I’m Jordan Ambra, founder of Serenity.
Over the last 25 years, I’ve worked with over 350 SaaS companies as a coder, CTO, and founder.
I bridge the gap between “Business Needs” and “Developer Reality” because I speak both languages fluently. I tell founders and executives the uncomfortable truths hiding in their teams and software products, and I connect engineering teams with the business to deliver the best possible product.
How It Started
Age 12. I’m visiting my aunt. She brings me to the bookstore and says “Jordan, pick a book and I’ll buy it for you.” So naturally, I picked out a 600-page HTML book and read it three times.
That feeling of creating software from scratch? Incredible. I was hooked.
I spent the next 15 years working my way from hobbyist to Corporate America™ to the startup world. I was highly-paid with great job titles, but I fell into the trap of the hustle and grind mentality that plagues the software industry. Always behind. Imposter syndrome. No time for family or friends.
“Time is money” was my motto. Then I burned out and got fired from a startup I’d helped build from the ground up.
The Turning Point
I was so sick of the software grind that I was ready to leave the money behind and restart my career. Before I did, my friend Ben asked me to help with a new project. We could build it from the ground up, our way.
This time, I was determined not to sacrifice myself. I killed off the non-essentials and rediscovered how refreshing and fun it was to build software without all the waste.
That project gave me the confidence to rethink my approach to software development, deep dive into what makes great software, and help others do the same.
What I’ve Built
Since then, I’ve built my consultancy around helping teams nail their product development so they can build excellent, profitable software without the bloat and burnout.
Some results from my clients:
- Grew from $0 to $15MM ARR in 18 months
- Reduced downtime from 60 hours/year to 0
- Shortened new-hire onboarding from 20 days to 1 day
- Minimized errors from 10,000/day to 0
- Launched 3 new products in under 180 days
I’ve Seen It All
I’ve been a solo developer, a team lead, a VP of Engineering, a CTO, and a founder. I’ve built products from scratch, inherited legacy nightmares, scaled teams from 3 to 50, and helped companies navigate everything from Series A chaos to acquisition.
I’ve seen every dysfunction pattern there is:
- The “genius” developer who’s actually holding the company hostage
- The process theater where everyone’s busy but nothing ships
- The communication breakdown where leadership and developers are building different products
- The technical debt excuse that masks deeper organizational problems
The problem is rarely the people—it’s the system they’re working in. Fix the system, and the people thrive.
Let’s Talk
If your engineering team isn’t delivering like it should, I can help you figure out why—and what to do about it.