Strategic guidance
Strategic Guidance is technology leadership for organizations that need senior judgment on platform decisions, vendor selection, AI strategy, or digital governance. Without a full-time CTO hire. Engagements range from focused audits to ongoing monthly retainers via our Fractional CXO offerings.
How we approach it
Senior judgment, plain language
Recommendations get explained in language your board, your team, and your funders can act on. No jargon for jargon's sake.
Mission-first technology choices
Every recommendation gets back to what your organization is trying to do. Not what the technology vendor wants to sell.
Honest cost accounting
Total cost of ownership modeled openly: licenses, hosting, staff time, opportunity cost, environmental footprint.
Documented for the board
Strategy artifacts are designed for the audience that has to sign off. Funders, governance committees, leadership.
What's included
- Technology audit + roadmap
- Vendor + platform evaluation (CMS, CRM, hosting, AI vendors)
- AI readiness assessment + use case prioritization
- Security + privacy posture review
- Accessibility compliance plan
- Budget modeling + ROI cases
- Board + funder presentations
- Ongoing Fractional CTO / CSO / CAIO retainers
Who it's for
Non-technical founders + EDs
You're making technology decisions that need senior input, but you can't tell good advice from a vendor pitch.
Teams pre-RFP
You're about to issue an RFP and want the requirements, evaluation criteria, and shortlist to actually be sound.
Boards needing third-party validation
A major technology decision needs an outside perspective the board trusts. Separate from staff and vendors.
What it costs
Discrete audits and roadmap engagements start around $10K. Ongoing Fractional CXO retainers start at $4K/month (CSO + CAIO) and $5K/month (CTO).
Common questions
Is this consulting or implementation?
Strategic Guidance is the strategy + judgment layer. Implementation happens through our Custom Development and Team Expansion practices. Or through your in-house team or another partner, with us providing the technical oversight.
How long does an engagement typically run?
Audit + roadmap engagements run 4–8 weeks. Fractional CXO retainers typically run 6 months minimum, with most extending to multi-year partnerships.
What if you recommend we don't work with you for the build?
We do, regularly. Strategic Guidance is honest advice first. We've routed builds to other partners, recommended in-house development, and told clients to delay technology investment that wasn't ready.
Ready to talk through it?
Book a free discovery call. We'll talk through what you need, what we'd recommend, and whether we're the right fit.