I posted the other day about someone hiring for a CTO. It was interesting all the responses I received versus the type of person this company wanted to hire.
They wanted someone with extensive SaaS experience and product focus. They wanted the "AP" of the PPAP I wrote about in my newsletter today. They already had a VP of Engineering that was doing the people and process management.
For them, a CTO meant someone who could lead product, be innovative, and be the product visionary.
Most of the people who responded had a lot of experience managing engineering teams, infrastructure, and IT projects.
At a quick glance, their LinkedIn profiles didn't look strategic, innovative or product focused to the person hiring.
To answer your question Frank Stadler, how does someone become that person?
First, I think it takes someone who is creative and good at thinking outside the box. A lot of engineers think very logically (to a fault sometimes) and not so much creatively.
To be an innovative, product oriented CTO, you need to be very creative.
From a survey I did, I found that half of CTOs were founders.
If you want to hone your skills on being more product focused, I highly recommend you do one of three things:
1. Start your own SaaS company
2. Do consulting that gives you more exposure to building and architecting products
3. Go to work at the smallest company you can find so you have more impact on product decisions
My career started with #3. I was at a tiny company working as the lead developer, support person, software installer, product manager, DBA, and everything else.
Being at a small company or doing consulting forces more creativity.
To read more on this topic, check out my newsletter from today: https://lnkd.in/eXbPdvaA
Research Data Supervisor II at California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE)
1moGreat opportunity to work for a cutting edge company developing advanced solutions that keep us safe from wildfires.