Mark Batty (Fractional CTO)

PAYG CTO

Providing commercially focused technical leadership as a fractional CTO, guiding early-stage organisations to align business goals with product development and customer experience, driving the growth of their software enabled solutions.

Chief Technology Officer (CTO)

Fractionals United

Active member of a global community of fractional leaders, collaborating together to share knowledge and experiences, fostering mutual learning, advice, and support.

Member

Stealth-mode Startup

Bubbl Ltd

Head of Technical Delivery

PRQA

Senior Project Manager

NSB Consulting

United Vanning Ltd

Project Manager

Softectra Solutions GmbH

Head Of Development

Nexus Telecom

R&D Manager

Nortel Networks

Development Team Lead

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

With 30+ years of experience in software engineering, technical management, and strategic leadership, I have consistently guided B2B/SaaS organisations from product launch to efficient scalable growth.

As a CTO, I drive commercially focused technical leadership, achieving key results including:

•	Funding: secured £500K in R&D grants to enable innovative research initiatives 
•	Costs: achieved 20% reduction in development costs and 25% in operational expenses
•	Efficiency: enhanced system performance by 35% and team productivity by 15%
•	Retention: transformed high turnover to zero in demanding environments, including COVID

CAREER AND EXPERTISE

A former senior full-stack developer with extensive background in architecture, design, numerous languages, and complex systems building APIs, cloud, desktop, mobile, n-tier, SDKs, and plugins.

I began my software engineering career in the pre-internet era, honing my engineering skills for 18 years before transitioning into technical management within global corporations for 5 years.

Over the last decade, my leadership as a CTO in early-stage organisations has specialised in B2B software products and services across diverse industries.

In navigating the critical stages of product development and early growth, my approach includes:

•	Lead development: prioritise effort using iterative prosect feedback to address critical needs
•	Accelerate onboarding: simplify early adopter journey and refine product with user feedback
•	Refine PMF: adjust strategy via detailed feedback and trends fostering agility to meet demands
•	Cultivate growth: develop roadmaps for scalable growth and UX as the customer base expands
•	Scale efficiently: architect scalable systems and streamline development practices for efficiency
•	Optimise revenue: harness technology to refine monetisation and initiate new revenue streams
•	Enhance efficiency: implement tools and processes to boost efficiency and product performance

My leadership philosophy prioritises human centred transparency and honesty to fuel continuous improvement. I am committed to nurturing inclusive, innovative cultures where individuals thrive, teams and organisations operate efficiently, and where customers transform into advocates.

What is the PRIMARY job of a CTO?

Hint: it is not building software!

I won’t spoil the surprise – you’ll have to read the short carousel.

How would you describe the job of a CTO?

🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹
ℹ️ About me here: https://lnkd.in/dK3XBPUG

#strategy #technology #leadership #startups

The primary job of a CTO

I'm sharing this because some of you will have known him... and also to say thanks.....

When I was still at school, my Dad would take me out conferences and events. He worked as a Marketing Communication Manager for companies like Klippon Engineering, Amphenol, so there were lots of them!  Over those early years, he would introduce me to people like Terry Hewett & Shobhan Gajjar and many many others who I later went on to work with myself... Without that mentorship, coaching, support, love and encouragement, I would not be the man I am today... so THANKS DAD!

So if'd you'd have bought him a beer, please consider put some beer money towards helping others who might also be suffering from Parkinson's in the same way and say:

"Cheers Norm, it was nice knowing you!"

https://lnkd.in/ezp7q3Z8

Thanks

Andy
#parkinsons

Friday is (usually) fun day – but today I’m feeling happy and sad at the same time.

I was searching for something in my calendar and found an entry in 2013 that changed my life.

My wife and I had been living in Switzerland for almost 12 years; it was incredible, neighbours who became our closest friends, beautiful landscape in almost every direction, and snowboarding almost every week in winter and monthly in the summer on the glaciers.

My father visited us a few times, he loved the annual Blues and Jazz festival in Rapperswil, and as an old-school grafter, sitting by the lakes with a cold beer in a hot summer was paradise.

In a few short months before September 2013, I had to fly back to the UK several times to check on my father who was repeatedly rushed in and out of hospital.

We eventually learnt he was terminal and a serious of complications meant he required full time palliative care. After a long and difficult conversation, we made the decision to move back to the UK so I could provide that full-time care.

These were challenging times, I was in the UK refurbishing my fathers house to make a clean room downstairs for medical equipment and to become his new home, and my incredibly amazing wife was effectively abandoned to manage the soul-destroying packing and move of our furniture and belongings.

My father was a strong, traditional working-class man, and given only a few months to live, he fought hour after hour, day after day, surprising everyone when he passed peacefully almost 18 months later.

It wasn’t always sad, between the weeks of comas, intubation, and drug-induced craziness, we managed some good laughs, a surreal Christmas, and the humbling but fun shout of “You P@*CK” every time I did something wrong.

When I began writing this 20 minutes ago, I was feeling quite dark and sad when the memories came flooding back, but I’m also feeling proud of my father, eternally indebted to my wife for all her support, and happy with the memories of cold beers and well-deserved insults.

