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Lead Developer to CTO at a Startup

SoCal CTO

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.

CTO Coach 231
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Want to Know the Difference Between a CTO and a VP Engineering?

Both Sides of the Table

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?&#.

CTO Hire 400
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10 Attributes Of The Perfect Partner For Your Startup

Startup Professionals Musings

The reason is that good attributes apply equally well to “external” partners, as they do to internal partners, like a co-founder or CTO. A good overall example is the synergy between Google co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, as well as long-time Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt. Marty Zwilling.

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Startups and a Common Misunderstanding in Agile Software Development

SoCal CTO

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 three of the cases, the founder was finding that the software teams (1 in-house, 2 outsourced) were delivering relatively well in the short-run. My belief is that you shouldn't sign that contract.

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The Power of “In Person” – Why Distributed Teams are Less Effective

Both Sides of the Table

CEO, VP Products and CTO must all be in the physical location. This is a topic that comes up often in Los Angeles because many CEOs are tempted to hire their tech teams in the Bay Area. I prefer the first sales hires to be in the home office. What about outsourcing? First, many people confuse outsourcing and offshoring.

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10 Ways Your Startup Co-Founder Is Like A Good Spouse

Startup Professionals Musings

The reason is that good attributes apply equally well to “external” partners, as they do to internal partners, like a co-founder or CTO. A good overall example is the synergy between Google co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, as well as long-time Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt. Marty Zwilling.

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10 Key Traits Of An Ideal Entrepreneur Partner

Startup Professionals Musings

The reason is that good attributes apply equally well to “external” partners, as they do to internal partners, like a co-founder or CTO. A good overall example is the synergy between Google co-Founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, as well as with Chairman Eric Schmidt. Partner decisions are more important than hiring decisions.