From chaos
to CLEAR.
Fractional CTO for founder-led SaaS teams in Europe.
You have a dev team, a backlog, and too many moving parts. Releases slip. Decisions pile up.
You don't need a full-time CTO yet. You need someone who can own the gap between your vision and your team's execution. Someone who keeps your product from breaking under real usage, your team from burning out, and your next hire from being a mistake.
I own the technical decisions and risks. You focus on growing the business.
Based in Bulgaria, EU. Easy sync with Europe and US East.
Hi, I'm Rob
Decisions that don't pile up.
Risks you see before they hit.
A team that can focus.
The problem
The hardest decisions aren't about code
In small SaaS teams, there's a layer of decisions that sit between the tech and the product. Third-party trade-offs. Scope calls. Tooling choices. They need technical depth to evaluate, but product context to get right.
These don't belong to you alone - they pull you away from what you do best. And they don't belong to your dev team - who need focus time to ship.
Someone has to own that gap. Close enough to the code to understand constraints. Close enough to the product to make the right call.
That's what I do.
The framework
The CLEAR Framework
A simple structure for getting unstuck and staying that way.
Clarity on scope
What are we building? What's v1 vs later? What's the trade-off? What does the timeline look like?
Leadership on decisions
Someone owns the gap between founder and dev team. Decisions don't pile up.
Execution rhythm
Set the rhythm for the team. Daily syncs, weekly reviews, sprints. Minimum structure that keeps things moving.
Alignment across team
One-on-ones, team health, everyone pulling the same direction.
Risks visible early
Top 5 risks, updated monthly. No surprises.
What you get
Strategic clarity
Product scope that's realistic. I help you define what v1 (or v-next) actually needs and what can wait. Not a wishlist, but a buildable scope with clear trade-offs.
Options before you're stuck. Build vs buy. This vendor vs that one. Hire now or wait. I map out the paths, surface the trade-offs, and give you a recommendation. You decide with clarity, not guesswork.
AI that actually ships. AI makes it easy to build fast. It doesn't make it easy to build right. If you're exploring AI agents, automation, or internal tools, I help you cut through the hype, pick the right approach, and get to production. I also help teams structure how they use AI for development: where it speeds things up, where it creates risk, and how to build habits that stick.
A hiring filter built on 700+ interviews. When you're ready to grow the team, I run first-round technical interviews. I've conducted over 700 structured technical interviews. I filter for stewards, not just coders: people who'll own outcomes, not just complete tickets.
Operational rhythm
Decisions that don't pile up. Every week, we meet. We go through what's stuck, what's unclear, what needs a call. By the end, you have a decision memo: what we decided, why, what happens next.
Risks you see before they hit. I maintain a short list of the top 5 things that could derail your next release. You always know what to watch. No more surprises two days before launch.
A team that can focus. I take the non-code decisions off your lead dev's plate - third-party coordination, tooling calls, scope questions. They get focus time. You get someone who owns the gap.
Visibility without micromanaging. I use ProjectRecap - a tool I built - to surface what's actually happening in your product: who's shipping, what's stuck, where the patterns are. Stay informed without sitting in standups or reading every commit.
Team health
One-on-ones that surface problems early. I run check-ins with your team - not about tasks, but about how they're doing. Frustrations, blockers, ideas. You hear what people aren't saying in standups. You keep the people you've worked hard to find.
Process that fits your team
Small teams often skip structure because they think they're too lean for it. But no structure means the team lead becomes the process - constantly interrupted, making every small call. That's not lean, it's fragile.
I put in place the minimum structure that creates clarity:
Daily syncs to stay aligned and unblock fast. Short, focused, not a status report.
Weekly reviews to see what shipped, what slipped, and why. Course-correct before small problems become big ones.
Sprints or cycles to focus effort. Clear start, clear end, clear priorities. Not Scrum-by-the-book - just enough to answer "what are we working on this week?"
Estimates by the team, confirmed by the dev. Not for false precision - for surfacing surprises early. When something is bigger than it looks, you know before you've committed to a deadline.
