Both Sides of the Table

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Want to Know the Difference Between a CTO and a VP Engineering?

Both Sides of the Table

Because more technology people probably read startup blogs I’m guessing this post will come under more scrutiny. The terms “CTO&# and “VP Engineering&# have such stigmas associated with what they are that I’m sure some people will feel uncomfortable with the definitions I’ve put forward. Experience.

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People Management: Startup Teams Should Dip but not Skip

Both Sides of the Table

You’ll get sales information from your VP of Sales, marketing information from your VP Marketing, tech information from your CTO and so on. But I knew that to be a good decision maker I needed first hand knowledge rather than just a summary from my CTO. But as a CEO you can’t rely solely on this information.

CTO Hire 308
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Come Check Out a Very Important LA Tech Event on June 1st

Both Sides of the Table

For those of you who haven’t heard, President Obama and US CTO Todd Park have established a National Day of Civic Hacking this weekend, in cities across the nation. But, as in every civic endeavor, real change starts with the people. Which brings me to my second big LA civic push this month.

Coder 295
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The Power of Getting the Band Back Together

Both Sides of the Table

And just so it’s clear that I practice what I preach … When it was time to bring on a CTO at Maker Studios in the early days, I passed over many local LA video CTOs and found the one guy I KNEW could deliver magic for us. We brought Ryan Lissack down from San Francisco to become Maker’s CTO and the rest is history.

CTO Hire 320
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Remind Me Why I Love You? (Why “In Person” is Everything)

Both Sides of the Table

Last time we met I didn’t have my CTO with me. Would it be alright if I brought her by your offices for a super quick coffee?” I worked on a new model and I’d really love to show it to you in person. It’s hard to completely grok reading it. Can I please just get 30 minutes of your time. I’ll come to you and promise to be fast.”

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Why Entrepreneurs Should Be Respected More Than Loved

Both Sides of the Table

In the early days the CEO is the jack-of-all-trades, doer-of-all, famously the “chief janitor” or coffee maker. Eventually you need a VP of Product to handle your product roadmap, a CTO for engineering leadership and VPs of sales, marketing & biz dev. Most companies that are scaling have CFOs, heads of HR or talent.

CTO Hire 385
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When Should Technical Founders Become CEO?

Both Sides of the Table

So Nick drove strategy & tech from the UK and remained an active board member and CTO of the company. With Nick as the CTO we have created an enterprise-grade data management platform that we believe could be transformational in how large companies process, store, retrieve and make sense out of large volumes of big data.

Founder 309