It’s strange how the darkest moments in life can also put a smile on our faces.

Have a great weekend everyone and spend time with your loved ones while you still can.

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This is your last call to register: https://lnkd.in/gwaHa3ue

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In Loving Memory: The 5-Country, 1-Day Pub Crawl.

When we lived in Switzerland, my parents used to visit us once or twice a year. My mum remarried and came with her husband, my father came with his drinking buddy.

Dad was an old school grafter, a steel erector and welder all his life; his idea of heaven was a few beers in the sun with good music.

Fortunately, Switzerland has great summers with an annual blues 'n' jazz festival in Rapperswil; we enjoyed it several times over the years, usually with too much food and beer!

On one visit, memories of our traditional UK pub crawls came up - and the adventure began. Switzerland is bordered by five countries, and after a quick check of routes and distances, we had a plan.

We calculated we could drive through four of the borders and make it home in one day (5 countries including Switzerland); to make it more interesting we agreed to drink only locally brewed beer.

We set off very early with a drive to the North, stopping at the border for our first beer in Switzerland before crossing into France (more beer), then a short drive East into Germany (even more beer!).

Then we drove for what felt like an eternity, hugging the Southern German border and heading East into Austria... and then, yep - hiccup... more beer!

After that was a short drive South-West into Liechtenstein – no beer. At the time (~2006) I don’t think Liechtenstein brewed its own beer, so we settled for a local wine – at least it was alcohol, disaster averted!

And then we headed home in the dark of night, just in time to wind down with a well-deserved Cognac.

I should note and thank (more than thank) my amazing wife! I drove the very easy first leg, after which my wife had to cope with hundreds of miles and three progressively drunker companions.

Although I’ve lost both parents in recent years, memories like this not only keep them alive but also bring a warm smile to my face.

What memories make you smile and keep you warm?


How to know you need a fractional CTO.

There are 'hidden' signs throughout your business - like secret codes that jump out to seasoned professionals.

See for yourself in the carousel.

What other 'hidden signs' have you seen? Let me know 👇

🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹
 🚀 Ready to accelerate your B2B tech growth?
💬 Book a 30-min call for 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 advice to learn more!
ℹ️ Learn about me here: https://lnkd.in/ersyQ7Cf

#fractionalcto #management #leadership #technology #entrepreneurship #startups

Fractional CTO Insights - 5 Hidden Signs

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗲𝗹𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝘀.

Here’s a snapshot of my work and home life.

👨‍💼 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗕𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱

• Full-stack software development for 18 years
• Technical management in corporates for 5 years
• Technical leadership in early-stage B2B for 10 years
• Industry agnostic software products and services

🚀 𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸

• Unlocking B2B tech growth with technical leadership
• Advancing early adopters through PMF to growth
• Human-centred commercially focused leadership
• Fractional CTO services: https://www.paygcto.com/

🧑 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗕𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱

• Born in Poplar, a cockney with distinct dialect
• Based in Surrey outside South West London
• Regularly travelled, lived 12 years in Switzerland
• Inquisitive, energetic, monkey in Chinese Zodiac

🏠 𝗛𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲

• Married to a beautiful princess and soul mate
• Health: running, weights, swimming, martial arts
• Adventure: snowboarding, scuba, bungee, flying
• Cooking, wine, espresso, mechanical keyboards

🖊️ 𝗟𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗲𝗱𝗜𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁

• Write about strategic technical leadership
• Sometimes life, the universe and everything
• Repost is best if you like my content
• Will reply to every message but not spam

Strategic thinking: slow down to speed up!

Many of us have heard the phrase, but the profound impact and long-term benefits are often underestimated by leaders.

Particularly in B2B tech companies, it is crucial to constantly monitor and adapt processes and tools to streamline the flow of information to enhance product development and delivery.

However, this can be a tough sell. Some leaders can only see the short-term impact of change - the initial costs, the temporary decline in performance, and the disruption to routines.

Yet, if these initial challenges are managed wisely, they lead to significant long-term gains in efficiency and productivity.

It sounds wrong, but it works - think about the inconvenience of roadworks to widen a busy single lane into a more efficient dual carriageway.

It requires strong leadership, planning, and a shift in mindset, but leaders who cultivate patience and a vision for the future understand that sustainable progress comes from foundational improvements.

The ability to embrace and implement strategic slowdowns is crucial; without them, an organisation will plateau before reaching its full potential.

Leaders who adopt this mindset will drive their organisation past this plateau, achieving levels of success that would otherwise be impossible.

Have you successfully passed a plateau? Let me know how 👇

🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹
 🚀 Ready to accelerate your B2B tech growth?
💬 Book a 30-min call for 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 advice to learn more!
ℹ️ Learn about me here: https://lnkd.in/ersyQ7Cf
 
#fractionalcto #management #leadership #technology #entrepreneurship #startups

Is your product missing the mark with customer needs?

Despite regularly releasing new features, your user engagement and retention rates remain low. Even your free trials fail to attract interest.

