I work with founders and leadership teams as a fractional CTO, helping them make better technology decisions and ship the work that actually matters.
Fifteen years running an agency taught me that technical decisions are commercial decisions in disguise. The work I take on now is built around that view.
I'm Stephen. I've been building software for over twenty years, running an agency for fifteen, and now using that experience in fractional CTO and technical advisory roles. Over that time I've worked across startups, established businesses, and multi-national organisations, spanning delivery, product, operations, and commercial decision-making.
Most of my work today sits between technology decisions, leadership communication, and the day-to-day reality of running a business.
Running an agency taught me accountability very quickly. When projects slipped, systems became difficult to maintain, or suppliers blamed each other, there was nowhere to hide from the operational consequences. I saw first-hand how poor technical decisions create friction across entire businesses, affecting delivery, staff morale, customer experience, and growth.
Over time, that naturally pulled me toward leadership, planning, and advisory work rather than delivery alone. The pace of change around AI has only increased the need for experienced technical judgement grounded in commercial reality.
Over the last fifteen years I've worked across retail, e-commerce, professional services, property, media, and agency environments, building everything from marketing platforms and internal operational tools through to complex integrated commerce systems.
I worked with Liforme from their pre-revenue stage, building and evolving their e-commerce platform as the business grew into a globally recognised brand. I also worked with Yorkshire Garden Centres for over a decade, supporting multiple sites and eventually consolidating them into a unified Shopify platform that needed to absorb a decade of accumulated store-level operations.
Other organisations I've worked with include Thermos UK, McArthurGlen, Landsec, and EE. Across those engagements I've operated as the developer, technical lead, architect, delivery owner, and CTO, often simultaneously.
I prefer to work with a small number of clients at any one time so I can stay properly engaged in the work and the people behind it. Most of my relationships are long-term because trust, context, and continuity tend to produce better outcomes than short transactional engagements.
I'm not especially interested in performative consultancy culture. I prefer practical collaboration, honest communication, and staying close enough to the detail to make useful decisions.
Stephen has played a critical role in helping turn AskBOB from a commercial vision into a working technology platform. As CTO, he has brought the right blend of technical depth, product thinking and commercial understanding, helping us shape a platform that is practical, scalable and built around the real needs of media owners and advertisers. He has been instrumental in developing the technical direction for AskBOB, including the platform architecture, product workflows and AI-assisted functionality that sit behind our wider ambition to make Out of Home planning and buying simpler, faster and more accessible. What stands out most is Stephen’s ability to translate complex technical requirements into clear, usable products without losing sight of the business outcome. He is not just a developer or technical lead. He operates as a true CTO. He challenges assumptions, improves the product direction and helps build the foundations for a serious, scalable business.
A short call is the best way to see whether this is the right fit.