One-on-one recorded online mentoring
So you can get the most of your mentoring session in this short time, our call will be recorded, including the screensharing and the desktop video. That way, you can go back to it as you implement your action plan.
Choose the stage your business is in or define your own session agenda
Depending on the stage your business is in, I’ve prepared specific mentoring sessions to ensure you get exactly what you need. Just click on the stage icon and it will take you directly to what you need.
Plan
Still in the planning process? Feeling stuck with the plans? Let me help you finish your plan and start building your business empire.
Build
Hiring a provider, a developer or a CTO? How do you select the best one for you? Or if you already have a team of developers, how do you avoid conflicts and make sure things get done?
Growth
Thinking of switching to a new developer and need help with the transition? Do you now have more users and need to make a decision on what technology is best to handle all the additional processes?
Don't know where to start?
Schedule your first 25-minute session for freeand experience a mentoring session with me
Planning stage
Specifications review – 50mins
When:
Right before meeting a provider to allow you to be very clear on the expected work so that the provider will give you a lower quotation.
Agenda:
- Project introduction/updates
- Document presentation
- Document feedback
- Missing parts
- Guidance for the provider interview
- Q&A
Outcomes:
- Feedback on your project
- Custom advice on which type of provider you should contact
- General guidance on possible technologies
Detailed cost evaluation – 1hr45mins
When:
When you need to evaluate your project cost. You need to anticipate how much you will need to invest in your project. If you already have a clear roadmap or a clear specification, we can work together to define the most relevant quotation of your project.
Agenda:
- Context introduction/updates
- Roadmap and technical specifications review
- Feature cost analysis
- Cost compilation
- Overall project evaluation
- Q&A
Outcomes:
- Custom and technical quotation of your project cost
- Estimate of the required time for each role (skills)
- Cost per version
- Overall project worksheet with your detailed project evaluation
Roadmap definition support – 1hr45mins
When:
When you have lots of ideas for your project and you need to prioritize them to define your development plan. While putting together a roadmap can take up to 2 to 3 full days of work, we will review your roadmap definition process together and (re)define it before investing in development.
Agenda:
- Project introduction/updates
- Your strengths and weaknesses
- Technology brainstorming
- Roadmap definition
- Q&A
Outcomes:
- Feedback on your project’s roadmap
- Rough quotation of each of the stages
- New technology to make your project more cutting-edge
- Get funds and subsidies
Roadmap quick review – 50mins
When:
When you have already prepared your roadmap, whether you are just starting your venture or you are about to present it to investors, we will review your technical roadmap together, and I will guide you to avoid possible mistakes and identify faster solutions.
Agenda:
- Project introduction/updates
- Document review
- Document feedback
- Optimization suggestions
- Q&A
Outcomes:
- Feedback on your project’s roadmap
- Possible new technical opportunities
- Get funds and subsidies
Quick technology
feedback – 50mins
When:
When your are about to go for a technology instead of another. When you would like to check whether your selected technology is suitable for your startup project.
Agenda:
- Project introduction/updates
- CTO self-introduction
- Technical and management evaluation for the candidate
- Challenge review
- Custom recommendation based on the candidate’s strengths and weaknesses
- Q&A
Outcomes:
- Custom technical answer based on your project’s needs, the number of users you have and you are targeting, the amount of data, the location, etc.
- Objective technology evaluation based on dozens of other startup projects with similar technologies
- Pros and cons of the technology you are about to use (I may not know all the available solutions, but I can help you evaluate each based on a technical point of view)
Proposal evaluation – 50mins
When:
After interviewing 2 to 3 providers and getting their proposals. When you are wondering which one to go with, which one to trust, and when you need an unbiased CTO feedback to make your decision.
Agenda:
- Project introduction/updates
- Specification and proposal presentation
- Proposal feedback
- Provider’s strengths and weaknesses
- Recommendations if you will be working with a specific provider
- Q&A
Outcomes:
- Feedback on the proposal and its price
- Custom advice on how to work effectively with the chosen provider
- See provider proposals from a technical point of view
Building stage
Developer/freelancer interview – 50mins
When:
When you are about to hire a developer or a freelancer and would like an objective point of view on their work methodology and their technical knowledge.
Agenda:
- Context introduction/updates
- Freelancer self-introduction
- Technical challenge for the candidate while sharing some recommandations with the project owner
- Challenge review
- Custom recommendation based on the candidate’s strengths and weaknesses
- Q&A
Outcomes:
- More confidence when it comes to choosing a developer
- Technical opinion about your candidate
CTO interview –
1hr45mins
When:
When you are about to hire your CTO and would like an objective point of view on his work methodology and his management and technical knowledge.
Agenda:
- Context introduction/updates
- CTO self-introduction
- Technical and management evaluation of the candidate
- Challenge review
- Custom recommendation based on the candidate’s strengths and weaknesses
- Q&A
Outcomes:
- More confidence when it comes to choosing a CTO
- Technical and managerial opinion about your candidate
- Assessment on the suitability of a candidate for your startup project
Development process review – 50mins
When:
When you are already in the development stage or about to start development. When you are wondering what is the best way to organize your entire team of developers, providers and freelancers.
