Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 20, 2010

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. But barely.

CTO Hire 400

CTO Hire Fractional VPE Startup Outsource Development 400

SoCal CTO

APRIL 2, 2012

In the mean time, if you need some extra help, get some contractors to test out specific things. 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. Far from it.

CTO Hire 205

CTO Hire Outsource Development CTO Coach Develop 205

SoCal CTO

MAY 21, 2013

These are often the same things that cause a founder to reach out to me about helping their CTO, VP Engineering, tech team, off-shore development, etc. CTO Knowledge and Skill I personally believe that the best CTOs will have a technical/developer background. Some of the top symptoms are: Frequently missed deadlines.

CTO Coach 219

CTO Coach Develop Development Startup 219

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.

CTO Coach 241

CTO Coach Startup CTO Hire Template 241

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. Of course, I'm not sure that anyone chooses Java alone.

Framework 330

Framework Startup Java PHP 330

SoCal CTO

MARCH 9, 2010

In my post, Technology Roles in Startups , I described some of the different ways I engage with startup companies such as CTO Founder , CTO , Part-Time CTO , Acting CTO , Consultant, Advisor and Advisory Board Member. And don’t confuse having a CTO with getting an Technology Advisor.

CTO Coach 150

CTO Coach Technical Review Technology CTO Hire 150

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. Of course, it's way more complex than just these questions. Still, if you've not heard these questions from a developer, they are not helping you as much as they should. Tracking URLs?

Develop 396

Develop Development Startup SEO 396

SoCal CTO

OCTOBER 13, 2009

I'm hoping you can help me figure out who I should be connecting with on this. How can I get more help setting up my blog? And while I always tell people to just dive in and do it (and mention that if they get stuck, just ask a 25 year old to help you), there are definitely a lot of people in the audience that need more hand holding.

Social Media 167

Social Media Los Angeles Media Angel 167

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. Of course, it's way more complex than just these questions. Still, if you've not heard these questions from a developer, they are not helping you as much as they should. Tracking URLs?

Develop 384

Develop Development Startup SEO 384

SoCal CTO

OCTOBER 15, 2009

Of course, I immediately gave him the whole spiel on Visible Networking and Steve was totally game to make our networking visible. I have about 11 years in the technology sector including roles doing market research, sales and product development. I’m currently working with several startups, helping them launch new web businesses.

Los Angeles 179

Los Angeles Product Angel Startup 179

socalTECH

AUGUST 5, 2013

Unlike those, however, one of the latest projects, ActiveReplay (www.activereplay.com) has some serious, experienced executives behind it, who have the experience in designing hardware devices--in the form of CEO Dr. Anatole Lokshin, who helped create the consumer GPS market as the CTO of Magellan Navigation. How did that happen?

Startup 166

Startup Examples Design Product 166

Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 19, 2009

Good entrepreneurs can admit when their course of action was wrong and learn from it. 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 there are some people you just take an (extra) liking to and want to help. “Why?&#

Entrepreneur 414

Entrepreneur Technical Review Slides CTO Coach 414

SoCal CTO

OCTOBER 14, 2009

Cliff Allen is someone I've known for quite a few years and he's a go to person for me when I'm thinking about issues around marketing, sales, technology, startups and networking. Along the way, I co-authored three books on one-to-one marketing ( [link] ) to help marketers learn how to built and nature relationships with their customers.

Los Angeles 150

Los Angeles Networking Marketing Startup 150

socalTECH

OCTOBER 4, 2010

The company provides SAT, ACT, and other similar test preparation courses and related software. The reason we were able to offer our course at that price point, and why we have our scholarship policy, is because our internal systems allow us to run the business very efficiently, and consistently, with a minimum number of internal staff.

Software Review 178

Software Review Technical Review Education Startup 178

socalTECH

MAY 2, 2017

Andrew Bermudez , co-founder and CEO of Irvine-based Digsy (www.getdigsy.com) wasn't looking to build software to help commercial real estate brokers close more deals. However, he quickly discovered the deal data the company was collecting was not just data--but a guide to the best practices on helping brokers close more deals, quickly.

