# Anvil Systems, LLC

> Fractional CTO and technology leadership for startups and scale-ups. Led by John Kellar, Anvil Systems, LLC provides leadership that outlasts the engagement — aligning people, process, and product. Based in Tennessee, serving clients across North America.

Anvil Systems, LLC is not a consulting firm that only delivers slide decks. It is an operator-led fractional CTO practice. John Kellar embeds inside your team, works on the problems that matter, and is accountable for outcomes, not just advice.

Technology does not fail in isolation. Anvil Systems aligns people, process, and product to make technology predictable, reliable, and ready for what's next. The three systems: People (team structure, culture, hiring, org design, leadership development), Process (delivery cadence, quality systems, information flow, ops workflows, CI/CD), and Product (architecture, infrastructure, compliance, platform strategy, cost optimization). AI is leveraged across all three as an accelerant.

## Founder

John Kellar is a technology and business operations executive with 25+ years of experience and 10+ years in C-Suite roles across 6+ industries including healthcare, finance, travel, and real estate. He has built HIPAA-compliant platforms, navigated PCI compliance, and is a TechStars alum (Cedars-Sinai). He served in the US Navy as a Cryptologic Technician. His experience spans B2B, B2C, and B2B2C business models.

## Engagement Models

Leadership engagements (ongoing, monthly retainer):

- Fractional CTO: Ongoing technology leadership on a part-time basis, embedded inside your team. 5, 10, or 20 hours per week. 3 month minimum.
- Interim CTO: Full-time technology leadership during a CTO transition. Stabilize, hire, hand off. 6 month minimum.
- Strategic Advisor: A trusted technical voice for boards, leadership teams, and founders. 5 hours per week. 3 month minimum.

Project engagements (scoped, upfront pricing):

- Technical Due Diligence: Independent technical assessment for investors evaluating an acquisition, or startups preparing for investor scrutiny. Fixed fee, starting at $10k.
- Platform Build: Greenfield builds, major platform rebuilds, and legacy modernization. Designed for scale, long-term maintainability, and clean handoff. 3 month minimum, starting at $15k/mo.
- Architecture Design Session: Structured multi-day working session ending with documented decisions your engineering team can execute. Fixed fee, $10k-$15k.

Every engagement starts with a minimum commitment. Month-to-month is available after the initial term. Every engagement ends with a clean handoff: documentation, context, and a plan for what happens next.

## FAQ

- A fractional CTO operates inside your team and owns outcomes. A consultant delivers a recommendation and leaves.
- Leadership engagements start with a 3 or 6 month minimum. Most clients continue beyond the initial term.
- Anvil Systems works with pre-revenue startups when there is a real technical challenge (architecture, compliance, fundraising prep), not when what's needed is a developer. We can help you find and hire the right engineer.
- Not sure which engagement model is right? That's what the discovery call is for.

## Products

- [LeanTo](https://leanto.dev): A Kanban board for engineering teams that enforces WIP limits, integrates with Git, and automates workflow without ceremony. Built by Anvil Systems.

## Contact

- [Book a Discovery Call](https://calendly.com/johnkellar/discovery-call): No pitch deck. No sales pressure. Just an honest conversation about what you need.
- [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnkellar)
- [Website](https://anvilsystems.com)