Tier 2 — Retainer
Senior bandwidth, ongoing.
A monthly engagement that puts senior technical capacity on tap. Scope software, AI, marketing, and architecture inside it each month — no per-project negotiation, no context switching cost. Three packages sized to your workload.
Three packages
Starter · Growth · Embedded
Same senior standard across all three — scope and access scale with the package.
Starter
8 hrs / week
Senior technical access for a team that needs occasional architecture, decisions, and hands-on help — without the cost of a full-time hire.
- ▹8 hours / week of senior bandwidth
- ▹Async Q&A and code review (next-business-day SLA)
- ▹Monthly roadmap and priority call
- ▹Written decision records
Growth
16 hrs / week
Substantial weekly engagement — enough to drive a meaningful project alongside strategy and advisory. Good fit for teams in active build or AI-integration phase.
- ▹16 hours / week of senior bandwidth
- ▹Priority Slack channel (same-business-day response)
- ▹Weekly sync call
- ▹Quarterly roadmap and retrospective
- ▹Scoped project inside the retainer
Embedded
24 hrs / week
Near-full-time engagement with direct Slack access. Functions like a fractional CTO at the retainer tier — hands-on delivery, architecture, and team leadership.
- ▹24 hours / week of senior bandwidth
- ▹Direct Slack access (real-time during work hours)
- ▹Weekly sync + ad-hoc calls as needed
- ▹Quarterly strategic review
- ▹Two scoped projects inside the retainer
- ▹PTOI Cloud seat included
All packages: 6-month minimum · 30-day notice after month 6 · net-15 billing
Terms
How retainers work
- Minimum term
- 6 months. Retainers are designed for sustained leverage — not one-off help.
- Notice period
- 30 days written notice after the 6-month minimum. No auto-renew surprises.
- Billing
- Monthly, net-15. First month invoiced on SOW signing.
- Scope changes
- Projects scoped inside the retainer are agreed monthly. Unused hours do not roll over.
- Founding-client pricing
- Up to 20% discount for the first 3 months — applied to the first three clients who sign at any tier.
FAQ
Common questions
What does 'scoped inside the retainer' mean?
Each month we agree on what active project work runs alongside strategy and advisory. Larger builds are named workstreams with milestones; lighter months are mostly decisions and reviews. The retainer is your throughput — we fill it with the highest-leverage work.
Can I start with a Sprint and convert?
Yes. A sprint is a clean way to work together before committing to a retainer. Many clients convert to Starter or Growth after a sprint. Any sprint deposit applies toward the first retainer month.
Is the Embedded tier the same as [01]/cto?
Close but distinct. Embedded is a retainer package — high bandwidth, no equity, retainer terms. [01]/cto is a fractional CTO engagement that can include equity, longer horizon, and a different accountability frame. See the [01]/cto page for specifics.
What is the PTOI Cloud seat?
PTOI (Periodic Table of Information) is the open-source AI compliance tool we maintain and use in engagements. The Embedded tier includes a paying PTOI Cloud seat — access to hosted compound catalogs, reactions, and the MCP server. It adds $0 to the retainer price.
Next step
Talk through your workload
30-minute discovery call — what's in flight, what package fits, and what we'd scope in month 1.