Sales 145

Sales Startup Email Tool 145

SoCal CTO

NOVEMBER 10, 2009

This is a novel user interaction that embeds casual entertainment directly into the operating system experience, based on some fairly interesting underlying technology. In addition, I do a few consulting projects on the side, in the areas of product strategy, search engine optimization, and intellectual property. How did it help you?

Product 150

Product Entrepreneur Social Media Google 150

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 5, 2010

They often make great team members such as head of products, CTO, head of sales, CFO, etc. He was from South America but living in Switzerland and had launched a startup while holding down a day job at a consulting firm (McKinsey if memory serves). He and his partner told me about this new idea over the course of nearly a year.

Entrepreneur 293

Entrepreneur Startup Venture Capital CTO Hire 293

SoCal CTO

APRIL 28, 2014

I just need you for a few hours to help me move this weekend.” If your developers have a better machine, screen, internet connection, or chair at home than they do in the office, then there’s a problem. I.e., they need a developer more than they need a CTO. Of course, you probably are going to provide more of a feature list.

Develop 280

Develop Development CTO Coach CTO Hire 280

SoCal CTO

NOVEMBER 11, 2009

We help clients deal with new marketing realities like constant change (which often requires repositioning) and the "online/offline marketing grid" (which lets you extend reach essentially for free using social media). I'm married to Mike Freehling , M&A and financial management consultant. Having fun again.

Marketing 150

Marketing Social Media Blogging Media 150

Tech Zulu Event

JANUARY 12, 2010

He previously co-founded and served as Chief Technology Officer of IMVU. Leila first developed the idea behind Samasource while working as a management consultant at Katzenbach Partners (now Booz & Co.), Eric Ries is the author of the blog Startup Lessons Learned and the lean startup methodology.

Twiistup 40

Twiistup Riot Games UCLA Media 40

Tech Zulu Event

MAY 20, 2014

Just 20 years old and a recent Harvard University dropout, Olenka provided insight into her transition to Los Angeles, life as an entrepreneur, and how she’s passionate about helping non-English speakers see American movies in their own native language. He’s a former President of Sony Pictures Technologies and former CTO of Warner Bros.

Startup 91

Startup Entertainment CTO Coach Screening 91

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. Of course, what's really at issue here is: How much time/effort should be spent defining things that are farther away in terms of development? They couldn't plan their business.

Outsource Development 254

Outsource Development Software Development Develop Development 254

Alon Schwartz

JANUARY 18, 2009

The event was greatly received and I believe was very helpful. Having the right partner can greatly help at challenging times like equity splits. Beside the free marriage consultation I sometimes give, I want to mainly focus on business partnerships. What is a Partnership? I’m Homeland Security and she’s Education and so on.

Startup 58

Startup Equity Tips Commerce 58

Alon Schwartz

JANUARY 18, 2009

The event was greatly received and I believe was very helpful. Having the right partner can greatly help at challenging times like equity splits. Beside the free marriage consultation I sometimes give, I want to mainly focus on business partnerships. Here is the presentation that covers this topic: How to Pick a Partner.

Startup 56

Startup Equity Tips Commerce 56

Alon Schwartz

JANUARY 18, 2009

The event was greatly received and I believe was very helpful. Having the right partner can greatly help at challenging times like equity splits. Beside the free marriage consultation I sometimes give, I want to mainly focus on business partnerships. What is a Partnership? I’m Homeland Security and she’s Education and so on.

Startup 40

Startup Equity Tips Commerce 40

Frank Addante

MAY 15, 2006

– Premium Online Advertising Company Age: 21 - 25 Time Period: 1997 - 2001 My Role: Chief Technology Officer, Technology Founder and Chairman, Advisory Board High Point: $500 million market cap; 3,000+ customers; 8 billion transactions per month; 65% Internet reach Warning, this will be a long posting.

Advertising 40

Advertising Startup Chief Technology Officer Technical Review 40

SoCal CTO

OCTOBER 19, 2009

I did a presentation about the use of Social Media to a great group of people who mostly are different kinds of service professionals (attorneys, accountants, consultants, etc.). Of course, those are highly suspect numbers from Feedburner. I'm hoping that others will help point me to other resources around this topic.

Social Media 222

Social Media Services Media Blogging 222