Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 20, 2010

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. I hope many will read this and have an answer for the question, “what’s the different between a CTO and a VP of Engineering?&#.

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SoCal CTO

JANUARY 26, 2010

I’ve been having discussions with several people recently about the role of the CTO (Chief Technology Officer) in very early stage companies. In December 2007, I described how I commonly take on an Acting CTO Role in a Start-up. I used an image from Roger Smith that describes the varying roles of a CTO as the company matures.

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SoCal CTO

APRIL 2, 2012

Using my StartupRoar as a radar, I came across a great post by Gabriel Weinberg Do you really need a full-time hire for that? Hiring seems to be the preferred use of seed funds (by investors and founders), whereas I'd prefer a focus on customer acquisition. In other words, they come in asking for help with sourcing and hiring.

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SoCal CTO

DECEMBER 10, 2012

It was like having a bunch of mini- Free Startup CTO Consulting Sessions all in one room. Structure development contracts appropriately or directing the in-house team appropriately. Structure development contracts appropriately or directing the in-house team appropriately. Would you create contracts without an attorney?

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SoCal CTO

DECEMBER 1, 2007

I generally am working as an acting CTO for about 3-4 start-ups or other companies at any one time. I also found this interesting graphic of the changing needs around the CTO role in different size/type companies that somewhat echoes my experience. Roger Smith ) This helps explain where I normally play. Great question.

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TechEmpower

AUGUST 14, 2023

Would you create contracts without an attorney? Just like attorneys, technical advisors can help navigate waters that many find murky. CTO Founder – Do they really still need a technical advisor? Strategy can be had on a part-time basis. We’ve talked about this before in Startup CTO or Developer.

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SoCal CTO

JULY 23, 2012

I seem to encounter a lot of people who want to attach a CTO label to me as I'm the only programmer on the founding team of three. While I do fill that role at the moment, I'm a little hesitant to refer to myself as a CTO as we still haven't launched a product, acquired a single user, or turned or a penny in profit. Who will do that?

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SoCal CTO

FEBRUARY 13, 2013

If you do not break it down into small pieces, its hard to make progress with part-time resources, freelancers, etc. Equity-Only CTO and Equity-Only Developers Technology Roles in Startups Want to Know the Difference Between a CTO and a VP Engineering? Third party products are used appropriately.

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SoCal CTO

SEPTEMBER 27, 2011

Founders vs. Early Employees To help with this discussion, let me start with a definition of "early employee." For your first key hires, three, five, maybe as much as ten, you will probably not be able to use any kind of formula. Suppose the company wants to make a "profit" of 50% on the new hire mentioned above.

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SoCal CTO

FEBRUARY 25, 2010

This is not only sad but incredibly frustrating, because it is so easy to see how a great technology can be developed and commercialized if only - if only the CTO hadn't been impulsive and insecure and brought on a business partner too early in the game. … And it’s not just inexperienced CTOs. Lack of confidence? Camaraderie?

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SoCal CTO

MAY 21, 2012

So, here goes: Dr. Tony Karrer Over the past 15 years, Tony has been a part-time CTO for more than 30 startups. Most notably, he was the original CTO for eHarmony for its first four years making him partly responsible for more than 4% of the marriages every year. Tony has a Ph.D.

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socalTECH

JANUARY 2, 2014

Michael Chasin: LawKick.com is essentially a marketplace that makes it easier than ever to find legal help. How the website works, is the client goes to the website, and indicates what they need help with. You fill out the short questionnaire, lawyers submit their price quotes, and they get hired. Thanks, and good luck!

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SoCal CTO

JANUARY 18, 2011

I received an inquiry from a reader of my blog and thought I would provide some thoughts, but would definitely welcome input: I am an unpaid CTO of a small startup. I have been working full time with two founders for about 10 months on full time basis. Of course, that doesn’t help here. What type of shares?

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socalTECH

AUGUST 9, 2012

Cloud-based email delivery startup SendGrid , one of the companies out of the TechStars accelerator, said this week that it is accelerating hiring at the firm, including at the firm's Anaheim location. SendGrid is based in Boulder, Colorado.

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SoCal CTO

MARCH 2, 2015

As the organizer of the LA CTO Forum , I get lots of inquiries by job seekers and people looking for CTO / VP Engineering talent. I’ve written quite a bit about aspects of this topic, especially from the perspective of startup founders looking for talent – you can find these in: Startup CTO. My general answer is “no.”

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SoCal CTO

MARCH 12, 2012

" Typically, this requires quite a bit more information for me to be able to respond and provide real help. Your technical advisor can likely help. They often can help a lot in navigating to expertise and to possible resources. Do you have dollars to pay for development? Make sure you meet the people who run these events.

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SoCal CTO

JANUARY 18, 2011

I received an inquiry from a reader of my blog and thought I would provide some thoughts, but would definitely welcome input: I am an unpaid CTO of a small startup. I have been working full time with two founders for about 10 months on full time basis. Of course, that doesn’t help here. What type of shares?

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socalTECH

MAY 3, 2021

says it is taking aim at the digital contract management industry, with a new artificial intelligence tool. According to the company, it is using machine learning and artificial intelligence (ML and AI) to help businesses find opportunities within their contracts, and help those companies simplify their contract management process.

