Your Technology Needs Strategic Leadership

The Problem: You Need CTO-Level Thinking, But Not a Full-Time CTO

Your business has grown. Technology decisions are becoming more complex and more consequential. You're facing questions like:

• Should we migrate to the cloud? Which provider? What's the real cost?
• This vendor is pitching us a $200K system upgrade. Is it necessary?
• Our current software can't scale. Do we fix it or replace it?
• How do we protect against cybersecurity threats we don't fully understand?
• We need to integrate five different systems. What's the right approach?

These questions go beyond day-to-day IT support or development—they require strategic technology leadership that a CTO brings to the table.

But hiring a full-time CTO means:

• $180K-250K+ salary plus benefits
• Finding someone with the right experience
• Keeping them busy and engaged full-time
• Significant commitment if it doesn't work out

Most established SMEs don't need (or can't afford) a full-time CTO. They need experienced technology leadership when they need it—someone they can call for trusted advice.

That's what on-call CTO services provide. At GraftPoint, you get both the strategic thinking and the practical hard graft to turn decisions into results.

What Are On-Call CTO Services?

On-call CTO services give you the same strategic technology leadership as a full-time CTO, but on a flexible basis. You get experienced guidance when you need it, whether that's in person at your office or remotely via call or video.

Think of it as having a trusted technology advisor who:

• Understands your business deeply through regular engagement
• Is available when you need them—in person or remotely
• Provides strategic guidance on complex technology decisions
• Reviews vendor proposals objectively (someone on your side)
• Creates technology roadmaps aligned with business goals
• Ensures your technology investments make business sense

You get CTO-level thinking without CTO-level cost or commitment. And you get someone you can actually talk to.

What On-Call CTO Services Include

Strategic Technology Planning

• Develop 1-3 year technology roadmaps
• Align technology investments with business objectives
• Identify opportunities for competitive advantage
• Plan for growth and scalability

Technology Budget Management

• Create realistic technology budgets
• Evaluate ROI on technology investments
• Identify cost optimization opportunities
• Prevent wasteful spending on wrong solutions

Vendor and Solution Evaluation

• Review vendor proposals objectively
• Negotiate contracts and pricing
• Manage vendor relationships
• Ensure vendors deliver what they promised

Security and Risk Management

• Assess cybersecurity posture
• Implement security best practices
• Ensure compliance with regulations
• Create disaster recovery and business continuity plans

Technology Architecture

• Design system integrations
• Evaluate build vs. buy decisions
• Ensure scalable, maintainable solutions
• Prevent technical debt accumulation

Team Leadership and Mentoring

• Guide internal IT team or manager
• Evaluate technical hires
• Set technology standards and processes
• Build team capability over time

What This Isn't

On-call CTO services are not:

• Day-to-day IT support (that's your IT team or managed service provider)
• A developer writing code (though I can oversee development projects)
• An emergency break-fix service (I help prevent emergencies through planning)
• A full-time employee (I'm a strategic advisor available when needed)

I work with your existing IT team, developers, or managed service providers—providing direction, oversight, and strategic guidance. In-person meetings when it matters, phone or video when that works better.

How We Work Together

Monthly Retainer (Most Common)

Ongoing relationship with regular engagement:

Included:

• Fortnightly strategy sessions (in-person or video, 1-2 hours)
• Unlimited email/phone consultation when questions arise
• Vendor proposal reviews (someone on your side of the table)
• Technology roadmap development and updates
• Budget planning and oversight
• Available for ad-hoc advice as issues come up

Typical Investment: $1,000-4,000/month depending on business complexity and engagement level

Best For: Businesses ready to level up their technology capabilities—typically 6-18 months where we work together on strategic decisions while building internal knowledge and capabilities, whether that's training an existing team member or teaching you how to assess options, build context, and balance cost-benefit trade-offs. This is where the real hard graft happens: putting in the work to build sustainable capabilities that last

Project-Based Engagement

Focused engagement for specific initiatives:

Examples:

• Cloud migration strategy and oversight
• Software vendor selection process
• System architecture design
• Security audit and remediation plan
• Technology due diligence for acquisition

Typical Investment: $5,000-20,000 per project depending on scope

Best For: Specific technology initiatives with defined start and end dates

Hourly Consulting

Flexible support for occasional needs:

Examples:

• Review a vendor proposal
• Second opinion on technology decision
• Interview technical candidates
• Advise on specific technical challenge

Investment: Minimum 4-hour block ($800)

Best For: Businesses needing occasional expert input, not ongoing relationship

My Approach

At GraftPoint, I focus on sustainable growth that takes root—not quick fixes or the latest shiny technology. I combine strategic smarts with the hard graft needed to get things done right.

I Start by Understanding Your Business

Technology strategy means nothing without business context. Before making recommendations, I need to understand:

• Your business model and revenue drivers
• Your growth plans and challenges
• Your competitive landscape
• Your budget constraints and priorities
• Your risk tolerance and compliance requirements

I'm not here to sell you technology. I'm here to help you use technology to achieve business outcomes.

I Provide Objective, Vendor-Neutral Advice

I don't sell software. I don't get kickbacks from vendors. I don't push specific solutions.

My only incentive is giving you honest advice that serves your business interests. If a vendor is overselling, I'll tell you. If their proposal has risks they're not mentioning, I'll flag them. If you don't need what they're selling, I'll say so.

You get an advisor on your side of the table, not another salesperson.

I Plan for the Long Term

I'm not just solving today's problem. I'm helping you build a technology foundation that supports your business for years.

Every decision considers:

• How this fits your long-term roadmap
• Whether this scales as you grow
• What this means for future integration needs
• How this impacts your total cost of ownership

I help prevent short-term fixes that create long-term problems.

I Work with Your Existing Team

If you have an IT manager, developers, or managed service provider, I work with them—not replace them.

I provide:

• Strategic direction they can execute
• Expertise they can learn from
• Oversight that keeps projects on track
• Backup when they face unfamiliar situations

Your existing team becomes more effective with proper strategic leadership.

I Communicate in Plain English

No jargon. No technobabble. I translate complex technology decisions into clear business terms.

You should understand why I'm recommending something, what it costs, what benefits it delivers, and what risks exist. If you don't understand my explanation, that's my failure, not yours.

What You Get

A clear 1-3 year technology roadmap that evolves with your business, objective vendor oversight that keeps suppliers accountable, confident answers to build-vs-buy and cloud-vs-premise decisions based on experience not sales pitches, technology spending aligned with business impact and ROI, and the peace of mind that comes from having someone experienced watching your technology, guiding your team, and ensuring you're not alone in making critical technology decisions.

Next Steps

Book a Discovery Call (no charge, 30 minutes) to:

1. Discuss your current technology challenges
2. Identify areas where strategic leadership would help
3. Review your upcoming technology decisions
4. Explain how we'd work together for your situation
5. Provide a proposal for ongoing or project-based support

We can meet in person (Melbourne and surrounds) or via video call—whatever works better for you.

No pressure. No sales pitch. Just an honest conversation about whether on-call CTO services make sense for your business.

You don't need a full-time CTO. You need the right level of strategic technology leadership, available when you need it.

Let's figure out what that looks like.