All mentors

Ross Boardman

I am a fractional CTO mentor for high-performing founders and leaders | 25 years experience. 🚀 3x startup to IPO.

Manchester, United Kingdom (+00:00 UTC) Englishfrom Manchester, United Kingdom
Usually responds in 18 hours
$200 / hour
Price per hour
30 min60 min
Time Blocks Available
5.00
20 reviews / 24 sessions
Wed
21
Next availability

✨ Ross is truly a mastermind at pinpointing what’s essential for growth! 🚀 In just 30 minutes, he illuminated the path on how to strategically prioritize and execute 📊📈. His golden tips on task prioritization, weekly planning, and using data/assumptions (and then re-evaluating with real data) were game-changers! 🧠💡 If you’re aiming to scale your startup successfully, Ross is THE MENTOR to go to! 🌟🙌

Ab Advany

Amazing. Super insightful - delivered the cold hard truth and provided actionable takeaways. Ross is the man!

Kevin Jia

Ross is straight to the point, no BS kind of mentor. He spent an hour of pouring information and experience into me. Ross knows what he is talking about. His examples, track record and straight to the point answers to my questions speaks for itself. He has been there and I am grateful I could learn from him.

Pavel Karpisek

Bio

I help businesses get CTO expertise without the cost of a full-time CTO salary. 3x startup to IPO. An excellent background in shipping digital products for many, many startups but experience also includes THG, LADBible Group, Orka Technology Group, Ultimate Performance, Myprotein, Nintendo, Disney, Argos, ASDA, Tesco, LADBible, Honda, Manchester United, Phones4U, NBrown and Unilever. "A powerhouse of structure and strategy, accountability, focus and process to get sh*t done. In the best way possible for our business, our clients and the health and happiness of our teams.The perfect mix." - COO, Digital Agency "I could not recommend Ross enough, any business would benefit from his supportive and impactful input, a true leader, I would follow him through hell and back." - Technical Director, eCommerce "Tireless in his quest for greatness, unwavering in his demand for quality, always focussed on providing best value to the business. When you're up against it, you want this man in your team. A remarkable individual, if a bit scruffy." - Technical Director, Software "Ross has shown an unparalleled level of commitment, expertise, and dedication that has significantly contributed to our company's growth and success." - Marketing Director, Nutrition Expertise? - I'm an experienced CTO, ask me anything - Strategic Technology Leadership - Scalable Expertise - Technology & Product Roadmap Development - Software Development Solutions - Outsourcing Management and Strategy - Minimum Viable Product (MVP) Development - Project Delay Resolution Services - Technical Debt Reduction Strategies - Efficient Resource Allocation - Optimised Agile Project Delivery - Digital Transformation - Talent Acquisition and Team Building Support - Technical Leadership Development Programmes - Data-Driven Decision Making Frameworks - Customer-Centric Technology Solutions - Operational Excellence Consulting - Future-Proofing Your Business

Expertise

  • Bootstrapping

    I played a pivotal role in the leadership team that guided a startup to become the UK's fastest-growing company through a successful bootstrapping process, culminating in the largest tech IPO the country had seen since 1985. As a mentor, consultant, and coach, my foundational belief is 'bootstrapping before borrowing'. This philosophy has enabled me to assist startups in prioritizing profitability from their inception.

  • Building a team

    With a talent for scaling teams, I've fostered growth in numerous startups, notably leading technology, software engineering, product, UX, and creative departments in one venture. I excelled in managing recruitment, onboarding, and training, catapulting a team from 2 to a formidable 150. As a mentor, I bring my extensive experience to guide startups on their journey to significant growth and success.

  • Conversion rate optimisation

    Expert in conversion rate optimization, I have honed my skills over many successful campaigns, driving exponential growth for various businesses. With a data-driven approach, I turn visitor traffic into customers, pushing profitability. As a mentor, I offer my comprehensive CRO expertise to guide startups towards efficient and effective growth strategies.

  • Customer success

    As a seasoned leader in customer success, I've championed customer-centric cultures in numerous businesses, driving retention, and enhancing loyalty. My strategic insights have led to measurable improvements in customer satisfaction, increased retention and business growth. As a mentor, I share my proficiency to guide startups in creating successful and impactful customer journeys. It also helps that my wife is a Customer Success director!

  • Data science

    With a rich background in data science, I've utilized advanced analytics to drive strategic decisions in numerous businesses. My expertise lies in turning data into actionable insights, fostering efficiency and growth. As a mentor, I offer my extensive data science experience to help startups to "Measure What Matters" and leverage data for improved decision-making and operational efficiency.

  • Design / UX

    With a solid background as a UX designer, front-end software engineer and later a Chief Experience Officer, I've crafted intuitive, user-centric experiences across numerous platforms. I've leveraged my design and coding skills to create digital solutions that delight users and drive business growth. As a mentor, I share my deep UX design and engineering expertise to help startups optimize their digital interfaces for maximum impact.

