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Comtau
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Architecture-first technology leadership

From technology decisions toverified, working software

Senior, CTO-level ownership of strategy, architecture, engineering and delivery — with Comtau’s own engineering system to carry the decisions into implementation.

Book a callSee how it works

Why Comtau

An advisor gives opinions.A CTO answers for the outcome.

  1. 01

    Ownership, not opinion

    Explicit areas of accountability, agreed at the start. Decisions are made, written down and owned.

  2. 02

    Architecture first

    Decisions are recorded with options and consequences, and approved before anything depends on them.

  3. 03

    Evidence, not status

    When Comtau builds, each unit of work is scoped, independently reviewed and closed with evidence.

  4. 04

    A straight answer

    We tell you plainly whether Comtau is the right engagement — and if not, what to look for instead.

Who it is for

For companies where technology matters — and someone needs to own it

  • Startups
  • SaaS companies
  • SMEs
  • Investors & acquirers

Companies rarely look for technology leadership in the abstract. They look when one of these starts costing time, money or confidence.

  1. 01No senior technology ownerTechnical decisions are made by whoever is closest.
  2. 02Architecture is limiting growthEvery new feature takes longer than the last.
  3. 03Delivery is unpredictableRelease dates move without warning.
  4. 04Investors need technical clarityDue-diligence requests stall a round or a deal.
  5. 05The AI MVP has to go to productionAI-generated code nobody fully owns.
  6. 06A CTO has leftCritical decisions on hold, context leaving with them.

Services

Four ways to work with Comtau

Start with the shape of the problem. Every engagement is led by a senior CTO or architect.

  1. 01

    Lead

    Ongoing technology leadership that owns the decisions.

    Part-time, remote, packaged or full-time for a defined period — with the accountability of a CTO.

  2. 02

    Decide

    Senior judgement on the decision in front of you.

    You bring the question; you leave with a written, execution-ready recommendation.

  3. 03

    Assess

    Independent, fixed-scope assessments you can act on.

    Scored findings, the evidence behind them and a prioritised plan — before you sign, scale or rebuild.

  4. 04

    Design & build

    Architecture your team can build from — including AI systems.

    Target architecture and documented decisions, with senior architects who stay to support implementation.

How it works

One system from decision to delivery

Comtau builds its own software with AI coding agents inside its own engineering system. The decisions your CTO makes can be carried straight through it — each stage hands a written output to the next.

Technology leadership

  1. 01

    Assess

    Establish the facts about the systems, the team, delivery and the business need.

    Findings and a risk register

  2. 02

    Architect

    Make the architecture and technology decisions explicitly, with options and trade-offs.

    Architecture decision records

Carried into implementation, when agreed

  1. 03

    Decompose

    Break the plan into bounded units of work, each with a stated scope and its checks.

    Scoped units of work

  2. 04

    Execute

    Implement one unit at a time, AI-assisted, in observable sessions a person can stop.

    Working changes, unit by unit

  3. 05

    Verify

    Run the checks, add independent review, and record what was proven.

    Verification evidence

  4. 06

    Hand over

    Close each unit with a handoff note that the next unit, or your team, starts from.

    Handover documentation

AI-assisted, human-controlled
AI coding agents implement each unit in a fresh session from a pinned starting point. An operator can step in, interrupt or stop it at any time.
Stops instead of improvising
When a unit meets scope growth, a failing check, a conflict or a missing approval, execution stops and a person decides.
Independent review
Separate read-only reviews check architecture, security and evidence. Whoever did the work does not sign it off.
People own the irreversible calls
Architecture changes, new dependencies and any release need explicit human approval.

What you keep

Decisions on paper, not opinions in a call

Every area of ownership produces something you can inspect. Context stays with the company, not with one person.

  • Current-state assessment and risk register
  • Technology strategy and roadmap
  • Architecture decision records
  • Team structure and hiring plan
  • Verification evidence per unit of work
  • Handover package, built throughout
See a Fractional CTO’s first 90 days

Architecture Decision Record

Accepted

Move reporting queries off the primary transactional database

Context
Customer-facing reports query the transactional database directly. Heavy reporting load slows checkout.
Decision
Serve all reporting from a read replica. The primary database handles transactions only.
Options
  • rejectedScale the primary vertically
  • chosenRead replica for reporting
  • deferredDedicated analytics warehouse
Illustrative example · not client material

Put someone accountable in charge of your technology

Tell us what is happening. We’ll help you work out which kind of technology leadership you need — and whether that is us.

Book a callExplore Fractional CTO

Direct conversation with a senior CTO/architect. We’ll review your situation and determine the useful next step.

What happens next

  1. 01You explain the situation
  2. 02We identify the technical problem and the ownership it needs
  3. 03We define the useful next engagement