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Erik Larson: Strategic Advisor, Interim CTO, Speaker

Technology team in collaboration
25+ yrs building solutions
7× Chief Technology Officer
8 yrs private-equity advisor
250+ diligence projects
Erik Larson
Erik Larson

I work at the intersection of technology and finance. I've spent my career both inside tech organizations, responsible for whether we release or not, and as that trusted advisor the investors brought in to assess how real is your tech. With a background in education, software, cloud architecture, and tech transformation, I help investors and executives partner to scale and grow.

I've spent my career both inside tech organizations, responsible for whether we release or not, and as that trusted advisor the investors brought in to assess how real is your tech. With a background in education, software, cloud architecture, and tech transformation, I help investors and executives partner to scale and grow.

How can I help?

Same operator. The engagement changes, the judgment doesn’t.

Fractional / Interim CTO Effective Technology Leader

When the money is in and the technology systems, and those responsible for them, are now under the microscope, I step in. I’ve been an interim CTO seven times, so I know what it feels like inside a company in transition, and every one of those engagements ended with a permanent hire in place.

This isn’t a "grade your tech from across the room" role. It’s roll-up-the-sleeves and get hands-on wherever needed. The intersection of team, tech, process, and innovation is where the next winning solutions get built.

Strategic Advisor Experienced M&A Practitioner

Sometimes you don’t need someone to run it. You need someone who’s already seen how it breaks: an architecture review before you write the check, or a board seat because you need an actual nerd in the strategic conversations. Oftentimes it’s a strategy session to clarify priorities and make sure the plan will deliver.

A quarter century of building solutions and 250+ diligence projects have taught me where the opportunities to accelerate are, and where the risks like to hide.

Speaker / Facilitator Engaging Conferences & Events

Most "scale your business" advice skips the part that actually matters: you can’t scale what isn’t proven and repeatable yet. I bring a four-stage model, Prove, Repeat, Scale, Sustain, built from nearly a decade of assessing scalability for private equity investors across 250+ deals, and adapted for operators, technology teams, and speakers alike.

Audiences leave with more than a framework. They leave with a mirror: a short, honest self-assessment they can run against their own business, team, or practice, and a clear next move instead of a stack of slides.

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Which engagement, when?

From early-stage companies → established and growing

Fractional CTO Interim CTO Strategic Advisor
Company stage Seed to Series A Growth / In transition Established, PE-backed, considering an investment or exit
Commitment Part-time, ongoing Fractional or full-time, fixed term As needed
Call when
  • A few engineers (1–5), no shared standards yet
  • Need consistent patterns to prove viability and scale
  • Leadership gap or post-acquisition
  • You need someone accountable now
  • Technical due diligence or cloud architecture
  • You need an outside read
What you get
  • Strategic oversight
  • Mentorship for the team
  • An operator who ships
  • Owns releases, team, and roadmap
  • An outside read before the check clears

I work with businesses at every stage of growth, and the right engagement depends on your needs.

Reach out and we’ll figure out the right fit together.

Common questions

What does an interim CTO actually do?

Steps in as an accountable technology leader during a gap or transition, owning releases, the team, and the roadmap. Not advisory; operational. The job ends when the company has the right permanent leader in place or the transition is stable.

How is an interim CTO different from a fractional CTO?

Interim is a fixed term, typically a leadership gap or post-acquisition; fractional is ongoing, part-time. Either can flex full-time or part-time depending on what the situation needs.

What is technology due diligence?

An independent assessment of a company’s technology, team, and architecture before an investment or acquisition closes. The goal is to surface real risks, including threats to the investment thesis, to scalability, and to profitability, and recommend how to de-risk them.

Who do you typically work with?

Private-equity firms and the portfolio companies they back. On the investor side: diligence, architecture reviews, board advisory. On the operating side: interim CTO engagements guiding a technology organization through transition, which is anything but typical.

What do your talks focus on?

A framework for scale: Prove, Repeat, Scale, Sustain. You can’t scale what isn’t proven and repeatable yet. Sessions run hands-on and interactive, and audiences leave with a short self-assessment they can run against their own business, team, or practice, not just a stack of slides.

How do I engage you?

Use the contact form. Include a one-line project title and which hat fits: CTO, Advisor, or Speaker. I respond to every inquiry personally.

Send me a note