Pipeline and handoff review. I look at how work moves: idea to ticket to code to review to deploy. Where does it get stuck? Where do things wait for unclear reasons? We tighten what matters.
Docs that earn their keep. Not a wiki graveyard. Just the minimum that reduces confusion: decision logs, onboarding notes, architecture basics.
Is this a good fit?
This is for you if:
- You're a founder building a B2B SaaS product with a small team (3-10 people) and at least one person writing code
- You're past MVP with paying customers or have seed funding
- You're based in Europe or the UK
- You're not deeply technical, or you are but you're spread too thin to make every call
- Decisions are piling up. Releases are slipping. Integrations are getting complex. Technical debt is growing.
- You want to stay close to the product. You're looking for a partner, not a handoff.
This is not for you if:
- You want someone to take over completely and report back monthly
- You need hands-on coding or day-to-day ticket management
- You're pre-MVP with no revenue or funding. You need validation first, not a fractional CTO.
- You're a solo founder with no team yet. You likely need a co-founder or hands-on builder.
- You prefer receiving direct instructions over weighing options and deciding together
- Your team is 25+ people. You likely need a full-time hire, not a fractional.
Clients
What clients say
"We wouldn't be anywhere near where we are without Rob. You're in great hands with him."
Beth T., USA
"Robert is really good at thinking up simple ways to make the project those extra few % better than expected."
Stephen P., London
"Excellent communicator."
Philippe V., Brussels
"Quite brilliant. Robert goes above and beyond… I cannot recommend him highly enough."
Ian P., Luton
What to expect
Decision audit: what's stuck, what needs a call now. Risk snapshot: top 5 threats to your next release. Scope check: what can wait, what can't. You get clarity fast, before the full rhythm kicks in.
Full technical audit. We define v1 scope, set up execution rhythm, validate your stack, establish code review workflows and team communication structure. Hiring support if you need it. Ends with a handover document so nothing gets lost.
Fractional CTO on retainer. Weekly decision calls, risk tracking, architecture guidance, hiring input, vendor evaluation. The rhythm is established. We maintain and adapt it as your product grows. Month-to-month after the initial commitment.
Investment
Two ways to work together
Most clients start with the Foundation Build and transition to Ongoing Leadership. Either phase can be booked standalone.
€4,000/month
Full technical audit. Scope definition. Execution rhythm. Stack validation, code review workflows, hiring support, team communication structure. Typically 2-3 months. Ends with a handover document.
€2,500/month
Fractional CTO on retainer. Weekly decision calls, async access, decision memos, risk tracking, architecture guidance, hiring input, vendor evaluation. Month-to-month after 3-month minimum.
Both phases include weekly decision calls, async access, decision memos, and risk tracking. No long-term lock-in, but the CLEAR framework takes 2-3 months to show its full impact.
I work with 2-3 clients at a time. If I'm full, I'll let you know and we can plan a start date.
FAQ
Common questions
Yes - if we focus on high-leverage decisions and risks. I'm not here to grind tickets. I help you avoid the wrong turns that cost weeks and months.
No. I don't run standups, manage your backlog day-to-day, or grind tickets. I focus on the decisions and risks that make shipping easier. If you need someone embedded full-time running delivery, that's a different engagement. Happy to talk about what fits.
I still build my own products, so yes. But in client work, rarely. Only when it unblocks a decision or proves a point. My job is clarity and risk reduction, not ticket execution.
Quick wins in weeks 1-2: decision audit, risk snapshot, scope check. Then we build the full Foundation: technical audit, execution rhythm, stack validation, code review workflows. By end of month 1, the weekly cadence is running and decisions are moving.
Availability varies. Fill out the form below and we'll figure out timing.
One decision-maker. Access to your board and repo. A willingness to make decisions weekly instead of letting them pile up.
I'll tell you. If what you need isn't what I do, I'll say so and point you in a better direction. No hard feelings.
Let's talk
Not a sales pitch - just a conversation about where you are and whether the CLEAR framework fits. Fill out this short form and I'll reply within 2 business days.