Fractional CTOs in Minneapolis Making Things Happen in 2025

Minneapolis Interim Chief Technology Officers to Know

Minneapolis has always had a strong undercurrent of innovation. With its deep roots in healthcare, manufacturing, retail, and insurance—combined with a fast-growing SaaS, medtech, and cleantech startup scene—the Minneapolis–St. Paul–Bloomington metro is proving that world-class tech leadership doesn’t only live on the coasts.

But as more Twin Cities startups and scale-ups reach critical growth milestones, many are facing a modern challenge: how to bring in senior technical leadership without prematurely locking in a full-time CTO hire.

The answer for many? Fractional CTOs.

These seasoned leaders offer strategy, execution, and credibility—without the long timelines or high cost of full-time hires. At Digital Reference, we’ve identified trusted fractional CTOs in Minneapolis who are already helping early-stage teams, founder-led orgs, and post-funding startups build platforms that work.

Our Methodology: How We Choose Fractional CTOs

Each leader featured here has been selected based on the following criteria:

✅ Public positioning as a fractional, interim, or embedded CTO
✅ Active presence in the Minneapolis–St. Paul–Bloomington metro area
✅ Experience in startup, growth-stage, or transformation contexts
✅ Clear online presence via LinkedIn or firm affiliation
✅ Demonstrated alignment with Digital Reference values: trust, impact, and referenceable work

We prioritize execution, reputation, and real-world relevance.

Minneapolis Fractional CTOs to Know

🔹 Andrew Maurer

Fractional CTO | Data & Platform Engineer | Digital Product Strategist
Andrew Maurer brings full-stack technical leadership to fast-moving companies who need to build and scale with precision. He’s known for working across product, engineering, and business functions to design platforms that are efficient, scalable, and customer-centric. With a background in both enterprise systems and nimble startups, Andrew offers the kind of hybrid thinking growth-stage teams crave.

🔍 Specialties: Product strategy, scalable infrastructure, digital innovation
📍 Based in: Minneapolis, MN

🔹 Daniel Amundson

Fractional CTO | SaaS Architect | Technical Team Builder
Daniel works with SaaS and enterprise tech companies to align engineering architecture with growth goals. As a fractional CTO, he’s often embedded during crucial phases—MVP-to-v1 transition, Series A scale, or team restructures. Daniel is especially valued by technical and non-technical founders alike for his ability to translate high-level vision into platform realities.

🔍 Specialties: SaaS scaling, DevOps integration, early-stage leadership
📍 Based in: Minneapolis, MN

Why Twin Cities Companies Are Hiring Fractional CTOs

The Midwest is known for building real businesses—not hype machines. But even real businesses need tech leadership that can move fast, scale smart, and keep teams aligned. In the Minneapolis area, we’re seeing increased demand for fractional CTOs in situations like:

• 🏗️ Startups going from MVP to scale and needing real architectural support
  
  
• 🧠 Non-technical founders looking for a tech partner (not just a vendor)
  
  
• 🔁 Companies replacing overseas dev shops with internal teams
  
  
• 📈 Teams prepping for funding and needing technical clarity
  
  
• 🔍 PE-backed orgs needing tech transformation post-acquisition
  
  

Fractional CTOs bring structure without the overhead, and vision without the delay.

What These CTOs Bring to the Table

Leaders like Andrew and Daniel are trusted because they bring:

✅ Cross-functional fluency—product, engineering, operations
✅ Ability to lead while building (not just delegating)
✅ Founder empathy—especially for non-technical or first-time CEOs
✅ Engineering team mentorship and recruitment insight
✅ A calm, strategic approach to fast-paced environments

They’re not just steering—they’re accelerating in the right direction.

Resources from Digital Reference

📘 How to Hire a Fractional Executive
A practical guide for founders and operators navigating interim leadership.

📍 The Importance of Professional References
Explore why third-party credibility is more critical than ever in today’s trust-driven hiring market.

📍 Find Local Fractional CTOs & Chief Technology Officers Near Me
Explore why third-party credibility is more critical than ever in today’s trust-driven hiring market.

📘 Collecting Professional References: The Dos and Don’ts
References are often the make-or-break element of your next opportunity. Yet many professionals still treat the reference process as an afterthought or, worse, scramble to collect them last minute.

📗 The Talent Ecosystem: Why Fractional Operators Are Reshaping the C-Suite
Explore the structural shifts behind the rise of fractional leadership and what it means for your next hire.

Final Word: Minneapolis Is Quietly Building the Future—One Scalable Platform at a Time

You don’t have to be flashy to lead the market. In fact, some of the most effective innovation is happening quietly in the Twin Cities—driven by companies that are smart enough to hire tech leadership when it’s needed, and flexible enough to do it on their own terms.

Fractional CTOs like Andrew Maurer and Daniel Amundson are already leading this movement. They're helping teams:

• Clean up codebases
  
  
• Rebuild or re-platform
  
  
• Hire strong engineering leads
  
  
• Create founder confidence in the tech stack
  
  

Whether you're pre-seed or pre-exit, you don’t need to wait to find “the perfect CTO.”

You can hire someone now who already knows how to lead.

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