Agenda:
- Project context introduction/updates
- Defining the roles of all of the team members
- Current process
- Optimization suggestions
- Q&A
Outcomes:
- Optimization of your time as a project owner/product owner
- Optimization of your team’s time
- Improvement in communication within the team
- Quicker resolution of conflicts within the team
Growth stage
Escaping from a technical trap – 1hr45mins
When:
When you are considering switching from a developer or from a provider to another. Maybe you are wondering if you should trust your current provider or developer, and would like an objective point of view on his work.
Agenda:
- Project context introduction/updates
- Sharing access to what you have (source code, infrastructure, hosting, etc., but only the part you want feedback on)
- Current documentation review
- Optimization suggestions
- Action plan if you are considering switching to another provider
- Q&A
Outcomes:
- Your technical FREEDOM, being able to switch and choose whatever provider is best for your startup
- Advice on how to manage the transition
- Choice of solutions based on performance not dependent on the provider
Scaling architecture definition – 1hr45mins
When:
When your solution is booming or right before starting your development. When you need to make a technical decision on using a specific technology instead of another.
Agenda:
- Context introduction/updates
- CTO self-introduction
- Technical and management evaluation for the candidate
- Challenge review
- Custom recommendation based on the candidate’s strengths and weaknesses
- Q&A
Outcomes:
- Custom advice based on your project’s need, the number of users you have and you are targeting, the amount of data, the location, etc.
- Objective technology feedback based on dozens of other startup projects with similar technologies
- Quick architecture schema or drawing to help you understand the available solutions
Get ready to work effectively
As you know, startups, companies and accelerators seek my time and insight as a CTO and consultant—but I want to help more people succeed.
So I’ve decided to clear up a full day of consulting to do 1-2 hours of private one-on-one mentoring. Doing these short mentoring sessions is more intensive and pays less than typical consulting, but it allows me to go to bed at night, proud that I have helped up five startups a day instead of only one.
If you are willing to come on a mentoring session with me, be sure to:
- Prepare your questions and share all your expectations at the beginning the meeting.
- Test your webcam and internet connection. I do the same on my end so that we can start on time.
- Be on time for the meeting. I use timeslots. And by the end of our meeting, I will have another one. If we start late, we will not be able to reach the session goal, and you will not get any compensation for it.
- Prefer to use good internet connection. It’s a lot more interactive when we can do a video call. If you do not have access to a good internet connection, we will do the mentoring session by phone, and I will send you the video of the session a few hours later.
100% satisfaction guarantee
I’m devoted to helping you move forward. I tend to stick to the agenda template I mentioned above, but depending on the stage of your project and what you’ve already accomplished, we might need to adjust the process and our goals.
I cannot garantee that we will achieve an entire day of work in one or two hours. What I can guarantee is that you’ll know what to work on tomorrow, next week and next month to move your project forward faster, and that you’ll have the answers to all your questions regarding the technical management of your project.
In the unlikely and unprecedented event that you feel like you wasted your time and are not happy with the outcomes of our session, I’ll simply refund every cent you spent on the session. Your time is your most valuable asset you have, and I respect that.
FAQ: Why booking a mentoring session with me is the best decision you will ever make for your project
What is the mentoring format about?
For me, mentoring is about providing unbiased advice by a combination of giving you direct answers to your current needs, training to make you independant, and a bit of coaching to challenge you and guide you towards the most relevant path for your project. Inspired by the mentoring I do for incubators and accelerators, I decided to take it a step further and industrialize the process, to propose affordable sessions with high value expertise, but without having any personal gain from the outcome of those decisions.
I need to write specifications, can you do it for me?
Depending on the complexity of your project, and the amount of time it might take me to do it, I could propose to do it myself in order to save time. If the project is too complex, I will provide a suggestion for the basic architecture and recommend you to find a tech profile to write it down.
Can you become my project manager ?
That’s something I cannot do, because a project manager needs to be available almost everyday, and because his role is to animate and make the team work effectively. Besides it is not required to be an IT architect or a senior CTO in order to lead a project. But what I can definitely do is provide you, i.e. the founder, and the project manager with support. This can cover checking the technical specifications, providing technical bypass, suggesting ways to save development time, and running technical audits like reviewing code, server architecture or cloud-based architecture, among other things. So guidance in pretty much anything from the development to the IT architecture, with your best interest in mind. A good project manager will always be open to suggestions and external points of view .
I don’t really know where to start, how can you help me?
Having been a founder myself and having been mentoring startup founders almost everyday, there’s a good chance I have the answers you need, because I’ve probably helped overcome the same challenges many times before. For instance I can guide you towards your next step, challenge your idea, improve your idea by suggesting certain technologies, and steer you through the roadmap definition process so that you can share your project with technical profiles or web agencies, but also incubators, investors… etc. Now, if by any chance I don’t have a specific answer, rest assured I will be very transparent about it and will define exactly what type of expert you should contact, in order to get that answer and move forward.
