Hey!

Chris here. Welcome to Blueprint—the newsletter to help you build a winning engineering team.

If you told me at the start of 2024 what this year would look like, I probably wouldn't have believed you. 

Honestly, I'm still processing everything that happened. 

But since so many of you have been asking about our growth and what we learned along the way, I figured it was time to break it all down.

Grab a coffee (or something stronger)—let's dive into the wild ride that was 2024.

📒 DEEP DIVE

Why Contract Engineers Are Your Best Business Move

Everything I've learned about building high-performance engineering teams using contractors.

I have to start with this because it still feels surreal: we grew 11x in 12 months at Surton.

2023 was already a record year for us. But 2024? It made last year look like we were just warming up. 

The craziest part is that when you look back, you can actually see how all the pieces lined up perfectly.

Though trust me, it didn't feel that way while we were in it.

How We Saw It Coming (Kind Of)

Back in 2021, I spotted this massive gap between what cloud tools could do and what companies were actually doing with them. 

AWS was sitting there with all this capability, and most businesses were barely scratching the surface. I knew 2 things would happen:

1. These tools would become impossible to ignore

2. There wouldn't be enough talent to implement them

It was the perfect storm to start Surton. But then something none of us saw coming happened.

The AI Explosion

Mid-2024, AI didn't just enter the chat—it broke the whole inbox. That gap between capability and implementation exploded. 

Suddenly, companies everywhere started realizing they'd been leaving serious money on the table by underutilizing technology.

The conversations shifted from "How can we better use our cloud tools?" to "How do we leverage AI before our competitors do?" 

Companies that were barely scratching the surface with basic automation were suddenly looking at LLMs and thinking about ways to transform their entire operations.

And you know what's crazy? Despite all the doom and gloom about AI replacing jobs, we've seen the opposite.

We're talking about an ocean of untapped potential, and it's only getting bigger.

 Why (I think) We Actually Won 2024

The real secret to our 2024 success? We've just stayed in the game longer than everyone else. 

I talk a lot about longevity. Part of the game for any founder is to be there longer than everybody else. If you're there longer than they are, the opportunities will come at you.

Bezos has this killer quote about comparing business to baseball: you hit a grand slam in baseball, you get 4 runs. In business, if you hit it out of the park once in a while—you can get 10,000. 

But you only get those shots if you keep stepping up to the plate.

The Big Lessons Coming Out of This Year

2024 was full of lessons but there are 3 major patterns I kept seeing.

Never. Get. Complacent.

Go after every opportunity. Every single one. 

Trust me on this one: the moment you think you can let off the gas is the moment your pipeline starts to dry up.

No cherry-picking, no "maybe later." Especially early in your company's history, you need to hunt everything.

Cash Really Is King

I know I know, money isn't the most exciting topic, but here's the simple math: Revenue in, expenses out.

If more goes out than comes in, you're in trouble. 

For bootstrapped companies (which is most of us), you need a system. 

Want the playbook? I highly suggest grabbing "Profit First" by Mike Michalowicz. It'll change how you handle those financial rollercoasters.

Move Fast on Talent

You need to move fast when someone isn't working out. Sure, they might kill it for a month, but they might drop off the next month. 

Don't get stuck remembering that one great month. Your quality bar needs people who crush it consistently, not occasionally.

The Bottom Line

Through all the ups and downs of 2024, one thing became crystal clear: success is about showing up every day, solving real problems, and proving what's possible. 

We didn't just ride the wave this year—we earned every bit of that 11x growth by staying focused on what matters: delivering real value for our clients.

Sure, the AI boom and market timing played their part. But at the end of the day it came down to persistence, solid fundamentals, and a team that refused to settle for "good enough."

🎙 EPISODE OF THE WEEK

Tired of productivity "hacks"?

In this episode, Matt and I keep it real about what actually helps us get through our days.

We share the books, tools, and habits that make the biggest impact—the stuff we actually use, not just what looks good on Instagram.

Take a listen here.

BEFORE YOU GO…

Looking back at this year, it's wild to think about how far we've come. But here's the thing that gets me excited: this is still just the beginning. 

That massive valley between what's possible with technology and what companies are actually doing? That's where Surton lives. And we're going to keep living there, pushing what's possible while helping companies bridge that gap.

Thanks for being part of this incredible ride.

Let's see what kind of records we can break in 2025.

Talk soon,

Chris