Working with me as a fractional senior engineer

The fractional model sits somewhere between hiring a full-time senior engineer and bringing in a consultant for a specific project. You get ongoing technical leadership - someone who knows your codebase, understands your business context, and can guide architectural decisions - without the commitment and cost of a permanent hire.

For many teams, especially those in growth phases or with technical debt to address, this arrangement offers the right balance of expertise and flexibility.

What fractional means in practice

When I work with a team as a fractional senior engineer, I'm not just parachuting in to fix a specific problem and leave. I become a consistent part of your technical operations, typically working with you between 12 and 16 days per month.

This means I attend relevant standups and planning sessions. I review pull requests and help establish coding standards. I'm available for the questions that come up during normal development work. I understand not just your code, but your team dynamics, your business constraints, and the context behind the technical decisions you've made.

Over time, I become genuinely useful in ways a short-term consultant can't be. I know which parts of your system are fragile. I know which team members are strong in which areas. I know the history behind that weird workaround in the payment module.

How it differs from consulting

Traditional consulting engagements are project-focused. You have a problem, you bring in an expert, they solve it (or help you solve it), and then they're done. That model works well for defined challenges - a codebase audit, a specific refactoring project, an architectural review.

Fractional work is relationship-focused. The goal isn't to complete a project and leave; it's to provide sustained technical leadership that grows with your team. The problems we tackle evolve as your product evolves. The value compounds over time as I understand your system more deeply.

This also means fractional work requires mutual commitment. I'm reserving significant capacity for your team, and you're committing to a sustained engagement. It's not something to start casually - but for teams that need it, it's more valuable than any single project engagement could be.

When fractional makes sense

The fractional model tends to work best in specific situations:

Growing teams without senior technical leadership. If you have capable mid-level developers but lack the architectural guidance to scale effectively, a fractional senior engineer can fill that gap while you build your permanent team.

Startups navigating rapid growth. When your product is taking off and technical decisions have long-term consequences, having experienced guidance prevents the architectural mistakes that become expensive later.

Teams with technical debt to address systematically. Legacy code doesn't get cleaned up in a single sprint. Sustained attention over months, with someone who understands both the debt and the business context, produces better outcomes than intensive but short engagements.

Organizations that can't justify a full senior hire. A full-time staff engineer costs well over €100k per year when you factor in benefits and overhead. If you need that expertise but not full-time, fractional is the obvious alternative.

What a fractional engagement looks like

Practically, a fractional arrangement means we work together consistently, typically three or four days per week. The exact rhythm depends on your needs - some teams prefer concentrated blocks, others prefer distributed days.

I participate in technical planning and help prioritize work. I review significant pull requests and provide architectural guidance on new features. When there's a difficult problem to solve, I'm available to pair with your developers or tackle it directly.

We'll establish regular check-ins - usually weekly - to discuss priorities, review progress, and adjust our focus as needed. Between scheduled sessions, I'm reachable for questions that can't wait.

For pricing and scheduling details, see my monthly collaboration options. Fractional engagements typically use the 16-day monthly arrangement, though 12 days can work for some situations.

Background

I've been building backend systems since 2009, focusing primarily on Laravel and Symfony. I've worked with startups from early stage through acquisition, helped agencies deliver complex client projects, and supported established companies through major technical transitions.

I maintain open source packages with over 300,000 downloads, and I've seen what happens when codebases are built with care versus when they're not. That experience informs how I approach both greenfield development and legacy system improvement.

Getting started

If you're considering fractional senior engineering support, let's have a conversation. I'll want to understand your current team structure, the technical challenges you're facing, and what you're hoping to achieve.

There's no cost for the initial discussion - it's how we determine whether this model makes sense for your situation. Some teams benefit more from focused daily engagements on specific projects; others need the sustained involvement that fractional work provides.

Reach out and tell me about your team. We'll figure out what would actually help.