North Ark

Fractional CTO & Cloud/AI Advisory

What you're buying: Control

Technology is happening to you. Get back in charge.

Fractional CTO and cloud/AI advisory — back in control, not reacting.

Decisions are being made blind and you're one bad call away from a costly mistake. Consult puts a senior technical brain in your corner — so you're back in control of something you don't have to fully understand yourself.

Monthly strategy calls, cloud and AI roadmap, technology decision support, vendor advice, and priority access when something urgent breaks.

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David Goulding delivers this work directly — senior engineering, not a handoff team.

Is this you?

Problems we solve

  • “Technology feels like it's happening to me — I'm not in control of big decisions.”
  • “I can't afford a full-time CTO but I'm guessing on cloud and AI spend.”
  • “Every vendor says something different about AI and I don't know what's real.”
  • “When something breaks, there's no one qualified I can actually call.”

What's included

  • Monthly strategy calls
  • Cloud and AI roadmap
  • Technology decision support
  • Vendor and tooling advice
  • Priority access for urgent issues

What's not included

  • Hands-on implementation (Engineer, Build, Ship, Automate)
  • 24/7 helpdesk or ticket queue
  • Legal or compliance sign-off

Process

How we deliver

Discovery 2–3 weeks; retainer ongoing (minimum 3 months recommended)

  1. 01

    Discovery

    Systems inventory, stakeholder interviews, pain register.

  2. 02

    Baseline

    Current-state assessment, quick wins, 90-day roadmap.

  3. 03

    Retainer rhythm

    Monthly planning, decision support, review of in-flight work.

Before

  • Reactive tech decisions with no qualified voice
  • AI experiments with no governance or ROI framing
  • Vendor-driven roadmap, no unified direction

After

  • Prioritised roadmap aligned to revenue and risk
  • Clear AI use cases with approval boundaries
  • Senior technical partner in your leadership rhythm

Packages

Fractional CTO

Growing businesses needing ongoing senior leadership

Peace of mind — strategy, roadmap, and decision support

$4,000–$7,000/month

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All prices in AUD. GST applies to Australian clients.

Proof

Related project work

EngineerConsult

VMware to Azure Local — hybrid infrastructure modernisation

Professional services firm, 60 staff

A firm facing VMware renewal pressure needed to modernise without a six-figure consultancy quote. On-prem workloads, remote access requirements, and strict uptime expectations during migration.

  • Renewal cost: Avoided six-figure VMware renewal trajectory
  • Downtime: Zero unplanned outage during migration
  • Documentation: Full runbooks — internal team can operate
Read case study
EngineerConsult

Cloud cost optimisation — 35% reduction without downtime

E-commerce operations, 30 staff

Azure bill had doubled in 12 months with no clear owner. Over-provisioned VMs, orphaned resources, and no tagging strategy — leadership wanted savings without risking production stability.

  • Cost reduction: ~35% monthly Azure spend reduction
  • Downtime: Zero production impact during changes
  • Visibility: Cost per workload — tagged and reportable
Read case study

Common questions

We can't afford a full-time CTO.
A fractional CTO at $4,000–$7,000/month costs less than one bad cloud decision, failed migration, or wrong software purchase.
Our MSP handles IT.
MSPs keep the lights on. Consult sets strategy — what to buy, what to stop, and how AI fits without hype. We work alongside your MSP, not against them.
We just need someone to execute.
That's Engineer, Build, Ship, or Automate. Many clients start with delivery and add Consult as complexity grows — or the other way around.

Often paired with

EngineerAutomate

Ready to get started?

Book a Discovery Call