SoCal CTO

APRIL 28, 2014

There was a lot of passion in the room last week when I presented Working with Developers at the Stubbs Precellerator. I guess it should not be a surprise that Founders have lots of challenges working with developers. But my developers want to go into way too much detail. In fact, they often don’t really understand the business.

Develop 280

Develop Development CTO Coach CTO Hire 280

SoCal CTO

DECEMBER 19, 2012

He wanted to get input from me on what he's doing, and he wants to begin to ask developers what it would take to build his product. I asked some of the same questions I ask in my Free Startup CTO Consulting Sessions and then I get to a very common conversation: Me : Do you have specs? Founder : Ummm. what do you mean?

Develop 354

Develop Development Technical Review CTO Coach 354

SoCal CTO

SEPTEMBER 19, 2011

I've posted quite a few things on the topics associated with being a Startup CTO. Here are some resources that come from other sources: Want to Know the Difference Between a CTO and a VP Engineering? Lessons Learned: What does a startup CTO actually do? Lessons Learned: What does a startup CTO actually do?

CTO Hire 175

CTO Hire CTO Coach Resource Startup 175

socalTECH

MAY 25, 2011

Los Angeles-based Break Media , the online video and content publisher headed by Keith Richman, said today that it has tapped Andrew Doyle as its Chief Financial Officer, and David Subar as Chief Technology Officer. Subar was most recently CTO at Oversee.net, and also has been at PeopleLink and Interthinx.

Chief Technology Officer 153

Chief Technology Officer Media Oversee.net Activision 153

SoCal CTO

MAY 21, 2013

I''m spending more of my time recently working with non-technical startup founders who are having challenges with their software/web/mobile development teams. Common Signals I''ve written previously about Symptoms of a Weak Development Team. Rogue developers with their own agenda. One of your better developers leaves.

CTO Coach 219

CTO Coach Develop Development Startup 219

SoCal CTO

APRIL 2, 2012

When I talk with early-stage companies, often the discussion starts with them asking me about Hiring a CTO for Your Startup , or Finding a Technical Cofounder for Your Startup or How to Find Programmers for Your Startup. In many cases, during my Free Startup CTO Consulting Session with them, we discuss where they are in in the process.

CTO Hire 205

CTO Hire Outsource Development CTO Coach Develop 205

SoCal CTO

AUGUST 4, 2011

Almost every day I'm talking to early stage startup founders (see Free Startup CTO Consulting Sessions ) about what they plan to do. Many of these founders have talked with several developers or development firms about their plans. Team – is there or will there be multiple segments in the development team?

Develop 396

Develop Development Startup SEO 396

SoCal CTO

AUGUST 4, 2011

Almost every day I'm talking to early stage startup founders (see Free Startup CTO Consulting Sessions ) about what they plan to do. Many of these founders have talked with several developers or development firms about their plans. Team – is there or will there be multiple segments in the development team?

Develop 384

Develop Development Startup SEO 384

socalTECH

JULY 27, 2021

Pasadena-based robotics developer Miso Robotics said this morning that it has named Christopher Kruger as its new Chief Technology Officer, and also named several new members to its board of advisors. Current CTO Ryan Sinnet will become Chief Research Officer at the company.

CTO Coach 124

CTO Coach Chief Technology Officer Pasadena Research 124

SoCal CTO

FEBRUARY 2, 2010

Based on my posts Startup CTO or Developer and Acting CTO , Chris O’Meara wrote an interesting post Startup CTO: Could It Work? They tend to know where to find good help in terms of employees and consultants. Common sense says you'd do your best to hire or otherwise permanently engage that lead developer.

CTO Hire 150

CTO Hire Startup Guide Examples 150

TechEmpower

JULY 24, 2023

Even when they have talked to multiple developers or development firms, we’re often the first to ask basic questions like “Who are your customers?” ” or “Are you developing for desktop, tablet, mobile, or all three?” The innovator/developer relationship needs to be a conversation.

Develop 520

Develop Development Technical Review SEO 520

SoCal CTO

SEPTEMBER 30, 2013

Are you a non-technical startup founder who’s about to go have a conversation with a Chief Technical Officer (CTO) or Technical advisory type person? Maybe you are going for a reality check on your current situation - wondering if you have a Weak Development Team or a Startup Founder Developer Gap.

