CTO as a Service: How Aji Abraham is helping Startups meet their tech needs with CodeVentures

The foundation of any big startup rests on a great idea. Back in the days, this was all that mattered. You solve a specific problem or give something interesting for people to consume on their digital device and pretty soon, you have a successful company in your hand.

The ‘idea’ still forms the bulk of a great startup, but it is not enough nowadays. You must create a technologically superior platform that users will use and love. In a dynamic market where competition can spring up like mushrooms, this will help you to stand out and retain users.

Take the case of TikTok, for example. They launched into a segment that already had Snapchat, YouTube, and Instagram. User-generated video sharing is not a new idea, but TikTok leveraged superior technology to constantly engage and rapidly grow its userbase. They stood out with an immersive design, diverse functionality, and superior AI. The platform, as a result, has amassed 1 billion monthly active users in a relatively short period.

Mr. Aji Abraham, tech entrepreneur and founder of CodeVentures, says, “In the modern startup space, technology separates the exceptional from the extraordinary. Entrepreneurs are usually eager to get their ideas developed right away but they don’t have the means to properly validate them and or face technical challenges that arise throughout development.”

Common technical challenges that Startups face include:

Hiring a tech team: A growing startup can’t function with just one or two people. One of the first challenges any entrepreneur will face is building a tech team. Your team should be ready to grow with the company and contribute positively in the long run. As your startup grows, this staffing demand only expands and diversifies.

Deciding the right software and hardware: Always have a good idea of your software requirements before deciding on the hardware. You don’t want to buy an expensive new PC and not have it compatible with your team’s latest software. Choosing the right software and hardware helps manage effectively a variety of processes, including project management, accounting, CRM, operations and marketing.

Building the product: Product development is easily one of the biggest challenges you will face in your startup journey. From creating the Minimum viable product (MVP) to scaling up and final deployment, the problems you will encounter are distinct and in multitude. Instead of taking on these challenges as they come, try to anticipate them and be prepared with solutions.

Cybersecurity: Finding a way to shield your product and customers from potential security threats is another big challenge you will face. This might be by building a robust system that anticipates and disarms any threats even before it hits your website. Even if you are affected by a cybersecurity breach, due processes must be in place to shut it down immediately.

Keeping up with new tech: The startup environment is fast and ever-changing. Entrepreneurs need to understand both the current technology as well as future ones. This will help you to invest in upgradeable and easily scalable platforms so that your tech stack doesn’t get outdated often.

While facing these challenges, Aji Abraham attests that having a technical cofounder or a CTO can make all the difference for a growing Startup. An experienced CTO “makes the company see the bigger picture and establish tech best practices. He hires the right development team, draws up the tech stack and helps build, develop and scale the project’s Minimum Viable Product (MVP)

Helping founders build powerful startups

While starting their company, entrepreneurs are constantly asking questions like what kind of team should I build? Whom do I hire? What technology should I use? Is the technology scalable?

Startups in the early stages of development are usually bootstrapped and getting a technical cofounder or CTO to answer these questions will prove difficult for them. Hiring a full-blown technical team is not just expensive but also time-consuming.

Being an entrepreneur himself and having mentored multiple startups over the years, Aji clearly understands these struggles. This is why he created Codeventures- a startup studio / incubator, to help deserving startups achieve “their true technological potential.”

Tech startups at any stage of maturity can onboard CodeVentures, even those that are just an idea. A discovery workshop will be held with all stakeholders to study your vision and build out a complete blueprint towards product actualization. The workshop involves creating user flow, MVP definition, site architecture, understanding time frame, business model and go-to-market plan.

Startups with an existing MVP who wants to scale up and create a complete working product can also be part of the program. Development payment is made through a mix of cash and equity, reducing a considerable financial strain on your company.

As equity partners, Mr. Abraham works closely as a part-time CTO, not just for product development but also for making your idea successful in the market. Additional services are provided even after product development and initial traction, including post-deployment technical support, analytics and real user testing.