The Argument: Why Fractional CTOs Shouldn't Charge by the Hour
The Argument is a recurring column where we take a clear position on how technical work should be done — and make the case for it.
Product Teams & Partners
Everything about who builds with you and how you work together. You’ll find advice on cofounders, early hires, agencies, contractors, nearshore/offshore teams, incentives, and collaboration patterns that keep everyone aligned on outcomes instead of output.
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Before You Hire a Software Developer for Your Startup, Read This
Most founders who come to me about software development have already made the decision. They have a budget, a rough idea, and a timeline. What they need, they think, is someone to execute. That moment — right before the first conversation with a developer — is where most startup software projects go wrong.
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Why Outsourcing Software Development Fails Most Startups
Most founders who've been burned by an agency tell the same story. The timeline slipped, but not catastrophically. The deliverables were hit, more or less. The handoff happened. And then they were left holding a product they didn't fully understand, built on decisions they weren't consulted on, by people who had already moved on to the next contract. That's not a horror story. That's the outsourcing model working exactly as designed.
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Welcome to Def0x: Building Startups from Zero to Market
Def0x is a small, specialized unit built on a simple observation: the founders who get burned by agencies and freelancers don't have a technology problem. They have an ownership problem. Nobody they hired was invested in what happened after delivery. This blog documents what we've learned building alongside founders who needed more than a vendor.