CTO Coach 211

CTO Coach Startup Web Guide 211

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. Do you really have control of the development?

Technical Advisors 332

Technical Advisors CTO Coach Technical Review CTO Hire 332

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. He is a frequent speaker at trade and industry events.

CTO Hire 175

CTO Hire Startup Metrics eHarmony 175

SoCal CTO

FEBRUARY 13, 2013

If you are on the lower complexity end, the key is defining small chunks of work that can be done quickly by a developer. 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.

Technical Review 338

Technical Review CTO Hire CTO Coach Software Review 338

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. They didn't feel they had visibility into timelines and costs for development of their software. The teams involved didn't seem to be exhibiting many of the Symptoms of a Weak Development Team.

Outsource Development 254

Outsource Development Software Development Develop Development 254

SoCal CTO

JUNE 13, 2011

We had an interesting presentation at the LA CTO Forum by the CTO of a startup who chose Groovy / Grails as the framework for their startup. t prompted a good discussion around how CTOs go about choosing the programming language and framework for their startup. Get get help (see Free Startup CTO Consulting Sessions ).

Framework 330

Framework Startup Java PHP 330

TechEmpower

AUGUST 14, 2023

The Strategic Technical Advisor looks at the business and determines what makes sense from a technology perspective in the short-term and longer-terms. The Tactical Technical Advisor stays on top of the development team to ensure that they’re team is building the right thing in a high-quality, efficient manner. And Maybe You Need Two!

Technical Review 260

Technical Review CTO Coach CTO Hire Software Review 260

SoCal CTO

APRIL 9, 2013

I''ve written before about finding Web Development Firms in Los Angeles. I just got an email asking about exactly this: I''m with a new company that needs some software built, but doesn''t need (or have the resources for) a large staff of software developers. You will find firms that are design/interface heavy and light on development.

Web Development 204

Web Development Web Develop Development 204

SoCal CTO

MARCH 4, 2010

I’ve worked with 30+ early-stage companies in all sorts of capacities (and spoken to many, many more), so I thought it might be worthwhile trying to classify the various ways that I’ve engaged in different technology roles in startups. And a big factor is how big is the Founder Developer Gap.

Technical Review 170

Technical Review Technical Advisors CTO Coach Startup 170

SoCal CTO

MAY 13, 2014

You can’t afford and don’t want to hire a full-time CTO or architect. While Bob’s post focuses on Technology Advisors and the Startup Founder Developer Gap , we also discussed advisors more broadly. In Bob’s post, he tells startup founders to get smart on product design, software architecture and development process.

CTO Coach 241

CTO Coach Startup CTO Hire Template 241

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 19, 2009

You’re sales person is getting blocked by the CTO who says she shouldn’t go above him but the CTO isn’t approving the deal. But “he didn’t have the budget to hire a developer until he had raised money!&#. He went out and found a developer and built a product. He looked stunned.

Entrepreneur 414

Entrepreneur Technical Review Slides CTO Coach 414

SoCal CTO

SEPTEMBER 14, 2011

The conversation centered around a founder who's key question is "Where Do I Find a Developer for My Startup?" His goal was to find a programmer who would come in as an early partner and work as an Equity-Only Developer. Have you tested what you can without development? Ask a few CTO type people. Is it big data?

Guide 349

Guide Startup Mobile Framework 349

SoCal CTO

OCTOBER 6, 2011

" Today I had two conversations with early stage startups (see Free CTO Consulting ). Vision Synching in a Lean Startup The Fallacy of Customer Development Entrepreneurs, Lower Investors’ Risk by Validating your Start-up Company’s Business Proposition Lessons Learned: What is customer development?

Customer 227

Customer Custom CTO Coach Startup 227

socalTECH

AUGUST 4, 2010

Calabasas-based BlackLine Systems , the developer of financial close software headed by Therese Tucker, is trumpeting its certification course this week, saying that it recently certified 22 consultants from KPMG as part of its professional services courses. Tucker is the former CTO of SunGard Treasure Systems. READ MORE>>.

Training 133

Training Calabasas Course Software 133

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 16, 2009

Before I started my first company in 1999 I worked for Andersen Consulting (now Accenture). You develop a cynicism that the future will be better. Soon after he was promoted to Senior Architect, our highest role without being CTO. This is part of my Startup Advice series. I knew that meant he wouldn’t come back.

