demand generation and full-cycle AEs, Managed Staffing runs on a six-month minimum term.
Pay
One all-in monthly rate
Per person. That is the number, and there is nothing added to it.
In the monthly rate
- Sourcing from the CloudTask staffing and recruiting company
- Screening and vetting
- Matching coordination
- Worker payments
- Compliance and employment administration
- Onboarding support at day 0, 7, 30 and 60
- Ongoing check-ins with the hire and with you
- Time and activity tracking, on by default
- Performance escalation
- 24-month replacement guarantee. Replacements not capped.
- Health benefits available on request
- Equipment benefits available on request
Stays with you
- The work itself
- Priorities and direction
- Who you hire
$299 to start your search. One time, not a subscription. It applies to your buyout or toward your first placement.
Start your searchPRICING MODEL
Direct Hire.
Direct Hire is open to every role we place. We find the person, vet them, and hand them over. You employ them, you manage them, you own the relationship from day one. Roles that create demand usually land here, because live call feedback and daily coaching work best coming straight from your sales leader, and there is no minimum term.
Pay
20% to 30%
Of first-year base salary. One time, quoted per role, paid when they accept.
In the fee
- Sourcing from the CloudTask staffing and recruiting company
- Screening and vetting
- Shortlist of matched candidates
- Interview coordination
- Offer support
- 6-month replacement guarantee. One replacement, same job description.
Yours when they accept
- Employment and payroll
- Compliance and employment administration
- Ongoing management
- Time and activity tracking
- Health benefits and equipment benefits
$299 to start your search. One time, not a subscription. It applies to your buyout or toward your first placement.
Start your searchHow CloudTask compares
Run the numbers. We did.
The same role, three ways to fill it.
Swipe to compare
| US Direct Hire | Staffing Agency | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Time to First Interview | 48 hours | 3 to 6 weeks | 2 to 4 weeks |
| Payroll & Compliance | Included on Managed Staffing | You manage | Included in rate |
| Vetting Process | Human + AI verified | You screen | Recruiter screened |
| Candidate spam | Screened out before you see a profile | Common | Low |
| Tool Verification | Verified per candidate | Self-reported | Rarely verified |
| Free Replacements | 24 months on Managed Staffing, 6 months on Direct Hire | None | Variable |
Testimonials
Trusted by teams that hire with us
-
LATAM has been a gold mine for talent. Our CloudTask hires understand our company culture and mission, and they connect with our customers in a way that drives high NPS and CX scores.
David Barrett CEO, Expensify -
At first we were an SF-based team only. Then I met Amir Reiter back in 2018. After visiting Medellín, I knew LATAM would be key to our growth and success.
Tim Zheng CEO, Apollo.io -
After meeting my CX and CS team in Medellín, we immediately loved the culture and the work ethic. As a European-HQ company, we found LATAM to be perfect to service our American clients.
Carl Carell CRO and Co-founder, GetAccept
HIRING GUIDE
How to hire a fractional CTO
A fractional CTO gives your company senior technical leadership for part of the week, without a full-time executive hire. This guide covers what the role does, when it makes sense, how it compares to the alternatives, what to check before you hire one, and how CloudTask matches you with a fractional CTO from Latin America.
What is a fractional CTO?
A fractional CTO, or fractional chief technology officer, is a senior technical leader who works with your company part time and takes on the responsibilities of a chief technology officer: technical strategy, architecture, engineering standards and the technical side of hiring.
The difference from a consultant is ownership. A consultant advises and leaves. A fractional CTO is part of your leadership team, is accountable for technical outcomes, and stays involved week after week.
What does a fractional CTO do?
• Sets the technical strategy and the roadmap that supports the business plan.
• Owns the architecture and the build, buy or outsource decisions.
• Defines engineering standards, reviews and release practices.
• Leads technical hiring: which roles, in what order, and who gets the offer.
• Represents technology in front of investors, customers and partners.
In a company without engineers yet, a fractional CTO also chooses the first stack and the first hires. In a company with a team, they lead it.
When does a fractional CTO make sense?
When technical decisions are piling up faster than anyone on the team can make them well: a first product build, a platform that has outgrown its original architecture, a move from agency to in-house engineering, or a due diligence process that needs a credible technical owner.
It also makes sense as an interim CTO after a CTO leaves, as a way to keep the team moving while you decide what the permanent role should look like.
Fractional CTO, full-time CTO or CTO as a service?
A full-time CTO is the right answer once technology is the core of the business and the team is large enough to need a leader every day. Before that point, a fractional CTO gives you the same level of judgment for the hours you actually need.
CTO as a service can mean a firm that assigns whichever advisor is available. Through CloudTask you interview and choose one named person, who works with your team week after week.
Is a CTO higher than a VP of Engineering?
Usually, yes. The CTO owns the technical strategy and the long-term direction; the VP of Engineering runs the engineering organization and its delivery. In smaller companies one person often covers both.
A fractional CTO at an early stage typically does both jobs, and helps you decide when to hire a dedicated engineering manager or VP.
What are the risks of hiring a fractional CTO, and how to reduce them?
The common risks are availability, context and commitment: decisions waiting for the next session, a leader who does not know the product well enough, or someone spread across too many clients.
You reduce them by agreeing the scope and the hours up front, setting a regular rhythm with the team, writing decisions down, and hiring someone whose working day overlaps yours. Hiring through CloudTask adds a replacement guarantee on top: 24 months on Managed Staffing, 6 months on Direct Hire.
What to check in the interview
Ask the candidate to walk you through a system they designed and a decision they would make differently today. Strong technical leaders talk about tradeoffs, constraints and the team, not only about technology.
Then describe your current situation and ask what they would do in the first 30 days. You will hear whether they listen before they prescribe, and whether they can explain technical choices to people who are not engineers.
Red flags in fractional CTO candidates
A rewrite as the first answer. Proposing to rebuild everything before understanding why it was built that way is expensive and rarely necessary.
No opinion on hiring. A CTO who cannot say which roles to hire first, and why, will leave the team to grow by accident.
Technology without the business. If every answer is about tools and none is about customers, revenue or risk, the roadmap will drift from what the company needs.
Nothing written down. Decisions that live only in someone's head leave with them.
How much does a fractional CTO cost?
It depends on the scope, the hours, the seniority and the country the person works from. Two days a week of architecture and hiring is a different engagement from a CTO who also runs the team every day, so the number follows the scope you agree.
Through CloudTask there are two ways to structure it. Managed Staffing is one all-in monthly rate for the scope you agree, with payments, compliance and replacement cover inside it. Direct Hire is a one-time fee, and the CTO joins your payroll. We quote it before you interview anyone.
How CloudTask hires for this role
You tell us the stage of the company, the technical challenges, the scope and the hours you need covered. We come back with 3 to 5 matched profiles within 48 hours, each one screened on a live call against that brief.
You interview and choose the person who will lead your technology. On Managed Staffing, CloudTask handles payments, compliance and onboarding and checks in with both sides; on Direct Hire, the CTO is on your payroll from day one. A replacement guarantee applies on both: 24 months on Managed Staffing, 6 months on Direct Hire.
FAQ
The fine print, in plain terms.
Does CloudTask place fractional CTOs?
What is the difference between a fractional CTO and a CTO consultant?
Can a fractional CTO build and lead our engineering team?
Is there a minimum term?
What is the $299 for?
Why is there no number on the monthly rate?
Who is the legal employer?
How does tracking work, and can I turn it off?
What happens if the person does not work out?
Is there a platform or subscription fee?
Ready to hire?
3 to 5 matches in 48 hours. Start with a quick role brief to get your shortlist.