“The most important thing for me, as a CTO, is to be curious, always – and never – stop asking questions. You should always look for ways to grow your knowledge and expand your horizons,” he argues. According to IBM’s The CTO Revelation report, which polled 2,500 CTOs and 2,500 CIOs, 61% of CTOs saw themselves as the executive that will play the most crucial role, beyond the CEO, over the next three years. In addition, you will participate in a team on a series of assignments that will culminate in a final presentation at the MIT campus. The 12-month program is an all-encompassing, 360° certificate program that supplies you with the necessary tools to accelerate your career. The journey to learning a department in an organization varies from professional to professional.
- They work closely with Executives and IT personnel to remove outdated systems and replace them to maintain a competitive edge in their industry.
- The future looks bright for Chief Technology Officers, as technology becomes more and more critical to business and enabling client propositions the CTO role will only gain in stature.
- They are also able to write codes themselves and check other developers’ codes.
- They apply technological systems and products to simplify internal business processes.
- Clay says it’s worth remembering that CIOs and CTOs are ultimately all working towards the same goal – supporting and driving business growth.
You must stay on top of the latest trends and gain valuable time on the job. More important to the role than in-depth technical knowledge of hardware and code might be the ability to leverage advanced technologies (AI, big data and machine learning, for example) to set a strategic course for a company. The CTO manages technology in a corporation while also hiring and managing teams, finding and implementing innovative solutions, and imparting technical knowledge to the company. The CTO serves as the technical guide in an increasingly technology-based world. For more information, check our comprehensive guide on CTO hiring options. A CTO must acquire an innovative mindset to find new ways to create products, processes, cost structures, operating models, and application development.
Previous PostHow to Become a Chief Digital Officer
Which style best suits a given company bears some relation to the kind of industry the company is in. Enablers are more managerial, tasked with driving efficiencies in multi-business-unit organizations with a high degree of overlap in technologies and projects among the business units. We believe that a major reason for this lack of preparation is that many companies today have no one on the executive team who owns the responsibility for navigating these shifts.
Today, as nearly every company strives to achieve digital transformation and deliver tech-driven customer experiences, the CTO has become much more of a chief strategy officer, often with the CIO as a direct report. But just when you think the matter is settled, along comes the chief digital officer (CDO) and even a chief experience officer (CXO), creating a veritable Venn diagram of tech-focused executives with overlapping spheres of influence. In a sign of the increased expectations of top-class CTOs, the analyst says the role is moving beyond infrastructure management and towards driving technology innovation and leading digital product development. The analyst says CTOs should be looking to evolve their responsibilities in response to the business’ demands for digital transformation. Of course, CTOs need to be up to date with the latest technology trends and able to identify the emerging technologies that could give their company a competitive advantage, but they also need well-developed softer skills. Gone are the days of building a hero culture where people push until they burn out.
What does a Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) do? And what is the meaning of a CCO?
Some CTOs are also responsible for managing research and development initiatives and overseeing intellectual property at their organizations. When an idea for a business has blossomed, the CTO acts as a practical engineer, validating the technical feasibility of the business plan. The CTO (at this stage) is sometimes a co-founder and must be prepared to build the digital product architecture often without third-party help. Over time, this can decrease and sometimes the CTO isn’t required to code at all. A CTO is usually the person in charge of the organization’s technological needs as well as its research and development (R&D). Sometimes known as a Chief Technical Officer, this individual thoroughly examines the short and long-term needs of an organization.
His day-to-day focus is innovating through technology on behalf of the customer, not on running operational IT systems. They are typically in charge of discovering and analyzing how technology processes affect the business, as well as identifying potential areas of improvement. Although a four-year or advanced degree will lay the foundation for the CTO role, future CTOs will have to work their way up the IT ranks. Individuals what is the role of a cto may need five to 10 years of experience in IT, according to Indeed. With this experience, they may enter a leadership role, executive role or some other executive position where they can gain leadership experience. They need to focus more and more on developing the potential of their people, moving away from the purely technical and toward how people and teams can work together for the good of the business.
What is a CTO? The exec who sets tech strategy
Meeting new professionals and maintaining professional relationships with industry leaders can influence your career. As long as you have the education and experience under your belt, nurturing professional relationships can lead you to achieve the position you have always wanted. Through executive interviews, policy spotlights and news stories on corporate activity, ExecutiveBiz stays on top of what’s shaping the industry and how GovCon leaders are positioning their businesses to win the federal business of tomorrow.
Their primary role is to meet the agreed delivery of IT services (such as cost, timing, functionality, and scalability) for core systems. These CTOs usually report to the CIO, rather than holding an executive-level position and reporting to the CEO. A key part of this area is working with software vendors and partners to ensure that service levels are maintained and any new features are delivered safely.
alphalist.CTO Podcast – For CTOs and Technical Leaders
Product management – Technology and product often go hand-in-hand in the tech space. A top CTO should understand the product life-cycle and how to build new products and maintain existing ones. They may be hired for two main purposes — to take care of internal business operation processes or to develop innovative products.
She’s responsible for identifying customer needs and assembling an innovation portfolio, advancing new product development from early-stage concepts through commercialization, along with sustaining the current product portfolio. The CTO is an executive in charge of its technological demands, together with its research and advancement. Furthermore, the officer has to look for the company’s short and long-term needs and utilize the capital to further the objectives and plans formulated. That’s why CTOs often serve as the ‘face’ of the company, openly engaging with customers, investors, vendors, and partners.
What Is a CTO’s Role in a Startup?
Hiring a freelance CTO is the best investment for startups and small organizations. A freelance CTO comes with many benefits, including the ability to find an appropriate specialist in your industry and hiring temporarily at lower rates. In my eyes, the ultimate test of a great CTO is whether they can illustrate how technology helps drive the Enterprise Value of the company they work in.
For a lot of companies, this can encapsulate the role of a CTO — CRM and ERP implementation and supporting international teams with tech issues. Technical domain knowledge – In the tech realm, previous experience and strong knowledge of the industry is vital. Sometimes a CTO can learn along the way, in tech, it’s a little more complicated.
What qualities make a good Chief Technology Officer?
A CTO needs to be able to work and connect with all areas of the business. From marketing, finance, human resources, and operations, the CTO is expected to bring technological experience that works towards a common goal shared by everyone in the company. They should master the art of accurately describing technical information in layman’s terms so that engineers and stakeholders alike can be on the same page. This mindset will allow them to stay on top of innovation and better direct their company to the best practices and products.
