Hire the Best Fractional Chief AI Officers

I'm a business development and growth strategist with over a decade of experience across telecommunications, energy, health and wellness, healthcare compliance, tech, and media. The common thread across all of it has been helping organizations identify opportunity, build the systems to pursue it, and close the gap between strategy and execution. My background spans both ends of the spectrum. I have directly overseen supply chains and led large-scale marketing campaigns as a Chief Business Development Officer, and been the lead on stage at major tech conferences. I have been directly responsible for the creation of GTM infrastructures from scratch as a Lead Technical Advisor. If you need end-to-end execution, I am comfortable advising in many capacities. I hold a Fractional CAIO (Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer) accreditation from an accredited institution. In practice, this means I help organizations think clearly about where AI creates real leverage in their operations and how to integrate it without losing the human judgment that actually drives outcomes. I believe in human first and human last modalities. On Upwork, I maintain a 100% Job Success Score and Top Rated status. I take on work I can do well, and I see it through. On Upwork, I specialize in Revenue & Growth Strategy Go-to-market development, ICP definition, pipeline architecture, and sales infrastructure. I've built these systems across healthcare, tech, and professional services: including full Apollo/CRM setup and outbound sequence development. Business Development & Sales Lead generation, negotiation, and client acquisition. I work at both the strategic and execution level. I will handle outreach for the right opportunity. AI Integration & Fractional CAIO Services Helping organizations understand where AI creates leverage and where it introduces risk. I design AI-augmented workflows, advise on tooling, and build frameworks that keep human decision-making at the centre of the process. Writing & Strategic Communications Investor decks, pitch scripts, cold email sequences, brand narratives, and content. Clear, specific, and written to sound like a person. I have always communicated that internalizing brand narratives is what makes them authentic and compelling. Authenticity drives credibility. Events & Networking Strategy High-stakes representation and relationship development at conferences and industry events. I understand how to navigate a room, identify the right conversations, and build relationships that carry past the event itself.

I design deterministic AI memory and graph systems for high-stakes, constraint-driven environments. I help organizations turn fragile AI prototypes into governed, production-grade systems—specifically where the core challenge isn't "generating an answer," but reasoning correctly over a complex web of constraints, dependencies, and relationships. Standard AI—vector search, plain LLMs, and basic chatbot wrappers—breaks down here because correct answers rely on strict sequence and relationship logic, not just pattern matching. That is a graph database problem, not a prompt engineering problem. Whether mapping physical dependencies in construction scheduling, synthesizing patents in deep-tech R&D, navigating regulatory compliance in FinTech, or conducting technical due diligence for buy-side M&A, the underlying structural logic is the same. In practice: Construction & Industrial Scheduling | Deep-Tech R&D | Regulated FinTech | Buy-Side M&A Diligence. If your AI cannot verify its relationships, it is a liability, not an asset. Grounded Roots, Elite Architecture Before I designed graph architectures, my roots were on the concrete. I funded my early career working on construction sites, in stamping plants, in a foundry, and managing high-stress production scheduling for commercial print and newspapers. I know exactly what an idle crew, a blown scheduling sequence, or a data-integrity failure costs in hard cash, not theory. That instinct—finding the real, physical constraint rather than the convenient one—is the exact structural instinct I bring to enterprise AI. AI is cheap to experiment with and exceptionally expensive to operationalize poorly. I work at the architecture layer to help leadership determine what to build, buy, or skip—mitigating risk and preventing six-figure infrastructure mistakes before you commit to permanent hires. How I Work on Upwork My work is backed by expert-level Neo4j certifications in graph engineering and graph data science, along with deep Gemini Enterprise implementation experience. I partner with leadership requiring elite AI architecture and delivery execution without the overhead of a permanent, full-time executive. My engagements are structured, high-impact, and outcome-focused. I am available for: Hourly Advisory & Strategic Consulting: Pre-vetted AI SME (active on Tegus & AlphaSights) for quick strategic alignments, architectural reviews, or investor due diligence. Fixed-Price Architectural Sprints: Custom blueprints, ontology design, dependency mapping, and GraphRAG system scoping. Fractional CAIO Retainers: Structured, ongoing advisory to guide your engineering team from prototype to production deployment. Beyond the Stack Former winery owner, sailor, and ski bum. Currently funding my wife's horse-collecting habit to ensure we remain permanently indebted to the local feed store. 📩 Let's build a system that actually holds up. Click "Message" or "Invite to Job" to schedule an initial discovery call.

