CyberZen Consulting™

Fractional CTO, CISO & AI Officer

Senior technology, cybersecurity or AI leadership on a monthly retainer.

Senior technology or cybersecurity leadership on a monthly retainer.

Engage Fractional LeadershipAll services
Fractional CTO ↓Fractional CISO ↓Fractional Chief AI Officer ↓
Division

CyberZen Consulting™

Duration

Monthly retainer

Ongoing, with a written 90-day plan in the first month

Delivery

Embedded executive

Remote-first, on site for key meetings

Pricing

Monthly retainer

Priced by role, time allocation and meeting cadence

The problem we solve

Organizations need executive technology judgment without a full-time hire.

Growing companies and regulated programs hit the same wall: technology, security and AI decisions are piling up faster than anyone on the team is qualified to make them. Customers send security questionnaires no one can answer. Boards and investors ask for a roadmap and a risk picture. AI pilots start but never reach production. A full-time CTO or CISO can take months to recruit and is a large fixed cost. A fractional leader fills that seat now, sets direction and builds the foundation your eventual full-time hire will inherit.

Choose the seat you need to fill

Each role is led by a senior practitioner and backed by the full CyberZen delivery team when the work goes beyond advice.

Technology leadership

Fractional CTO

Owns your architecture, technology roadmap and engineering execution, and represents technology to your board and investors.

  • Technology roadmap and architecture decisions
  • Build-vs-buy, vendor selection and cloud-cost oversight
  • Engineering hiring, team structure and delivery cadence
  • Technical due diligence for fundraising and M&A

Best for: growth-stage companies scaling a product or platform without a full-time CTO.

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Security leadership

Fractional CISO

Builds and runs your security program, keeps you audit-ready and gives customers and regulators a named owner for security.

  • Security program, policies and risk register
  • Compliance readiness: SOC 2, ISO 27001, NIST CSF, CMMC, HIPAA
  • Zero-trust roadmap and incident response planning
  • Security questionnaires and customer assurance

Best for: regulated or enterprise-selling organizations that need a security leader before a full-time one is justified.

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AI leadership

Fractional Chief AI Officer

Owns AI strategy, governance and adoption so pilots become production systems with measurable return.

  • AI use-case portfolio ranked by return and risk
  • Responsible-AI policy aligned to the NIST AI RMF
  • Model, data and AI-vendor risk review
  • Staff enablement and adoption tracking

Best for: leadership teams under pressure to adopt AI who want a clear plan and guardrails.

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Outcomes

  • Executive-level technology, security or AI leadershipA named leader who makes decisions, not just recommendations.
  • Board-ready reportingClear status, risk and investment updates your board and investors can act on.
  • A maintained roadmap and risk registerKept current every month, not written once and shelved.
  • Audit and customer readinessFaster answers to security reviews, questionnaires and due diligence.
  • A smooth path to a full-time hireRole definition, interview support and handover when you’re ready.

Deliverables

  • 30/60/90-day planWritten in the first month from an assessment of where you are today.
  • Strategic prioritiesThe short list of what matters most this quarter, and why.
  • RoadmapTechnology, security or AI roadmap tied to budget and business goals.
  • Action registerOwners, due dates and status for every commitment.
  • Risk registerScored risks, treatment plans and accepted-risk sign-offs.
  • Decision logWhat was decided, by whom and on what basis — useful for auditors and successors.
  • Executive reportsMonthly leadership summary plus quarterly board materials.

How an engagement works

Step 1

Fit call

30 minutes to confirm the role, scope, time commitment and who the leader reports to.

Step 2

First 30 days

Assessment, stakeholder interviews, quick wins and the written 90-day plan.

Step 3

Ongoing leadership

Standing leadership meetings, decisions, vendor and team oversight, monthly reporting.

Step 4

Scale or transition

Adjust the allocation as needs change, or hire and hand over to a full-time leader.

Pricing

Monthly retainer priced by allocation and meeting cadence. Most clients start at one level and adjust as needs change.

Advisory

On-call executive

Monthly leadership session, board prep and on-call guidance for key decisions.

Core

Part-time leader

Weekly leadership cadence, owns the roadmap and risk register, manages vendors and team priorities.

Embedded

Interim executive

Multiple days a week in your team, for audits, launches, fundraising or a leadership gap.

Pairs well with a Strategy Sprint up front, or with Modernization Factory™ and AI Agency™ teams when the plan calls for hands-on delivery.

Common questions

How is this different from hiring a consultant?

A consultant advises and leaves. A fractional leader holds the role: attends leadership meetings, makes and records decisions, manages vendors and reports to the board on an ongoing basis.

Can one engagement cover both CTO and CISO?

Yes. Smaller organizations often combine technology and security leadership into one retainer, then split the roles as they grow.

Will you help us hire a full-time replacement?

Yes. We help write the role, interview candidates and hand over the roadmap, registers and decision log so nothing is lost.

Do you work with regulated and public-sector organizations?

Yes. Our leaders bring experience with compliance frameworks and zero-trust programs common in regulated and government environments.

Put an experienced leader in the seat this month.

Tell us which role you need and where things stand. We’ll recommend the right allocation, or start with a free AI audit.

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