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Position: Assistant Chief Technology Officer (CTO)Freelance Contractor (Individual Freelancers Only – No Agencies or Teams)Contract Term: Open Ended Contract (Long Term)Note: Only Former CTOs, Former Director of Engineering professionals should apply.We are seeking a highly experienced Assistant Chief Technology Officer (CTO) to join our growing technology team. This is a leadership role with hands-on responsibilities, working closely with the CTO to shape the technical roadmap, lead development initiatives, and mentor a team of developers. As the Assistant CTO, you will contribute directly to large-scale projects, full-stack application development, and drive technical innovation within our company.Key Responsibilities:Technical Leadership & Team Management:Collaborate with the CTO to define and execute technical strategy.Lead and manage a team of 10+ technology professionals, promoting best practices and fostering a culture of innovation.Guide sprint planning, project scoping, and task prioritization.Mentor developers, conduct code reviews, and enforce coding standards.Development & System Architecture:Design and develop scalable full-stack applications using PHP framework.Maintain and refactor legacy codebases, ensuring clean, modern, and well-documented code for new features and systems.Work with RabbitMQ for messaging systems and assist with LAMP server environments and Linux command line tools.AI & Innovation:Integrate and enhance AI-driven features, including large language models and natural language processing capabilities, to improve system functionality.Release Management & Support:Maintain production integrity of code releases and infrastructure.Coordinate with data center support to ensure optimal server performance.Act as a high-level point of contact for critical support issues, including availability outside normal hours for urgent matters.Required Skills & Experience:8+ years of professional PHP development experience.Previous experience as a CTO or in a senior technical leadership role (Assistant CTO, Technical Director, etc.) is highly preferred.Strong knowledge of Object-Oriented PHP and MVC frameworks.Proficiency in HTML, CSS, JavaScript (including jQuery), and SQL (MySQL).Experience with Linux command line and Bash.Familiarity with Git and Subversion for version control.Excellent communication and leadership skills.Comfortable explaining complex technical ideas to both developers and stakeholders.Able to balance leadership duties with personal development tasks.Fluent in English (written and verbal).Nice to Have:Experience with RabbitMQ and messaging queues.DevOps, SEO, automated QA, or DBA experience.Familiarity with AI tools, NLP, and large language models.Networking, VOIP, Asterisk programming.Experience with high-traffic e-commerce systems.Understanding of online marketing and fulfillment workflows.Work Requirements:Work hours during or close to US East Coast business hours (9:00 AM – 5:30 PM EST).Availability for two key weekends a year: Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day.Emergency availability outside normal hours.Internet speed of at least 90 Mbps down / 30 Mbps up.Ability to place calls to US phone numbers.