A staggering 42% of startup failures are due to poor market fit, highlighting the urgent need for your product to swiftly evolve in response to customer demands.

The path to market alignment is challenging, with obstacles including resistance to change, the need to harness actionable intelligence, and the requirement for strategic pivots based on real-time market feedback.

With over a decade driving B2B growth, my approach turns these obstacles into opportunities for success, fostering and continuous improvement with:

 🔹Customer validation: Engaging with all stakeholders to deeply understand their needs, establishing a continuous feedback loop for actionable insights.
🔹Strategic alignment: Collaborating with leadership to ensure product development is in line with business goals, focusing on market impact and growth.
🔹Iterative development: Promoting flexible methodologies that allow for continuous iteration based on feedback, aligning with both current needs and future expectations.

The market waits for no one. It’s time for your product to not just meet but exceed market demands.

What challenges have you encountered in achieving market fit? Share your experiences in the comments below 👇

🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹
Align your tech with market needs to drive growth now! Schedule a discovery call to explore how I can help.
 
#fractionalcto #management #leadership #technology #entrepreneurship #startups


You release new features regularly, but user engagement and retention are slowing down?
 
In the worst case, they trail off into obscurity. You offer free trials to stimulate interest – but nothing is working!
 
A recent study found a staggering 42% of startup failures can be attributed to poor market fit!
 
Driving B2B tech growth for 10 years with strategic technical leadership, my approach to solving these problems include:
 
 🔹Customer validation: engaging with all stakeholders to fully understand their needs and establish continuous feedback for actionable insights.
 🔹Strategic alignment: working closely with leadership to ensure product development is aligned with business goals focused market impact and growth.
 🔹Iterative development: adopting flexible methodologies for continuous iteration based on feedback to meet current needs and future expectations.
 
Your product must evolve with changing markets, it must adapt to survive. There will be obstacles - resistance to change, identifying actionable intelligence, and making strategic pivots.
 
My approach, fostering agility with open communication for continuous improvement, helps to transform barriers into stepping stones on the road to success.
 
The market will not wait for you - it’s time your product not only meets but exceeds market demands.

What challenges have you seen in finding market fit? Let me know in the comments 👇

🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹
🚀 Want to align your tech with market needs?
💬 Book a 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 advisory session to explore how!
ℹ️ Learn about my work here: https://lnkd.in/ersyQ7Cf

#fractionalcto #management #leadership #technology #entrepreneurship #startups


𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗮 𝗖𝗧𝗢 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸𝘀: Technical Strategy in Early Growth

Let’s use this fun quote to explain (I’m unsure of the source):

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘢 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘤 𝘯𝘶𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘴.

Yesterday, I explained the primary job of a CTO is to ensure technology strategy serves business strategy (link in comments).

Our role is business focused, but we specialise in software/technology and how to align it with business goals.

We consider many attributes of a system, some include scalability (to handle growing demands), performance (the efficiency of execution), and throughput (the processing rate).

In our example, we have a highway to hell for lots of bad people, and only a stairway to heaven for the few good people.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝗳 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆, 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗱𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱?

Our ‘system’ has two parts, each designed for specific needs. It seems a global change from bad to good people was never considered - how sad.

Some options could be upgrading the stairway to a high-speed escalator, splitting the highway into one lane for good and one for bad, or swapping them so the good people use the highway.

For each of these, we also need to consider risk management, contingency planning, innovation, cost, and so on.

We don’t work alone, we need close cooperation with the rest of the business.

Marketing to ensure it is growth and in demand, product management to ensure ‘customers’ receive the best experience, and key stakeholders to ensure commercial goals are met.

The example may be improbable and challenging. But identifying improbable scenarios and designing efficient solutions that meet both demand and commercial goals is all in a days’ work for a CTO.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗱? Let me know in the comments 👇

🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹
ℹ️ About me here: https://lnkd.in/ersyQ7Cf

#strategy #technology #leadership #startups


Are you a bunny boiling micro-manager?

Initially, I planned to post this last week, but with Easter weekend full of cute bunnies, I thought it best to wait before sharing thoughts of boiling bunnies!

I was reflecting on the fine balance between guidance and control, and then remembered the term ‘bunny boiler”.

This was popularised in the film “Fatal Attraction” and describes an extreme form of possessiveness and manipulation.

In leadership, it highlights a significant risk where the desire for control can easily slide into destructive micromanagement.

Leadership relies on emotional intelligence to recognise our impact on individual well-being and team dynamics.

Micro-management can block innovation, lower morale, and reduce performance. It is a reminder that the strength of our people and teams are not just in their skills, but also their autonomy and sense of value.

My focus as a fractional CTO is nurturing environments where trust and empowerment are fundamental. This fosters stability, cultivates innovation, and drives sustainable growth.

Have you seen micromanagement? How did you address it? Let me know in the comments 👇

🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹 🔹
🚀 Ready to accelerate your B2B tech growth?
💬 Contact me now for a 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘 session to begin!
ℹ️ Learn about my work here: https://lnkd.in/ersyQ7Cf

#fractionalcto #management #leadership #technology #entrepreneurship #startups


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