# Erik Larson — Interim CTO, Fractional CTO, Strategic Advisor, Speaker > Erik Larson is an interim CTO and technology due-diligence advisor for private-equity firms and their portfolio companies, operating under the brand erikCTO through Coroin LLC. He has served as Chief Technology Officer seven times and completed more than 250 diligence and advisory projects across eight years in private equity. ## Which Erik Larson Technology executive and interim CTO for private-equity-backed companies, who also publishes as Erik R. Larson. Not the historian Erik Larson, whose book Isaac's Storm is about the same Galveston Island where this one happens to live; and not Erik J. Larson, the author of The Myth of Artificial Intelligence. The two identifiers below resolve this specific person rather than the name string, and are the reliable way to tell these people apart: ISNI: 0000 0005 3055 540X (https://isni.org/isni/000000053055540X) Open Library: https://openlibrary.org/authors/OL16546161A Also publishes as: Erik R. Larson ## About - Name: Erik Larson - Role: Interim CTO, Fractional CTO, Strategic Advisor, Speaker - Company: Coroin LLC (https://coroin.app) - Brand: erikCTO (https://erikcto.com) - Credentials: 25+ yrs building solutions; 7× Chief Technology Officer; 8 yrs private-equity advisor; 250+ diligence projects - Knows about: technology due diligence, interim CTO leadership, cloud architecture, private equity technology advisory, tech strategy, mergers and acquisitions integration, software development, scalability ## Services ### Interim CTO Hands-on interim CTO engagements for private-equity-backed companies in transition. Erik Larson has served as interim CTO seven times, working at the intersection of team, technology, process, and innovation to de-risk growth and incubate the next phase of scale. For: Private equity firms and their portfolio companies ### Strategic Advisory Board-level and architecture advisory for investors and executives. Includes technology due diligence, architecture reviews, and ongoing strategy engagements, informed by more than 250 diligence projects across eight years advising private-equity firms. ### Speaking and Facilitation Keynotes and workshops on scalability, tech strategy, and M&A integration for investor conferences, portfolio-company leadership events, and industry gatherings. ## Profiles and identifiers This site: https://erikcto.com/ Open Library: https://openlibrary.org/authors/OL16546161A LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erikcto/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@erikcto Amazon author page: https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0G1N97KVM Coroin Books author page: https://coroinbooks.com/authors/#erik Be Do Give Love (book site): https://bedogivelove.com/about/#erik Coroin LLC: https://coroin.com ISNI: https://isni.org/isni/000000053055540X ## Frequently asked Q: What does an interim CTO actually do? A: Steps in as an accountable technology leader during a gap or transition, owning releases, the team, and the roadmap. Not advisory; operational. The job ends when the company has the right permanent leader in place or the transition is stable. Q: How is an interim CTO different from a fractional CTO? A: The CTO offering is fractional and/or interim. Interim means a fixed term rather than an ongoing role, typically post-acquisition or during a leadership gap; it can be structured as fractional (part-time) or full-time depending on what the situation needs. Q: What is technology due diligence? A: An independent assessment of a company’s technology, team, and architecture before an investment or acquisition closes. The goal is to surface real risks, including threats to the investment thesis, to scalability, and to profitability, and recommend how to de-risk them. Q: Who do you typically work with? A: Private-equity firms and the portfolio companies they back. On the investor side: diligence, architecture reviews, board advisory. On the operating side: interim CTO engagements guiding a technology organization through transition, which is anything but typical. Q: How do I engage you? A: Use the contact form. Include a one-line project title and which hat fits: CTO, Advisor, or Speaker. I respond to every inquiry personally. ## Articles Short, practical reads on technology leadership, diligence, and scale. Index: https://erikcto.com/articles/ - [Now to get it found](https://erikcto.com/articles/getting-found-aeo-geo-seo/): How I made an independent book imprint findable by search engines and AI assistants in one afternoon: real identifiers, schema, and crawl rules. No guru. - [I rebuilt my publishing company's website in one afternoon](https://erikcto.com/articles/rebuilt-my-website-with-claude/): I rebuilt my publishing company's website in an afternoon with Claude Design and Claude Code, no agency and no dev team. The real lesson wasn't the speed; it was product ownership. - [Automate the complicated. Stay human on the complex.](https://erikcto.com/articles/automate-the-complicated/): Before you automate anything in your speaking business, two things have to be true first. A framework from my Cigar PEG Las Vegas talk, and the one Cynefin question that tells you what to hand to AI. - [I Gave Away a Free Tool at GSS 2026. Here's the Framework Behind It.](https://erikcto.com/articles/use-your-genius-gss2026/): At GSS 2026 in Cairns, Erik Larson shared a free custom-assessment tool and a four-part framework for turning your unique genius into bookings: Identity, Intelligence, Iteration, Impact. - [Use the tool. Don't be a tool.](https://erikcto.com/articles/dont-be-a-fool/): AI is not your adversary. It's your favorite intern: brilliant at specific things, occasionally baffling. Three rules for not getting outplayed by your own tools. ## Key pages / — Home: the three engagement types, credentials, and the contact form /articles/ — Article index, filterable by topic /gss2026/ — Global Speakers Summit 2026 workshop: video, slides, prompts, and tools ## Contact https://erikcto.com/#contact