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TechEmpower

MARCH 4, 2024

It can be used to quickly scan and shortlist resumes, reducing the time and resources spent on the initial stages of the recruitment process. This not only speeds up hiring but also lowers the costs associated with lengthy recruitment cycles. tew_cta text="Want to learn how TechEmpower can help you drive impact with AI?"]

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socalTECH

JUNE 5, 2019

San Diego-based eSUB Construction Software --fresh off a $12M funding round --says it has hired on a new Chief Technology Officer (CTO), to help it development its platform.

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SoCal CTO

MAY 27, 2010

And there are all sorts of different kinds of technical people who might help with getting that product to happen. There are a bunch of questions in Startup Software Development – Do Your Homework Before You Develop Anything and in Startup CTO or Developer. This is somewhat the heart of what a CTO does. It’s a painful situation.

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socalTECH

AUGUST 12, 2009

Santa Barbara-based Make It Work , the in-home computer and electronics help firm headed by Eric David Greenspan, reports that the firm is seeing its business grow, and has been hiring additional technicians at the company. Make It Work offers in-home computer and electronics help and repair services. READ MORE>>.

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Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 16, 2014

Eventually you need a VP of Product to handle your product roadmap, a CTO for engineering leadership and VPs of sales, marketing & biz dev. You hire great people. You help them prioritize their objectives and review the results. You motivate, cajole, reassign tasks, hire, fire and push the organization forward.

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Both Sides of the Table

JULY 1, 2010

As your organization grows and you hire senior staff where you are no longer managing every employee directly the issue of how to manage people that are not your “direct&# reports arises. You’ll get sales information from your VP of Sales, marketing information from your VP Marketing, tech information from your CTO and so on.

Startup 308

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SoCal CTO

MAY 13, 2014

Here’s the other aspect that both Tony and I preach: get help. You can’t afford and don’t want to hire a full-time CTO or architect. Getting someone who’s fully employed somewhere else to work with you on a limited basis to help close the gap is hugely important for the non-technical founder.

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SoCal CTO

JUNE 26, 2012

I've done four Free CTO Consulting Sessions in the past month with startup founders who all had run into variations of the same problem. In the fourth case, the founder was getting ready to sign a very large contract, but they didn't feel they had much visibility into what was going to be delivered. They couldn't plan their business.

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SoCal CTO

FEBRUARY 17, 2011

But I thought I at least needed to do a post that made a few suggestions on how to avoid this situation: Keep your Eyes Open for the Symptoms of a Weak Development Team Hire a Part-Time CTO , Technology Advisor , or Acting CTO to help you keep an eye on what's going and increase your chances.

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socalTECH

AUGUST 30, 2012

The team behind Recmnd.Me , the hiring and recommendations website, is applying its technology to recommending software tools, apps, and companies through a new service, Recmnd.us.

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socalTECH

AUGUST 2, 2013

Are you a startup founder wishing you could find someone more experience to help meet other entrepeneurs, get some advice, and help you figure out the issues you face? Karrer is a local part-time CTO at TechEmpower, who has helped many of LA''s top tech startups get off the ground. READ MORE>>.

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SoCal CTO

APRIL 28, 2014

I just need you for a few hours to help me move this weekend.” I.e., they need a developer more than they need a CTO. I just had a fellow CTO ask me about a particular technical design problem and several directions they could go and ask for my thoughts on the tradeoffs for those different choices.

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 15, 2014

Much has been written about when it is time to hire a “professional CEO” to run a startup company and of course that has long been a norm in Silicon Valley when founders find that their inexperience may be a limiting factor in company growth ( know as the Peter Principle ).

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SoCal CTO

MARCH 1, 2007

skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Thursday, March 1, 2007 Entreprenuer Network Great post by Ben Kuo - The Importance of the “Network&# to Entrepreneurs - the informal connections between people in the technology industry here who have a vested interest in helping entrepreneurs take their companies to the next level.

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TechEmpower

DECEMBER 11, 2023

While the appearance matters, remember you are hiring the development firm primarily for its development skills, not its graphic design skills. Or do you need help evaluating software firms? Either way, we can help!"] cto , product , saas Don't be charmed by an impressive aesthetic at the expense of functional results.

Software Development 297

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Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 30, 2014

It’s true the some VCs have started writing so many checks that they resemble stock pickers but the majority of us still have less than 10 board seats at any time and tend to go pretty deep so the result is that we care deeply about where we commit our time. Meredith came to see me along with the CTO Marc Berte.

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Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 21, 2014

The truth is you really don’t know how your teammates or your bosses will perform in good times and bad. You hire people who look good on paper. So one of the surest signs you’ve hired a leader is the willingness of his or her former team to re-assemble. After 6 months – you know. You REALLY know.

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Both Sides of the Table

MAY 1, 2014

But while Amazon blew away existing physical distribution channels to deliver products to you, we are blowing away existing physical infrastructure to help you store the things you want to keep – just not at your home. I wrote about that experience here without giving away the details of the business. I’m long NY.

Technical Review 380

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socalTECH

FEBRUARY 19, 2009

Los Angeles-based Global Fitness Media , which is developing a number of fitness-related online web sites, has hired on a new Chief Technical Officer, according to the firm's search agency, NeoHire. According to the firms, Daniel Auld has been appointed to the position.

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