  • Mindset coaching

    As former Chief Digital Officer at Ultimate Performance, the world's leading personal training business, I honed my craft in mindset coaching over three years. I've guided many through transformational journeys, cultivating resilience, focus, and drive. As a mentor, I share my comprehensive expertise, helping startups develop the mindset necessary for exceptional performance and growth.

  • Product management

    With robust experience in product management, I've guided numerous product journeys from inception to market success. My acumen in aligning business goals with user needs has been instrumental in driving growth and customer satisfaction. As a mentor, I leverage this expertise to guide startups in crafting stellar products that resonate with their audience and boost their bottom line.

Toolkit

  • Google Analytics logo

    Google Analytics

    As a seasoned Google Analytics user, I've adeptly leveraged this tool to understand user behavior, measure performance, and shape the strategic direction of numerous businesses. My proficiency in turning raw data into actionable insights has led to informed decision-making and business growth. As a mentor, I share my comprehensive Google Analytics expertise to help startups make data-driven decisions for increased success.

  • Looker Studio (Google Data Studio) logo

    Looker Studio (Google Data Studio)

    Having extensively used Google Data Studio, I've excelled in transforming data into compelling and meaningful visualizations to drive strategic decisions. My expertise lies in extracting insights from complex datasets and communicating them effectively. As a mentor, I share my rich experience with Google Data Studio, helping startups harness data's power to optimize their business strategies.

  • Jira logo

    Jira

    With a wealth of experience in Jira, I've successfully managed complex projects, streamlined workflows, and fostered team collaboration in multiple business environments. My proficiency in utilizing this robust tool for agile project management has played a key role in driving efficiency and productivity. As a mentor, I share my comprehensive Jira expertise, assisting startups in enhancing project management and team coordination.

  • Optimizely logo

    Optimizely

    Armed with significant experience in using Optimizely, I've excelled in driving conversion optimization and personalization strategies for various businesses. My skill in A/B testing and experimentation has directly contributed to improved user experiences and growth. As a mentor, I offer my comprehensive Optimizely expertise to guide startups in creating more effective digital experiences.

Experience

  • Boardman

    Founder & CEO

    Boardman provides board-level technology leadership to UK mid-market companies — fractional CTOs, CIOs, CISOs and CAIOs for businesses scaling toward Series B, enterprise expansion, or exit. The model is built around a simple idea: most scaling companies need a CTO's judgement long before they can justify a CTO's salary. We provide that judgement on a fractional basis, senior people embedded for a few days a month, backed by a platform that handles governance, board reporting and assurance, so continuity never depends on a single individual. As founder, I lead the firm's direction, client advisory work, and the associate network that delivers it. Day to day, that means: - Setting technology strategy for clients preparing for Series B technical due diligence - Building compliance and security posture (SOC2, ISO27001) that unblocks enterprise sales - Advising founders and boards on the architecture and build-vs-buy decisions that are too expensive to get wrong - Developing engineering leadership in teams scaling past 30 people - Growing Boardman's network of senior fractional operators and the platform that keeps their work consistent Background: 20+ years in senior technology leadership across high-growth startups and PLCs, repeatedly brought in to fix inherited messes, underperforming teams, fragile platforms, stalled delivery and scale businesses from early traction to £50M revenue. Deep exposure to ISO 27001, Cyber Essentials Plus, GDPR and board-level accountability.

  • The Hut Group

    Chief Experience Officer (CXO)

    Designed and implemented the Group’s proprietary technology platform, enhancing its functionality and globalisation capability to 35 languages and 42 currencies, 32 payment options and the ability to deliver to 193 territories. Managed software engineering, product, UX and creative departments and oversaw the recruitment, on-boarding and training of staff growing the team from 2 to 150. Expertly led enterprise technology and creative projects from concept through implementation, with full accountability for timelines, milestones, risk assessment, budget and delivery whilst supporting group sales growth from £10m to £736m (7259%), EBITDA increase from £5m to £69m. Designed and delivered Nintendo’s first eCommerce platform in under a month.

  • The Hut Group

    Creative Director

    Managed software engineering, creative teams and multiple partners/vendors; responsible for all resourcing, budgeting and scheduling of client work. Aligned product, UX, software engineering, creative functions and developed agile systems for producing multi-disciplinary creative work that supported strategic plans within a fast-paced start-up environment. Recruited national design and engineering talent and successfully built an award-winning team, growing from 2 to 30 within three years. Consistently led firm's communication and presentation efforts with client-side C-level executives that facilitated strong project management and prioritised client's strategic goals. Dramatically reduced average art cost up to 50% by aggressively utilising cost effective outside resources and repurposing existing designs. Clients included: Nintendo, Unilever, Honda, ASDA, Tesco, WHSmith, Argos and Myprotein.

  • N Brown Group

    Head of Web Design

    Managing a team, building and maintaining 30+ websites serving over 2M customers working with IBM’s Websphere Commerce Suite.

  • Phones 4u

    Head of Web Design

    Building and maintaining Phones4U eCommerce site, working directly with network and manufacturing brands including Vodafone, O2, Three, Samsung and Motorola.

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