Lianyong Liu Technology Consulting

Practical technology guidance for businesses that would rather build than guess.

Lianyong Liu is an independent technology consultancy helping startups and growing companies make sound decisions about software, cloud, data, and AI — and then get the work done.

As a sole proprietorship, you work directly with the consultant from the first call to final delivery: no account managers, no hand-offs, no agency overhead.

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A consulting session: colleagues reviewing work together on laptops in a modern office
Advisory work is collaborative — your team stays in the room for every decision.
Areas of practice IT Strategy Cloud & Infrastructure Software Advisory Data & AI Security & Risk
Services

What I can help with

Engagements are scoped around outcomes, not hours sold. Each service below can stand alone or combine into a longer advisory relationship.

01

IT Strategy & Roadmapping

A clear-eyed look at where your technology stands today, where the business needs it to go, and the sequence of steps that gets there without wasted spend.

  • Technology audits and capability assessments
  • 12–24 month roadmaps tied to business goals
  • Build-vs-buy analysis and budget planning
02

Cloud & Infrastructure

Designing and reviewing cloud environments that are secure, cost-aware, and sized for the company you are — not the one a sales deck imagines.

  • Cloud architecture design and migration planning
  • Cost reviews and right-sizing of existing accounts
  • Backup, resilience, and disaster-recovery setup
03

Software & Product Advisory

Independent guidance through the decisions that are expensive to reverse: platforms, vendors, architectures, and the teams who build on them.

  • Vendor and platform evaluation and selection
  • Architecture reviews for new and legacy systems
  • Technical due diligence for partnerships and deals
04

Data, Analytics & AI Integration

Turning the data you already collect into reporting you can act on, and adopting AI tools where they genuinely save time — not where they merely demo well.

  • Reporting pipelines and business dashboards
  • AI tool selection, workflow automation, and pilots
  • Data quality and governance basics
05

Security & Risk Reviews

A pragmatic review of the risks most likely to hurt a small or mid-size company, with fixes ordered by impact rather than by fear.

  • Security posture and access-control reviews
  • Account, payment, and fraud-risk hardening
  • Incident readiness and response planning
06

Fractional CTO & Ongoing Advisory

Senior technology leadership on a part-time basis: someone to own the roadmap, vet the vendors, and sit on your side of the table in technical negotiations.

  • Standing advisory with regular check-ins
  • Hiring and contractor evaluation support
  • Board- and investor-facing technology briefings
Why a sole practitioner

One consultant, fully accountable

Lianyong Liu operates as a sole proprietorship. That structure is a deliberate choice — it shapes how the work feels from your side of the table.

Direct access

The person you meet on the first call is the person who does the analysis, writes the recommendations, and answers for the results. Nothing is delegated down a chain.

No sales agenda

Advice is not tied to reselling software, hardware, or a bench of billable staff. Recommendations stand or fall on whether they fit your situation and budget.

Lean by design

Without agency overhead — offices, layers of management, utilization targets — fees stay proportionate to the work itself, and timelines stay short.

Approach

How an engagement runs

A simple, transparent process. You always know what stage we are in, what it will produce, and what it will cost before we move on.

Step 1

Discover

A conversation about your business, your goals, and the problem as you see it. No obligation, no pitch deck.

Step 2

Assess

A focused review of your current systems, tools, and constraints — documented in plain language you can share internally.

Step 3

Plan

A written proposal: options, trade-offs, recommended path, timeline, and a fixed scope of work with clear deliverables.

Step 4

Deliver & support

Implementation guidance or hands-on delivery, followed by a handover your team can actually maintain.

Engagement models

Three ways to work together

Advisory sessions

For a specific question

A focused consultation on one decision — a platform choice, an architecture question, a vendor quote that needs a second opinion.

Project engagements

For a defined outcome

A scoped piece of work with agreed deliverables and a fixed fee: an audit, a migration plan, a systems selection, a security review.

Ongoing retainer

For continuing guidance

A standing advisory relationship — fractional CTO support with regular check-ins and priority access as questions come up.

Every engagement starts with a free introductory call. Scope and fees are quoted in writing before any work begins — no open-ended hourly surprises.

A consultant reviewing a data dashboard on a laptop together with a client
Recommendations are reviewed with you, in the open — numbers included.
About

Lianyong Liu

Lianyong Liu is an independent technology consultant and the owner of this sole proprietorship. The practice exists for one reason: growing businesses regularly face technology decisions with long-term consequences, and they deserve advice from someone with no product to sell them.

The work is deliberately generalist at the strategy level and specific at the point of decision — spanning IT strategy, cloud platforms, software selection, data and AI adoption, and security fundamentals. When a problem needs a specialist implementer, the role shifts to helping you choose one and holding the work to the plan.

Engagements are remote-first and conducted in English, with clients across time zones. Every project is contracted, delivered, and supported personally — that is the whole firm.

— Lianyong Liu
FAQ

Common questions

You contract directly with Lianyong Liu as an individual practitioner rather than with a corporation or agency. Practically, it means one point of contact, one person accountable for the work, and lower overhead reflected in the fees. Agreements, invoicing, and liability are handled personally and in writing for every engagement.
Startups, small and mid-size businesses, and independent professionals facing technology decisions they will live with for years — choosing core platforms, moving to the cloud, adopting AI tools, or tightening security — who want experienced, unbiased guidance without hiring a full-time technology executive.
Yes. The practice is remote-first: discovery calls, workshops, and reviews run over video, and deliverables are shared in writing. Time-zone differences are handled with scheduled sessions and clear written follow-ups.
After a free introductory call, you receive a written proposal with a defined scope and fee before any work begins. Project work is quoted at a fixed price wherever the scope allows; advisory and retainer arrangements are quoted per engagement. Nothing is billed without prior written agreement.
Yes. A mutual non-disclosure agreement can be put in place before any substantive discussion of your systems, data, or plans — just mention it on the introductory call.
You receive a short written summary of what was discussed and, if there is a fit, a proposal with options and a recommended path. There is no obligation to proceed, and no follow-up sales pressure either way.
Contact

Book an introductory call

Tell me a little about what you are working on. I reply personally to every inquiry — usually within one business day — with suggested times for a free introductory conversation.

Email
contact@jamesliu19921101.com
jamesliu19921101@gmail.com
Business structure
Lianyong Liu — Sole Proprietorship
Working hours
Monday–Friday, by appointment across time zones

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