About Mark
20 years making technology work for businesses.
Now I help yours do the same.
I work with founders, CEOs, and operators who run their business well but are hitting real technology constraints. My role is to identify what's actually broken and help you fix it, not simply tell you what to do. I can lead the strategy, manage the build, and get into the technical work directly when needed.
Why The Background Matters
Experience across the places scale problems actually show up.
Background
20 years in the room where technology either works or it doesn't.
Not advising from the outside. Real operating experience across software, retail, ecommerce, fulfillment, and executive leadership.
I started writing code: real software, real systems, real bugs to fix. That foundation still shapes how I work today. I can recognize when a vendor is overpromising, when a technical estimate is wishful thinking, or when a system is far more fragile than it's being presented as. Most consultants can't make that call. When a project needs someone to get into the technical detail, I do that; I'm not limited to the strategy layer.
Over time, the scope of the problems grew. One engagement that stands out: I led the technology behind a national retailer's move of 47 stores to a new checkout system, spanning the technical migration, vendor relationships, training 400+ store employees, and five rollout waves without disrupting the business. Nearly everything that could go wrong did at some point. We worked through it.
I also designed the technology behind a 45-location fulfillment network: the routing logic, the SLA design, and the integrations between ecommerce and inventory systems, the kind of work where a wrong assumption in a spreadsheet shows up as a missed delivery six months later.
Eventually I moved into senior executive roles, responsible for teams, vendor portfolios, technology strategy, and board-level reporting. That experience taught me how to turn technical complexity into clear decisions for people who had businesses to run, not engineering degrees to apply.
Today, I bring that experience to growing companies through Cloudstruct Systems Ltd. The work is the same: helping business leaders make smarter technology decisions and avoid the expensive mistakes I've seen repeated across dozens of engagements.
Career Arc
Five stages that built the operating depth.
Each one added something the others can't replace. The value is in the combination.
Built real software
Started writing code and building systems rather than managing from a distance. That hands-on foundation still shapes how I work: I can engage with the technical reality of a problem, not only the strategy layer above it.
Scaled ecommerce and supply chain
Led technology across fulfillment operations, ecommerce platforms, and digital channels. Learned what breaks first when a business grows faster than its systems.
Transformed national retail technology
Led the technology when a national retailer moved 47 stores to a new checkout system, managing vendors, store operations, and 400+ employees across five rollout waves.
Led at the executive level
Held senior technology leadership roles responsible for teams, vendor relationships, strategy, and board-level communication. Learned to turn technical complexity into clear decisions.
Now helping growing businesses
Working with founders, CEOs, and operators through Cloudstruct Systems Ltd., bringing 20 years of real operating experience to the technology decisions that matter most.
Who This Is For
The businesses I work best with.
I don't work with large enterprises that have full IT departments. I work with growing businesses where technology has become a real factor in revenue and operations, and where leadership capacity hasn't kept pace with that complexity.
- Founders who run their business well but find technology decisions uncomfortable or hard to evaluate
- CEOs with a technical team or vendors in place, but no senior leader confirming they're focused on the right priorities
- COOs managing systems and software that haven't kept pace with how the business actually operates
- Business owners facing a major technology decision (AI, a software build, a platform change) and wanting an experienced second opinion
- Companies that have had a difficult experience with a consultant or technology project and want a different approach
How It Works
What working together actually looks like.
I ask a lot of questions about your business before saying anything about technology. Technology is almost never the real problem; it's a symptom. Understanding what's actually going on comes first.
I'll give you my honest opinion, even when it isn't what you were hoping to hear. I would rather tell you not to spend money on something than watch it get wasted on an approach that won't work.
Ready to talk about what's going on with your technology?
Book a free 30-minute call: no pitch, no obligation, just a direct conversation about your situation and what makes sense.