The CTO a startup couldn’t hire just yet
This digital-health startup had a great idea, early customers and a small junior tech team — but no senior technical leadership at the helm. For twelve months, we played the role of CTO: architecture, hiring, health-data security, and fundraising preparation.
- Client
- Confidential
- Industry
- Digital health · Startup
- Region
- Geneva, Switzerland
- Context
- Early-stage, junior technical team
- Services
- Fractional CTO (CTO as a Service)
- Duration
- 12 months · recurring engagement
Fast growth, no technical compass
The founders came from healthcare, not technology. The product was growing fast, but every major technical decision kept being postponed — and the debt piled up, threatening to slow everything down.
- Non-technical founders, architecture decisions postponed.
- Technical debt slowing down every new feature.
- Sensitive health data, high compliance requirements.
- Investors demanding serious technical due diligence.
A CTO on every front
Rather than one-off advice, we took on the responsibilities of a technical director, at the pace the startup needed.
Re-architecting the platform to absorb growth.
Defining roles, technical interviews and upskilling.
Protecting health data and applying best practices.
Technical prioritization aligned with business strategy.
Monitoring, CI/CD and platform stability.
Preparation and support during fundraising.
Twelve months, step by step
A fractional CTO engagement evolves with the startup. Here is how our role shifted over the year.
- Month 1Audit & priorities
Technical assessment, risks and a 90-day action plan.
- Quarter 1Foundations
Stabilizing architecture, security and setting up CI/CD.
- Quarter 2Team
Hiring key profiles and a shared way of working.
- Quarter 3Scaling
Performance optimization and growth readiness.
- Quarter 4Fundraising
Technical due diligence and Series A support.
A startup ready to grow
By the end of the engagement, the startup had a structured team, a solid platform and the confidence of its investors.
We had a good idea and a small team, but no senior technical expertise. Codally played the CTO role without us having to hire one full-time: architecture, hiring, security, and even our fundraising. A partner, not a vendor.
Need technical leadership, without the cost of a full-time CTO?
We take the technical helm for as long as it takes.