Independent technical validation for confident investment decisions
Get objective technical assessment for acquisition, investment, or partnership decisions. I evaluate architecture quality, technical debt, team capability, and delivery risk, providing the validation you need to make confident decisions.
You're evaluating an acquisition, investment, or strategic partnership. You need to understand the technical reality behind the pitch deck. Is the architecture sound? Is the technical debt manageable? Can the team actually deliver what they're promising?
Technical due diligence provides independent assessment of technology assets, team capability, and delivery risk. I work across three distinct contexts:
Each context has different priorities, but all require the same thing: objective, expert analysis that translates technical findings into business decisions.
You get a clear, jargon-free report that answers the questions investors and boards actually care about: What are the technical risks? What will it cost to fix the problems? Can this team execute their roadmap?
Comprehensive review of system architecture, code structure, and technical decisions. I identify architectural risks, technical debt hotspots, scalability constraints, and security vulnerabilities, with impact assessment and remediation cost estimates.
Assess the technical team's capability to execute their roadmap. I review team structure, skill distribution, delivery velocity, development practices, and documentation quality, identifying strengths, gaps, and retention risks.
Evaluate technology choices for sustainability and risk. I assess whether the tech stack is appropriate for the business model, whether dependencies introduce vendor lock-in or licensing risk, and whether the stack supports claimed scalability.
Review security practices, authentication/authorisation design, data protection measures, and compliance posture. I identify security vulnerabilities, compliance gaps, and regulatory risks that affect deal terms or require post-acquisition remediation.
Assess the organisation's ability to deliver their roadmap. I evaluate project management practices, velocity trends, technical debt trajectory, and infrastructure constraints, identifying risks that affect post-acquisition growth plans.
For acquisitions, evaluate technical integration complexity and cost. I assess API compatibility, data migration requirements, infrastructure consolidation opportunities, and team integration challenges, with timeline and cost estimates.
I've assessed technical organisations from the inside as a CTO and architect. I know the difference between technical debt that's manageable and architectural decisions that will require expensive rewrites. I can evaluate whether a team's velocity is sustainable or built on shortcuts that will slow them down later.
My assessments follow a structured methodology covering seven core domains: technology stack and architecture, security and compliance, scalability, technical debt, development practices, team capability, and intellectual property. Each domain receives a scored assessment with RAG status, giving you a clear picture of where the risks lie and what they'll cost to address.
My technical due diligence reviews are thorough but pragmatic. I'm not looking for perfection. I'm looking for risks that affect valuation, integration complexity, or post-acquisition delivery. I assess through documentation review, code analysis, and stakeholder interviews.
I use AI-augmented analysis tools to assess large codebases quickly, including custom tools like Codebase Spider and vector database analysis with AI. The same approach I used to analyse 390+ repositories for documentation coverage and identify architectural patterns. This means I can evaluate technical assets faster and more thoroughly than traditional manual review.
All engagements are conducted under strict confidentiality. I work under NDA as standard practice and treat your technical assets, business strategies, and deal details with the discretion they require. My experience in sensitive due diligence contexts means I understand the importance of information security throughout the assessment process.
You get a structured report prioritising technical risks by business impact, with specific recommendations and cost estimates for remediation. The report is written for non-technical stakeholders: board members, investors, business leaders who need to understand technical risk without wading through technical jargon.
Technical due diligence is right for you when:
Technical due diligence is an independent assessment of a technology platform, codebase, or technical team, typically performed before investment, acquisition, or major partnership decisions. You need it when evaluating a potential acquisition target, assessing technical risk before investment, validating vendor claims, or planning technology transitions. It provides objective analysis of technical quality, scalability, security, and risk to inform business decisions.
I use a combination of AI-augmented analysis tools and hands-on expert review. Automated tools scan for code quality issues, security vulnerabilities, and architectural patterns across the entire codebase (I've analysed 390+ repositories in a single engagement). Senior review then focuses on architectural decisions, scalability concerns, technical debt severity, and team capability assessment. Reports are jargon-free and prioritised by business impact, not just technical severity.
Reports include an executive summary with risk rating, codebase quality assessment (architecture, code standards, test coverage, security), technology stack evaluation (appropriate choices, licensing risks, dependency health), scalability and performance analysis, technical debt quantification, team capability assessment, and prioritised recommendations. Reports are written for business decision-makers, translating technical findings into commercial risk and opportunity language.
Typical engagements range from 3-5 days for focused assessments to 10-15 days for comprehensive reviews, depending on the size of the ecosystem. AI-augmented analysis significantly accelerates codebase review, allowing deeper assessment in shorter timeframes than traditional methods. Most clients need results quickly for transaction timelines, so I structure engagements to deliver initial findings within the first week, with detailed reports following shortly after.
I combine CTO-level strategic perspective with hands-on architect experience and AI-augmented analysis tools. This means faster, deeper assessment than traditional manual reviews, business-impact prioritisation rather than just technical checklists, and jargon-free reporting for non-technical stakeholders. With over a decade of building and rescuing complex systems, I understand what technical issues actually matter for business success and which are manageable with proper planning.
M&A due diligence focuses on integration: Can we merge these systems? What will it cost? Are there deal-breakers that affect valuation? The report emphasises integration complexity, data migration requirements, team retention risks, and post-acquisition investment needs. Investor due diligence focuses on growth potential: Can this technology scale 10x? Is there a defensible competitive moat? Can this team execute? The report emphasises scalability assessment, team capability, and whether the technology foundation supports the business plan.
Technical health checks are for proactive assessment outside of transaction pressure. Common triggers include new CTO onboarding (baseline assessment), pre-fundraising preparation (6-12 months before raising), annual governance reviews, post-incident improvement planning, or technology roadmap validation. Health checks emphasise improvement roadmaps and ongoing advisory relationships rather than go/no-go recommendations. They're also typically faster and lower cost than transaction-focused assessments.
Critical red flags include undisclosed security breaches or unpatched vulnerabilities, massive technical debt requiring complete rewrites, key person dependencies where critical knowledge isn't documented, IP ownership issues or problematic open-source licensing, compliance violations (GDPR, industry regulations), and unrealistic roadmaps given team capability. I distinguish between deal-breakers (fundamental issues affecting viability) and yellow flags (concerns that are manageable with proper planning and investment).
Technical due diligence is priced on a project basis following a scoping call. Every engagement starts with a free 30-minute discovery conversation where I understand your context (M&A, investment, or health check), timeline pressures, ecosystem size, and specific concerns. Based on this, I provide a fixed-price proposal covering the agreed scope and deliverables. This approach ensures you get an accurate quote rather than estimates that balloon, and gives us both confidence the engagement is a good fit. Typical engagements range from focused assessments to comprehensive reviews depending on complexity.
Working with Michael was an absolute pleasure. He was the border between the developers and the business and always managed to handle both sides' expectations and took the stress of the business on to himself to give the developers enough room to do amazing work. A great developer as well. Always a laugh, great personality, light hearted and I would definitely work with him again at a moment's notice.
Michael doesn't just tackle challenges; he approaches them with a no-nonsense attitude, cutting through complexities with a level of precision that's truly impressive. His ability to break down intricate problems and come up with elegant solutions is not only commendable but also a testament to his exceptional problem-solving skills.
Let's discuss how we can help your business.