Not only am I a fractional CMO, I am your strategic bridge between human intent and AI execution 🤝 I’m certified with Google AI and I’m an expert at Claude Cowork and Claude Code If your business is doing $1M+, but your growth has hit a ceiling, you don’t have a talent problem. You have a "Human Glue" problem, the manual, repetitive, and fragile processes that require your best people to act like data-entry clerks just to keep the lights on. I am Mike Volkin. I am a Business Modernizer. I help CEOs and Founders replace operational chaos with autonomous AI pipelines. With a track record of building, scaling, and exiting six companies, I don't just "implement AI tools", I engineer enterprise value. 🏢Why Mid-Market CEOs hire me: Margin Protection: I identify the "invisible leaks" where manual labor is eating your profits. We replace $150k/year administrative overhead with $50/month automation loops. The Founder’s Exit: Most companies aren't sellable because the "system" is in the founder's head. I document and automate your tribal knowledge, turning your business into a turnkey asset. Operational Speed: I build "Centralized AI Knowledge Bases" where your team can find any answer in 5 seconds, not 5 hours. Battle-Tested Leadership: As an Army veteran, I bring military-grade precision to your tech stack. We modernize without breaking what’s already working. 🥇My "Modernization" Framework: The AI Readiness Audit: A deep dive into your current marketing and operations tech stack to find your biggest automation opportunities. The Automation Roadmap: A strategic blueprint for replacing "Human Glue" with autonomous AI agents. Deployment & Governance: Building and overseeing the implementation of custom AI workflows that run 24/7 with 0% error rates. 🚫What I am NOT: I am not a generalist developer or a "prompt engineer." I am a fractional AI and automation strategist for CEOs who realize that "doing things the way we've always done them" is the fastest way to become a dinosaur. Skills: -AI Strategy & Consulting -Business Process Automation -Fractional Chief AI Officer (CAIO) -Business Process Mapping -Operations Management -Generative AI Implementation -Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) -Workflow Optimization -Exit Strategy & Sellability -No-Code Automation (Make, Zapier) 🦸Strategic Fractional CMO: Bridging Marketing & Modern Operations Most companies don't have a marketing problem—they have a "Leaky Bucket" problem. They spend thousands on traffic only for those leads to die in a manual, fragmented sales process. As a Fractional CMO with six successful exits, I don't just focus on top-of-funnel vanity metrics. I focus on Revenue Operations (RevOps). I modernize your entire marketing department by integrating AI and automation into your sales funnels, ensuring that every dollar spent on growth is captured by a high-efficiency machine. When I step in as your Fractional CMO, I take full ownership of your growth strategy and the systems that power it. From architecting AI-driven lead nurturing sequences to optimizing your CAC/LTV ratios, I ensure your marketing isn't just a "cost center," but a predictable, scalable asset. I provide the high-level leadership of a full-time executive at a fraction of the cost, allowing your company to modernize its growth engine while you stay focused on the big picture.

Most organizations don't fail at AI because the technology doesn't work. They fail because they treat it as a project instead of a practice. I've spent 25 years inside companies like Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, and Dropbox watching that pattern play out. Leaders adopt tools without governance. Run pilots without purpose. Chase automation while losing strategic alignment. I founded Rafer Consulting to change that. I work with founders and C-suite executives to bring structure, clarity, and defensible decision-making to their AI strategy. My work typically falls into three areas: AI Readiness Assessment. A structured diagnostic that surfaces where your organization actually stands: governance gaps, shadow AI risks, data classification issues, and readiness to scale. Most clients use this as the starting point before any other AI investment. Executive AI Strategy. Working directly with leadership teams to build a roadmap tied to business outcomes, not technology trends. This includes governance frameworks, executive alignment sessions, and the change management scaffolding that makes adoption stick. Fractional CAIO Engagement. For organizations that need ongoing strategic oversight without a full-time hire. I serve as an embedded advisor, keeping AI decisions accountable and aligned as the landscape shifts. I've delivered programs for organizations including Hard Rock International, and I publish regularly on AI governance and trust. My frameworks, including the Clarity Cycle and Architecture of Trust, are built for practitioners, not theorists. If your organization is moving from AI experimentation to something that actually holds up under scrutiny, I'd like to talk.

