Fractional CTO (Client-Facing / Senior Software Engineer)

Company: Alpus Consulting LLC Location: United States (Fully Remote) Compensation: USD $3k-7k/month, approx. part time role depending on client load About Alpus Consulting: Alpus Consulting LLC is a software studio, partnering with clients across Europe and the Middle East—and now expanding in the US. For 7+ years we’ve shipped web, mobile, and AI products for startups and enterprises. Learn more at https://alpusconsulting.com The Role: We’re hiring a Fractional CTO to support our internal CTO and serve as a senior technical leader in client-facing engagements. This is a part-time, fully remote contractor role where you’ll own high-trust stakeholder communication, help clients make confident product and engineering decisions, and ensure delivery stays aligned with business goals. You’ll be the executive-level bridge between clients and our engineering teams—leading discovery, shaping delivery strategy, managing expectations, and translating complex technical realities into clear business outcomes. This is a strong fit if you enjoy consulting-style leadership without taking on a full-time executive role. What You’ll Do: - Lead client-facing technical strategy: join discovery, roadmap, and executive stakeholder calls - Support the Alpus Consulting CTO by owning portions of account leadership: communication, alignment, escalation management - Define and validate product direction: clarify goals, scope, constraints, success metrics, and risks - Shape solution architecture and delivery approach: recommend stack, build vs. buy, integrations, security, scalability, and cost trade-offs - Translate business needs into engineering execution: create clear epics/user stories, acceptance criteria, and delivery milestones - Set delivery expectations: timelines, dependencies, risks, and blockers—communicate early and proactively - Drive clarity and decision-making: facilitate trade-off decisions with non-technical stakeholders and keep projects moving - Produce crisp documentation: meeting notes, action items, decision logs, and executive-ready status updates - Improve delivery operations: lightweight process improvements across discovery → build → launch (without bureaucracy) - Identify expansion opportunities: spot upsell/cross-sell needs (performance, analytics, AI, mobile, security) and support light pre-sales when appropriate - Build long-term stakeholder trust: become a credible, steady technical advisor for key accounts What We’re Looking For: - Native-level English (spoken and written); confident leading calls with US clients and executive stakeholders - 5+ years in senior engineering roles and/or technical leadership (Tech Lead, Architect, Head of Engineering, VP Eng, CTO, Fractional CTO) - Strong understanding of modern software delivery: web, mobile, APIs, cloud infrastructure, data, and AI - Proven ability to translate between business and engineering and align diverse stakeholders - Comfortable with US time zones and communication style - Highly organized and reliable: you close loops, document decisions, and keep teams aligned - Able to work independently in a fully remote environment with minimal oversight Nice-to-Have: - Prior experience with US-based clients and enterprise stakeholders - Background in pre-sales, consulting, customer success, or account leadership - Experience in FinTech, eCommerce, or AI-enabled products - Familiarity with security/compliance expectations (SOC 2, data privacy, regulated environments) Time & Schedule: - Part-time: typically 4-5 hours/week (may vary by client load) - Flexible schedule, with availability for calls in US time zones when needed - Fully remote—based anywhere This is a senior, high-trust role: you’ll represent Alpus Consulting at an executive level for key accounts, and compensation reflects that. We never ask candidates to pay fees or purchase equipment as part of the hiring process.