Think like a CTO, without becoming one.

Architecture in four layers

Rather than a list of technologies, you learn architecture as layers. For each one you'll be able to say what it does, what happens when it fails, what it costs and how it affects customers.

Your Virtual CTO

The course's main tool is one reusable prompt. It turns ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini into a pragmatic CTO who asks before answering, explains trade-offs in plain English and pushes back on unnecessary complexity, including yours. You'll use it in every exercise, and keep using it afterwards.

Act as my Virtual CTO: a pragmatic CTO and principal software architect advising a non-technical product leader.

Your job is to help me make sound technical decisions, not to agree with every proposal.

First, ask me about these, one question at a time, and wait for each answer:
- Product vision and target users
- Core workflows and MVP scope
- Data sensitivity and integrations
- Expected usage and growth
- Budget, team and time to market

Then:
1. Propose the simplest architecture that meets my needs.
2. Compare two or three realistic technology alternatives.
3. Explain each trade-off in plain English.
4. Identify security, privacy and operational risks.
5. Separate what the MVP needs from what can wait.
6. Draw the architecture as a text or Mermaid diagram, and keep a decision log: decision, reason, alternatives, consequences.
7. Create a phased technical implementation plan.

Rules:
- Challenge unnecessary complexity, including mine.
- Give costs as ranges, with the assumptions behind them. Never invent prices, figures or customer evidence.
- Flag anything involving children's, health, financial or other regulated data for specialist review.
- State your assumptions and uncertainties, and say which decisions need a qualified engineer, security or legal review.

Three ideas you'll leave with

1. Architecture is a series of decisions, not a diagram. The diagram explains the design; the CTO must justify why each component exists.
2. Scalability is not the same as complexity. Design for credible growth without unnecessary infrastructure, cost and operational burden.
3. AI is an adviser, not an accountable architect. It produces options, exposes risks and explains trade-offs; people verify, test and decide.

The six modules

1. 01
   Plan · 05–06

   The CTO mindset

   The CTO mindset

   Open module → ExerciseExercise 1 · CTO priorities: from product vision to five technical priorities →
2. 02
   Plan · 06

   Designing the architecture

   Designing the architecture

   Open module → ExerciseExercise 2 · Architecture design: choose, draw and challenge →
3. 03
   Plan · 06

   Technology and build decisions

   Technology and build decisions

   Open module → ExerciseExercise 3 · Technology selection: a decision matrix and build versus buy →
4. 04
   Plan and Ignite · 06–10

   Security, resilience and scalability

   Security, resilience and scalability

   Open module → ExerciseExercise 4 · Security review: a structured architecture risk review →
5. 05
   Assemble and Ignite · 07–10

   Engineering delivery and operations

   Engineering delivery and operations

   Open module → ExerciseExercise 5 · Delivery planning: how your product is built, released and run →
6. 06
   Ignite · 10–11

   The CTO’s business decisions

   The CTO’s business decisions

   Open module → ExerciseExercise 6 · The CTO review board: defend your decision pack →

Your Architecture Blueprint

Every exercise fills part of one workbook, so you leave with one connected decision pack rather than six separate activities. Eight sections are completed in class; four you finish at home with your Virtual CTO. Each section has a worked TutorDesk example: the fictional booking tool from From Idea to Product, grown to 2,000 tutors.

1. 1Product context and business objectives
2. 1Functional and non-functional requirements
3. 2Architecture principles and constraints at home
4. 2System context and component diagrams
5. 3Technology stack and build-versus-buy decisions
6. 3Data architecture and integration design at home
7. 4Security, privacy and compliance requirements
8. 4Scalability, availability and recovery requirements at home
9. 6Infrastructure and operating-cost assumptions at home
10. 5Development, testing and deployment approach
11. 4Technical risks and architecture decision records
12. 6Implementation roadmap and CTO sign-off checklist

Open the Architecture Blueprint →

Is it right for me?

It's for product managers, product owners, founders, entrepreneurs and business analysts who want to lead technical discussions and make informed architecture decisions. You need a basic understanding of a digital product, its users and its features. You don't need to code. From Idea to Product is a good first step, but not required.

We're honest about what one afternoon can do. You'll understand how a CTO reasons and leave with a well-argued first architecture. A four-hour workshop doesn't replace years of engineering experience, and anything involving sensitive data still needs a qualified engineer, security tester or lawyer to review it. The course shows you which decisions those are.

“You don't need to become a CTO to think like one. But you do need to understand the decisions that determine whether your product can be built, operated, secured and scaled.”

Prices

Pilot prices: £79 online or £149 in person per participant. In-house sessions for product teams are priced on request.

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