𝗠𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗔𝗜 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗱𝗶𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗣𝗢𝗖 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. 𝗜 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁. Companies say they want one person who can set AI strategy, be AI-native enough to build it, lead the engineers who scale it, and deliver product. 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗲. I'm a 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗧𝗢 / 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗲𝗳 𝗔𝗜 𝗢𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀-𝗼𝗻 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿. I lead AI product strategy and architecture, then get into the code: AI agents, RAG pipelines, and automation, plus the observability, guardrails, and governance that keep them alive in production. I separate deterministic infrastructure from probabilistic reasoning so failures are traceable and costs are bounded. 𝗜 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 Cursor, Claude (incl. Claude Code and MCP), OpenAI, Python, and a modern full stack: React / Next.js / Node / TypeScript, Supabase / PostgreSQL, on AWS. I orchestrate workflows with n8n, Make, and Zapier, and ship production voice and agent systems (Retell, Vapi, Twilio) for regulated environments. 𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗜 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱. I set the roadmap, make the build-vs-buy and model calls, stand up evaluation and governance, and bring junior engineers up to deliver. You get a strategist who has actually built the thing, not a deck, and not a coder who's never owned production. 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗔𝗜 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝘀: - 𝗘𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝗥𝗔𝗚 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗲-𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗹 (𝗔𝗕𝗔𝗖): granular, per-user control over what data a chatbot can surface, so RAG is safe in regulated environments. - 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗥𝗔𝗚 𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝗪𝗦 that costs $0 at rest and scales cost with revenue, ingesting email, documents, and file storage. - 𝗔𝗜 𝗱𝗼𝗰𝘂𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗳𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝗹𝗮𝘄 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝗺: automated intake, classification, and review across long, multi-source documents. - 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗔𝗜 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗮 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺: POC to production in 8 weeks, 60% less manual review. - 𝗪𝗵𝗶𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴-𝘁𝗼-𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗽𝗶𝗽𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 that replaced a vendor and saved $3K/month. - 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹-𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲, 𝗥𝗲𝗱𝗶𝘀-𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻-𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗽𝗽 for live conversations. 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗲𝘀: - 𝗔𝗜 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗿, 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗲 (𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲 𝗨𝗦 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗿): own the AI lifecycle and governance for the tooling that QAs course content at scale, evals, guardrails, and human-in-the-loop QA. - 𝗟𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗮𝘁 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗱 that built its first data automation platform. - 𝗟𝗲𝗱 𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺𝘀 𝗮𝘁 𝗠𝗫: financial data automation. - 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗔𝗜 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁, 𝗨𝗗𝗥 (𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗨𝗦 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗘𝗜𝗧𝘀): 3-year engagement leading a team that built AI and automation across the company, from tenant background checks to onboarding to AI alarm monitoring. - 𝗔𝗜 𝗥&𝗗 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱, 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝗹𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽 (𝟳𝟱𝟬-𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗦𝗮𝗻 𝗗𝗶𝗲𝗴𝗼 𝗺𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽): stood up their AI R&D pod and led and upskilled their junior engineers, building healthcare AI like referral automation. - 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁, 𝗩𝗲𝗿𝘁 𝗘𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽: LL97.ai building-emissions compliance SaaS - 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗲𝗳 𝗔𝗜 𝗢𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗿, 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗶 (𝗔𝗜 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝗺 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴): led development of new AI practice - 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗧𝗢, 𝗥𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗔𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀: develop AI practice for an 25-year-old analytics agency - 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗜 𝗢𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗿, 𝗔𝗥𝗘 𝗚𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹: owned strategy, architecture, and a build-ready blueprint for a high touch coaching and consulting firm I work best with companies that already understand 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗔𝗜 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗴𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗮 𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗼 and have decided production-grade AI is what their organization needs. The seriousness matters more than the sector. Regulated, ops-heavy, data-intensive environments are the archetype, 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲 (𝗛𝗜𝗣𝗔𝗔), 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗰𝗵, 𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗮𝗹, 𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀, but I've shipped just as well across 𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆, 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲, 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗲-𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗰𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗮𝗮𝗦 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽𝘀. If your AI has to hold up under real data, real users, and real consequences, 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝗺𝘆 𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗲. 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗱: 15+ years shipping production systems. MBA. AWS Solutions Architect. Led teams and developed automation platforms. Cut inference costs 𝟰𝟬% by restructuring agent architecture. Prevented a six-figure architectural misstep in fintech. Trained 200+ professionals. I run an applied AI reliability lab, so client work is backed by ongoing research.