CTO Hire 322

CTO Hire Startup Resource Entrepreneur 322

socalTECH

JULY 2, 2014

Camarillo-based sensors and electronics developer Interlink Electronics has named two private equity and venture executives to its board, as part of an expansion of the group, the company said this morning. Levinson also was founder, CTO, and Chairman of testing and optical components company Finisar. READ MORE>>.

Incubator 138

Incubator Equity Develop Development 138

SoCal CTO

SEPTEMBER 14, 2011

The conversation centered around a founder who's key question is "Where Do I Find a Developer for My Startup?" His goal was to find a programmer who would come in as an early partner and work as an Equity-Only Developer. Have you tested what you can without development? Ask a few CTO type people. Is it big data?

Guide 296

Guide Startup Mobile Framework 296

SoCal CTO

MAY 15, 2009

Formerly, he was Managing Director of both Product Management and of Business Development at Los Angeles Times Interactive. A 12 - year veteran of the online world, he has worked in sales, business development and content partnership functions for Yahoo!, Majid Abai, CEO of Pringo Majid Abai is the Chief Executive of Pringo, Inc.

Social Network 150

Social Network Networking Yammer CTO Hire 150

socalTECH

MAY 18, 2017

Kryptos Logic provides services around managed security, penetration, security consulting, incident response, and other areas. The company is one of a number of cybersecurity companies based in the Los Angeles area, including such companies as Crowdstrike--the company investigating Russian hacking into the U.S. READ MORE>>.

Venice 127

Venice Pasadena Research Los Angeles 127

SoCal CTO

JUNE 9, 2010

Continuing my series of posts that I’ve been collecting that live at the intersection of Startups and being a Startup CTO : Startup CTO Top 30 Posts for April 16 Great Startup Posts from March here are the top posts from May 2010. They’re deep into Customer Development ,” he said. Innovative. Disruptive. We get it! Here’s why.

Startup 248

Startup Venture Capital Conference Social Media 248

SoCal CTO

MARCH 18, 2010

Vince: I’m an author, speaker and management consultant with a special expertise in online media sales. Today I lead a small consultancy that helps advertising supported develop and scale the revenue producing sides of their businesses. Our current focus is Actors and Actresses and we are moving into other verticals.

Startup 225

Startup Los Angeles Twiistup Social Network 225

socalTECH

JANUARY 2, 2014

The old way was difficult, time consuming, and often expensive; referrals, calling up lawyers, going through initial consultations. They''re actually initial consultations, ranging from divorce to DUI. That''s how we ended up developing this technology, to take that initial step out of the process. But, how do you start?

Help 240

Help Startup CTO Hire Pricing 240

TechEmpower

AUGUST 21, 2023

We hear them explain that their current software development is expensive, deliveries are rarely on time, and random bugs appear. Common Signs You Need a Technical Review We’ve already mentioned the most common signs that you might need a technical review: Slow or late delivery: “I’ve authorized two new developers, and we’re still behind.”

Technical Review 260

Technical Review Development Team Review Software Review TechEmpower 260

socalTECH

MARCH 3, 2021

The company--which develops software used for combining data from satellites, ground-based sensors, and their sources and applies machine learning and other techniques to improve analysis--said it added Chuck Beames, Karen Diener, Susan Helms, Moriba Jah, Keith Masback, Chris Mattmann, and Marissa Peretz to the new advisory group.

El Segundo 113

El Segundo CTO Coach Artificial Inteligence Seed Funding 113

SoCal CTO

OCTOBER 15, 2009

Steve Gilison worked as a market researcher and product manager at a startup where my company, TechEmpower , did the software / web development. I have about 11 years in the technology sector including roles doing market research, sales and product development. My focus has been marketing strategy and product development.

Los Angeles 179

Los Angeles Product Angel Startup 179

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 22, 2021

This strategy is called “organic growth,” yet it alone may yield only a fraction of the potential you could achieve, unless you add the additional strategies of partnerships and M&A (mergers and acquisitions). The initiator funds the innovators’ development activities and gives them the flexibility to work independently.

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Organization CTO Hire Outsource Development Startup 132