Last Updated on 2024-10-11
As a founder and CTO, I’ve worn many hats throughout my career.
Through my own experiences and conversations with other tech leaders, I’ve realized that the role of a CTO is far from one-size-fits-all.ย
There are many types of CTOs, and a โstartup CTOโ is nothing like Microsoft’s or Google’s CTO.
I had the pleasure of discussing this topic with Adelina Chalmers, the Geek Whisperer, in a recent episode of the Startup Hustle podcast.ย
She has identified seven distinct types of CTOs, each with their own unique challenges and responsibilities.
Understanding these different archetypes can help you identify your strengths, weaknesses, and place in the grand scheme of things.
#1. The Startup CTO
In the early stages of a startup, the CTO is often more of a principal engineer or engineering manager.
When working with a small team of 5-20 engineers, your primary focus is building and shipping products. You’re in the trenches, coding alongside your team and making sure things get done.
As Adelina put it, “A CTO with five engineers is really someone who’s essentially a principal engineer slash engineering manager under the label of CTO.”
Key focuses of a startup CTO:
- Hands-on coding and problem-solving
- Ensuring product development stays on track
- Wearing multiple hats and adapting to the company’s needs
- Making quick decisions to keep the startup agile
As a startup CTO, you wear multiple hats and adapt to the company’s needs as it grows. This challenging role requires a unique blend of technical expertise and leadership skills.
#2. The Scale-Up CTO
As your company grows, so does your role as a CTO. In a scale-up, your focus shifts from hands-on coding to delivery and operations.
You’re responsible for ensuring that your team can keep up with the demands of a growing business.
Adelina noted that this transition can be challenging for some CTOs: “I’ve seen so many chief technology officers who don’t upgrade their mental operating system when they have more people under them.”
Key focuses of a scale-up CTO:
- Building and managing a larger engineering team
- Establishing processes and best practices for scalability
- Ensuring the team can deliver on the company’s growing needs
- Communicating effectively with stakeholders across the organization
This transition can be challenging, especially if you’re used to being in the weeds of development. It requires a new set of skills and a different mindset to succeed.
#3. The Technical Visionary CTO
Some CTOs excel at looking into the future and anticipating the next big thing.
As a technical visionary, you’re always exploring new technologies and prototyping ideas that could give your company a competitive edge. However, this role often comes at the expense of day-to-day people management and operations.
Adelina described this type of CTO as someone who “looks five steps ahead, prototyping future technologies.”
Key focuses of a technical visionary CTO:
- Researching and exploring cutting-edge technologies
- Prototyping and experimenting with new ideas
- Anticipating industry trends and staying ahead of the curve
- Inspiring and guiding the technical direction of the company
If you find yourself gravitating towards this type of CTO, ensure you have a strong team to handle the practical aspects of running an engineering organization.
Your visionary ideas are valuable, but they need to be balanced with the day-to-day realities of the business.
#4. The Business Strategist CTO
The CTO is often a business strategist in larger, more mature organizations.
You understand technology and business and know how to scale your team to meet the company’s goals. You’re comfortable working with stakeholders across the organization and making decisions that impact the bottom line.
Adelina identified me as this type of CTO, saying, “You normally, it’s a mature commercial business, normally have 250 plus staff. You’re essentially a business person who understands business as well as technology, and you can scale yourself through lots of people. And that’s what I think you are. You’re at number four.”
Key focuses of a business strategist CTO:
- Aligning technology strategy with business goals
- Scaling the engineering team to meet the company’s needs
- Collaborating with other executives to make data-driven decisions
- Ensuring the technology stack can support the company’s growth
As a business strategist CTO, you’re no longer just focused on technology. You’re a key player in shaping the company’s overall direction. This role requires a deep understanding of both technology and business, as well as strong leadership and communication skills.
#5. The IT Operations CTO
In some companies, the CTO is responsible for keeping the lights on.
You’re in charge of ensuring the IT infrastructure runs smoothly so that your engineers can focus on building products. This type of CTO often reports to a CIO and isn’t directly involved in product development.
Adelina humorously referred to this type as “the server huggers.”
Key focuses of an IT operations CTO:
- Ensuring the stability and reliability of the company’s IT infrastructure
- Managing and optimizing the company’s technology stack
- Providing technical support and guidance to other departments
- Collaborating with the CIO to align IT strategy with business goals
While this role may not be as glamorous as some others, it’s essential for keeping the company running smoothly. Without a solid IT infrastructure, engineers cannot do their best work.
#6. The Account CTO
You might be an account CTO if you work for a large corporation like Microsoft or Fujitsu.
In this role, you’re responsible for serving specific industry accounts and meeting their needs.
You’re often more customer-facing than other types of CTOs, and you need to understand your clients’ businesses deeply.ย
Adelina explained that “An account CTO in a scale up, you know, smaller company, not an established corporation the size of Microsoft, let’s say, an account CTO in that kind of business is often much more sales focused and much more delivery bottom line value focused than an account CTO in a corporation.”
Key focuses of an account CTO:
- Understanding the unique needs and challenges of specific industry accounts
- Collaborating with sales teams to develop tailored technology solutions
- Ensuring client satisfaction and retention through strong relationships
- Staying up-to-date with industry trends and best practices
As an account CTO, you’re key in building and maintaining strong relationships with your company’s most important customers.
This role requires a unique blend of technical expertise, sales skills, and customer service.
#7. The R&D CTO
Finally, there’s the R&D CTO. This might be your role if you work for a company with a dedicated research and development department.
You’re responsible for leading cutting-edge research projects and exploring new technologies that could disrupt your industry.
Adelina described this role as “the R&D CTO in a corporation which has the office of the CTO.”
Key focuses of an R&D CTO:
- Leading research projects to develop new technologies and products
- Collaborating with academia and industry partners to stay on the cutting-edge
- Identifying potential areas for innovation and disruption
- Communicating the value of R&D projects to stakeholders and executives
As an R&D CTO, you often work on projects that will not see the light of day for years, if ever. But when you do make a breakthrough, it can be a game-changer for your company.
This role requires a deep passion for innovation and a willingness to take risks.
The Types of CTOs: Roles of Chief Technology Officer
As you can see, the role of a CTO is incredibly diverse.
Whether you’re a startup CTO getting your hands dirty with code or a business strategist CTO shaping your company’s future, your job is to lead your team and make sure that technology is working for your business, not against it.
The key is understanding your strengths and weaknesses and surrounding yourself with people who complement your skills.
And if you ever find yourself feeling stuck or overwhelmed, just remember Adelina’s advice: “One of the huge advantages that you have as a CTO is you can design your own job and keep the stuff you like.”
Embrace your unique style and keep pushing forward. After all, there’s no one right way to be a CTOโit’s all about finding what works best for you and your company.
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Matt Watson is a serial tech entrepreneur who has started four companies and had a nine-figure exit. He was the founder and CTO of VinSolutions, the #1 CRM software used in today’s automotive industry. He has over twenty years of experience working as a tech CTO and building cutting-edge SaaS solutions.
As the CEO of Full Scale, he has helped over 100 tech companies build their software services and development teams. Full Scale specializes in helping tech companies grow by augmenting their in-house teams with software development talent from the Philippines.
Matt hosts Startup Hustle, a top podcast about entrepreneurship with over 6 million downloads. He has a wealth of knowledge about startups and business from his personal experience and from interviewing hundreds of other entrepreneurs.