Who We Work With
Companies that need
someone who has done it.
AIRONCLAD works with companies that need technology leadership they cannot hire full-time, founders navigating AI strategy and product development, PE firms doing technology due diligence, and CPG operators whose supply chain and pricing have not kept pace with their brand — all backed by 30 years of doing the work.
For Companies That Need a Fractional CTO
You need senior technology leadership. You are not ready for a full-time hire.
The challenge they face
The technology decisions your company makes in the next 12 months will compound for years. You need someone who can set strategy, evaluate architecture, manage or hire engineers, and represent technology at the leadership table — but you are not at the scale where a $300K+ full-time CTO is the right move yet. Most fractional options are not senior enough. Most senior people are not interested in fractional.
What AIRONCLAD brings
Former CIO of a $2B+ enterprise — 9 years running the full technology organization, including enterprise systems, digital commerce, supply chain technology, and pricing infrastructure. The seniority of a seasoned executive, available on the terms that match your stage. Currently advising a tier-1 VC-backed AI company in exactly this capacity.
“The gap between having a technology strategy and having technology leadership is the difference between a roadmap that sits in a deck and one that actually gets built.”
- Technology decisions are being made by founders or business leaders without a senior tech voice
- You are about to make an architecture choice that will be expensive to reverse
- You have a growing engineering team but no one accountable for their direction and quality
- Investors or board members are asking technology questions that nobody is owning
For VC-Backed Technology Companies
You have product-market fit and investor capital. Now you need operating architecture.
The challenge they face
The founding team built something that works. Series A is closed. But the path from $2M ARR to $20M requires a different operating model — AI strategy that is credible to enterprise buyers, technology infrastructure that does not require constant firefighting, and go-to-market architecture that scales beyond founder-led sales.
What AIRONCLAD brings
An advisor currently embedded with a tier-1 VC-backed AI company — not advising from memory. Plus the enterprise operating credibility that comes from running technology inside a $2B+ organization and the founder perspective of having built a technology company from zero. Both sides of the table, at the same time.
“Enterprise buyers do not buy on technology alone. They buy on operating confidence — in your team, your process, and your ability to deliver. That is what we help you build.”
- Your product is strong but enterprise sales cycles are longer and more complex than expected
- Investors are asking for operating discipline, an AI roadmap, or a technology strategy you have not formalized
- The founding team has deep technical strength but limited experience navigating enterprise buying processes
- You are scaling beyond the founding team and need operating infrastructure to match your growth
For Companies Navigating AI Strategy
You need an AI strategy that is grounded in operating reality — not just potential.
The challenge they face
Every board is asking the AI question. Most leadership teams are getting answers from vendors who want to sell something, analysts who have never implemented anything, or consultants recycling the same frameworks. The gap between AI as a concept and AI that actually creates leverage inside your specific business is wide — and almost nobody is being honest about it.
What AIRONCLAD brings
Active advisory to a VC-backed AI company combined with a decade of enterprise technology leadership — running the systems that AI is now being asked to replace or augment. We help you identify where AI creates genuine, defensible leverage, evaluate the build-versus-buy decision honestly, and design an implementation path that accounts for your real data, process, and organizational constraints.
“The companies getting value from AI right now are not the ones with the biggest budgets. They are the ones who were honest about what they actually have — and built from there.”
- Your board or investors are asking for an AI strategy and you do not have a credible one yet
- You have evaluated AI vendors and cannot tell which claims are real and which are demos
- You have started an AI initiative that is not delivering the results that were promised
- You want to understand where AI creates genuine leverage in your specific business before committing budget
For PE-Backed Companies & Technology Due Diligence
You need an honest technology read before you close — or after you own it.
The challenge they face
Pre-acquisition: the target company looks strong but you need a clear picture of what you are actually buying on the technology side — architecture quality, technical debt, team capability, scalability risk, and integration complexity. Post-acquisition: the portco has technology problems that are limiting value creation and you need someone who can diagnose and drive improvement.
What AIRONCLAD brings
Enterprise-scale technology operating experience combined with the perspective of a founder who has built a technology company. We know what good technology looks like at scale and what it costs to get there — and we deliver an honest assessment, not a report designed to justify a fee or validate a thesis.
“Technology due diligence done right is not about finding reasons to kill the deal. It is about understanding exactly what you are buying and what it will take to make it worth what you paid.”
- A pending acquisition with a technology component that needs independent assessment
- A portco with technology debt that is limiting growth or creating operating risk
- A value creation plan that has technology as a lever but no clear owner for the assessment
- A portfolio company where the technology team is underperforming and you need a diagnostic
For CPG Brands Scaling Operations
You built a real brand. The supply chain and pricing underneath it are not keeping up.
The challenge they face
You have retail placement, Amazon presence, and real revenue. But the operational infrastructure was built for a smaller business — supplier lead times are unpredictable, inventory is a guessing game, pricing across channels is inconsistent, and you are not sure what you are actually netting per SKU after freight, co-man, and trade spend. This is where great brands stall.
What AIRONCLAD brings
A decade inside Goya Foods — one of the most complex CPG supply chains in North America, at $2B+ scale. Supply chain architecture, pricing strategy, Amazon marketplace, inventory management, and warehouse operations, all managed under real enterprise accountability. This is the operating proof that makes every other advisory engagement more credible — applied directly for CPG clients.
“The margin you are missing is not in your product. It is in the operating model around it — the pricing architecture, the supply chain design, the inventory discipline. That is fixable.”
- Gross margin is below category benchmarks and you cannot clearly identify where it is leaking
- Supplier relationships are reactive — you are always expediting or apologizing to retail customers
- Amazon and physical retail are in constant pricing tension and you have no clear MAP architecture
- You are preparing for a retail expansion or PE process and need the operating model to hold up under scrutiny
Next Step
Recognize your situation?
Start with a conversation.
We do not do long intake forms. Tell us who you are and what you are wrestling with. We will tell you whether we can help.
Work with AIRONCLAD