I help founders and mission-driven teams turn ambitious ideas into shipped, scalable software, and I help established businesses get real value from AI without sacrificing security. I have been writing production code since 2011, long before AI could write it for you. I learned to architect systems, tune databases, and debug the hard stuff by hand, so I know what good looks like and I can tell when AI-generated code is quietly setting you up for a fall. Today I use AI tooling heavily to move fast, but I am steering it from real engineering judgement, not hoping it works. I bootstrapped Smooth Messenger, an SMS integration for Zoho CRM, to 500 B2B customers, sold it to MessageMedia in 2022, then stayed on and grew revenue 10x post-acquisition. Today I am the founder of Focus Bear, a suite of apps helping neurodivergent people thrive at work (20,000+ users), and I am doing a PhD in digital health alongside building it. That mix (founder, operator, acquired-and-scaled, hands-on engineer, active researcher) is what I bring to your project. I have sat in the seat, not just consulted from the sidelines. ==My technical skills:== AWS: I architect and run real production infrastructure on AWS, not toy setups. I have worked across compute, managed services, CDK infrastructure-as-code, and the cost-versus-complexity trade-offs that decide whether a startup's cloud bill quietly kills it. I can right-size your stack, self-host where it makes sense, and use managed services where it does not. Databases: I care about the layer most people ignore until it breaks. Query optimisation, indexing, schema design, and tuning under real load. When an app gets slow at scale, this is usually where the problem lives, and it is where I am strongest. React and front-end: Years of shipping production React in real products, from acquired SaaS to my current 20k-user app. I build interfaces that hold up, not prototypes that fall over on the second click. Full-stack: Node.js and Python across the back end, plus everything that connects it together. I can own a feature end to end, from database to deployed UI. ==What I do as a fractional CTO== Set technical direction and architecture for early and growth-stage products Lead, hire, and mentor dev teams, put sane processes in place, and unblock delivery Take an MVP from zero to launched, or rescue a stalled or messy build Make the boring-but-critical calls (infra, data, security, cost) that keep you alive as you scale == What I do as a fractional CAIO (Chief AI Officer) == Cut through the AI hype and find the use cases that actually move your numbers Create cultural change so everyone in your team feels confident to use AI without worrying about losing their job. Design and ship LLM-powered features end to end (I have built an AI email assistant and shipped AI into a live product, and evaluated providers across OpenRouter, AWS Bedrock, and open models) Set up AI coding tooling and workflows so your team ships faster, with the engineering judgement to keep it from creating a mess ==The Zoho side== A chunk of my career has been deep in the Zoho ecosystem, and I am still one of the stronger people you will find here for it. I wrote a book on Deluge, published multiple Zoho Marketplace widgets, and built Smooth Messenger (the product that got acquired) on Zoho CRM. If your project lives in Creator, CRM, or Deluge, I can architect serious builds and integrations, not just tinker. It is one string to my bow rather than the whole instrument. ==What I care about== I love work that matters. I spent 2016 to 2022 in cleantech (energy efficiency, vehicle efficiency, and off-grid solar for communities without power), and I am happiest partnering with for-purpose ventures: renewable energy, social enterprises, not-for-profits, and health and disability tech. As a neurodivergent founder building for neurodivergent users, I also bring genuine lived insight to accessibility-focused products. If you want a technical leader who can set the strategy and then actually ship the code, let's talk.