Why is your hourly rate higher than a developer?
Knowing how to code or how to define scalable architecture are not my main selling points. My biggest skillset it to be able to find solutions adapted for your project from a vast amount of possible technologies. Unlike web agencies or freelancers, I am not specialized in any particular language or framework, and I’ve worked with almost 100 startups which led me to identify the pros and cons of several dozens of different solutions. Especially accounting for the constraints on a growing trafic. My rate is basically similar to a good IT architect, but I charge per hour instead of per day, which poses a huge advantage for my clients.
Why should I trust you and your advices ?
Because there’s nothing personal for me to gain from your project, I have no expensive programs or development teams to sell, I do not get any equity, and I refuse any type of commission from developers or agencies. What I prefer is to ask for discount prices instead, and this suits some agencies because I have already reviewed the work that needs to get done, and I ensure that you have already defined what you want.
How much will it cost ?
Well, it depends. I charge on an hourly basis especially because some startup projects are well defined and sometimes just 1 hour is enough to select the developer. Then there are projects where we might need to spend up to 2 days completely defining the project positioning and it’s roadmap. Basically, if your project is a well defined idea with an initial documentation, 1 to 5 hours of mentoring are enough to help you choose the team, provide a well defined framework, protect your interests and guide you to manage them effectively.
Why shouldn’t I ask agencies or freelancers directly?
Because I believe that the priority of web agencies is to pay their employees. Because agencies and freelancers will always propose solutions based on the limited amount of technologies they are comfortable with. Because sometimes certain technologies are a better fit for specific projects. Share your project idea with me and I will tell you which technologies are relevant and which type of developers, freelancers or agencies you need.
Can you help me choose between 2 web agencies ?
Yes, absolutely. And there is a good chance that 1 or 2 meetings with me will be enough. Good agencies have a well defined process to which I can contribute in two ways: First I can help you get prepared to meet them and share your project in a very clear manner, so that they won’t take extra margins in their quotations. And secondly, I can help you make the final decision by analyzing with you the pros and cons of their proposals, and by giving you recommendations based on the weaknesses I can detect, specially with challengers.
Can you help me choose between 2 freelancers?
Absolutely, that’s a great option too. I can help you define what type of freelancer you need, share a few tips to find him/her, and help you evaluate your candidate. Then, I can also assist you in setting up the framework, which will allow you to keep control of the development and make sure that your freelancer works effectively with you and the entire team. Whomever you need: Designers, Artificial intelligence experts, Blockchain or Virtual reality experts…Now, if you decide to manage the project yourself, it might be relevant to invite me once in a while to your project’s retrospective, so that I can back you up and ensure that the project is on the right track.
Can you help me hire a technical profile?
Yes, we can do it together. I’m not a recruiter but by reviewing your project I can help you define the missing role, write the job description, then let you search for the right person. And at the end I can evaluate your candidate from a technical point of view, as well as from a “good team player” point of view.
Why do I need to pay a mentoring session upfront while agencies offer me a free meeting?
I’m not here to sell days worth of development and most of my client spend less than 1000€ in services with me, as opposed to what agencies usually get. Usually just a few hours under my care and expertise are enough to put you on the right path and leave you in good hands.
Regarding my development project cost, how much should I consider for mentoring?
The total investment for mentoring will cost you between 1% to 6% of the development budget. A fairly small percentage to ensure that you spend your money wisely, that is, the right way with the right person. Especially when building a prototype doesn’t require the same skills as building a million-user web platform.
I already have a technical team, how can you help me?
I can first provide you an external point of view on the work already done, analyzing your team organization and providing you recommendations to improve the way you work together.
My developer is leaving can you help me?
Yes, I have all the technical background to ask a large amount of questions and prepare the documentation for the next developer, or CTO. Building knowledge management and managing tech transitions in startups are two of my strongest skills.
My developer already left, how can I move forward?
That is unfortunately a classic scenario. First things first, I recommend you to gather everything you have in one place. During our mentoring session I will invite you to share your screen with me and allow me to run a quick audit on what you have, in order to establish if we can hire a developer to continue with it or if we need to restart from scratch. Based on the technology, the source code ownership, and the way the application has been developed so far, it’s sometime better to partially or completely redevelop the solution.
My service crashed because of a growing trafic, how can you help me?
Infrastructure is also one of my specialties, I can analyze your current application architecture, suggest quick fixes to avoid short term crashes, define a plan to make your application stronger, and recommend, not only a specific architecture, but also the type of infrastructure and cloud provider that can help you with it, based on my analysis.
How much time do we need to collaborate together?
I would say, the shorter the better. I am a temporary solution to help you move forward when you don’t know which type of profile is the best for your project. I am here when you need a third party opinion from a real startup expert. Because moving from a business idea to a final product is complex and requires technical skills, I will be your guide through shaping your product roadmap and building a team that really fits your project’s needs. That said, after a few months or even years, I will still be around when you need me, to provide you with technical and tech management advice, and help you strive on your growing stages.
Don't know where to start?
Schedule your first 25-minute session for freeand experience a mentoring session with me