SoCal CTO

FEBRUARY 17, 2011

There's an old adage in software development that I refer to all the time: The first 90% of development takes 90% of the time. The remaining 10%, takes the other 90% of the time. I used this when I taught software 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

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. Is this person a CTO or a developer?

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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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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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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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SoCal CTO

MARCH 12, 2012

" Typically, this requires quite a bit more information for me to be able to respond and provide real help. Do you have dollars to pay for development? Of course, you will want to figure out a bit more about the specifics of what this developer needs to know vs. can learn. Your technical advisor can likely help.

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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. However, many founders are challenged to engage with developers to make it effectively happen. This is somewhat the heart of what a CTO does. Investors are most often not willing to help you.

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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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SoCal CTO

MARCH 20, 2007

skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Tuesday, March 20, 2007 Kevin Federline Search Engine Just saw a post - Sleep with a pop star, get your own branded search engine. Disclosure: we helped build the system that is behind these.) He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO.

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SoCal CTO

MARCH 12, 2007

skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Monday, March 12, 2007 MyShape Article - Analyst Misses the Point The NY Times did a piece today on MyShape, a start-up in Pasadena - Log in Your Measurements, and the Clothes May Fit. “They’re probably a little ahead of their time,&# she said.

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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. They didn't feel they had visibility into timelines and costs for development of their software. My belief is that you shouldn't sign that contract. They couldn't plan their business.

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SoCal CTO

FEBRUARY 17, 2007

skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Saturday, February 17, 2007 A Different Kind of Incubator - The Hive I recently met with The Hive a new incubator in Orange County. What can they do for funding, where can they go for help? He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO.

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Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 22, 2014

Even if you are looking in all the right places, it helps to know what you are looking for. The reason is that good attributes apply equally well to “external” partners, as they do to internal partners, like a co-founder or CTO. Look at the big picture first of development, finance, and marketing/sales. Complementary skills.

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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. Accounting?

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Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 8, 2013

Even if you are looking in all the right places, it helps to know what you are looking for. The reason is that good attributes apply equally well to “external” partners, as they do to internal partners, like a co-founder or CTO. Look at the big picture first of development, finance, and marketing/sales. Complementary skills.

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SoCal CTO

MARCH 22, 2007

skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Thursday, March 22, 2007 Discussion Creation Among Bloggers - LinkedIn, Blogging and Discussion Groups Ive been participating in a Yahoo Group that are users of LinkedIn and who are Bloggers: [link] Its an interesting group of folks from diverse backgrounds. Maybe this meme will help.

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Both Sides of the Table

JULY 5, 2010

He gossips with the office manager who tells 3 software developers. CEO, VP Products and CTO must all be in the physical location. I don’t like distributed development teams in early stage businesses. I prefer the first sales hires to be in the home office. He downs cold ones with the head of biz dev.

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Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 29, 2011

Even if you are looking in all the right places, it helps to know what you are looking for. The reason is that good attributes apply equally well to “external” partners, as they do to internal partners, like a co-founder or CTO. Look at the big picture first of development, finance, and marketing/sales. Complementary skills.

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socalTECH

MARCH 26, 2014

What that means, in more simple terms, is we''re able to help doctors with scheduling, medical billing, managing health records electronically, with a patient portal, and analytics--really a one stop shop for running their entire practice. I founded that with the former CTO of my first company, Kevin Smilak, who now works at Google.

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Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 24, 2010

Even if you are looking in all the right places, it helps to know what you are looking for. The reason is that good attributes apply equally well to “external” partners, as they do to internal partners, like a co-founder or CTO. Look at the big picture first of development, finance, and marketing/sales. Complementary skills.

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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? The "Questions" post is probably the most important.

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SoCal CTO

APRIL 9, 2013

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. Do not fall into the trap of Startups and a Common Misunderstanding in Agile Software Development. References.

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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. It implies that it’s something really easy to do. “I

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