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What really matters as a CTO? After years in tech leadership, I've found these core pillars are what drive a CTO’s success: ?? Technical Vision & Strategy It's about aligning technical decisions with business goals. This means selecting architectures and tech stacks that support growth—instead of chasing shiny new tools, choose what serves your company’s and customer’s unique needs. ?? People Leadership Your team's success defines your success. Great engineering teams thrive when you: - Build an “A-class” org that fosters an environment of innovation and growth - Develop leaders who own and drive execution - Hold yourself and your team accountable, making tough decisions when necessary ?? Execution & Delivery While you might not write code daily, ensuring your org ships high-impact software is crucial. Success means: - Building scalable engineering practices - Managing technical debt strategically - Maintaining the delicate balance of speed and quality ?? Business Partnership Being a CTO is as much about business acumen as technical expertise. Strong executive partnerships enable you to: - Transform business challenges into technical solutions - Champion critical technical investments - Navigate competing priorities with confidence At Hoola Hoop, we've advised companies of all sizes on their technology journey.? I'm curious: What do you believe matters as a CTO? Share your experiences below! ?? #TechLeadership #Engineering #CTO #Leadership

???????????????? ???????? ??????????: ?????????? & ?????????????????? – [???????? ??/??] ???? ???? ?????????????????? ???????? ?????? ?????? ?????????? ?????????? ????????????????? ?? ???????? #??: My executive team and the board are separate from each other. ? ??????????????: The board is an ?????????????????? of your leadership team. ?? ???????? ??????????????????: ■ ???????????? ???????? ?????????? ????????. Any team needs to be led–step up. ■ ???????????? ???? ???????? ?????????????????????????? with each board member. ■ ?????????????? ?????????? ?????????????? in key areas of your business where they have expertise. ■ ???????????? ???????????????? ?????????????????????? between board members and executives to add value, mentorship, and leverage their network. Great boards are ????????????????????, ??????????????, and ?????????????? with the CEO! ?? ???????? ???? ?????????? ???????? ?????????? ?????? ???? ???????????? ???????? ??????????? @Hoola Hoop can help–let’s connect! ------------------------------------------------------- MANAGING YOUR BOARD: Myths & Realities Part 1/6: The Board as an Asset, Not a Distraction https://lnkd.in/e38TyWsS Part 2/6: Transparency Over Spin https://lnkd.in/eF7zfmNx Part 3/6: Are Board Meetings Just for Updates? https://lnkd.in/e_rsFHqH Part 4/6: Are My Team and the Board Truly Separate? https://lnkd.in/eeHj8wDk ------------------------------------------------------- #Leadership #BoardManagement #ExecutiveCoach #CEOTip

Managing Your Board: Myths & Realities – [Part 3/6] Are Board Meetings Just for Updates? CEOs must skillfully manage the dynamic relationship with their Board of Directors to drive success. How should you manage your board? ?? Myth #3: Board meetings are for updates. ? Reality: Use board meetings for STRATEGIC INPUT, not routine updates. ?? For Effective Meetings: ■ Share updates regularly outside of board meetings to focus board time on key discussions, not repeat updates. ■ Develop an agenda well in advance - share a draft agenda early to gather board feedback and ensure alignment before finalizing. ■ Focus board meetings on topics that require discussion and alignment. ■ For each part of your board discussion: solicit input, elicit debate, make a decision, or seek approval. ■ Great board meetings engage board members, make the most of their time, and drive strong alignment. ■ Make your board meetings a time for action and alignment, not just sharing information! Want to learn more about how to manage your board? Hoola Hoop can help. LET’S CONNECT! --------------------------------------------- MANAGING YOUR BOARD: Myths & Realities Part 1/6: Is the Board Just a Necessary Distraction? https://lnkd.in/e38TyWsS Part 2/6: Should CEOs Focus on Keeping the Board Happy? https://lnkd.in/eF7zfmNx Part 3/6: Are Board Meetings Just for Updates? https://lnkd.in/e_rsFHqH --------------------------------------------- #Leadership #BoardManagement #ExecutiveCoach #CEOTip

?? 3 Pitfalls When Interviewing CTOs & VPs of Engineering ?? Overemphasizing Technical Skills? Technical prowess clearly matters, but exceptional CTOs need outstanding leadership abilities and strategic vision to align technology with business objectives. ?? Relying on Past Experience Alone? Seasoned candidates typically have well-rehearsed stories about their past experiences. Challenge them with real-time scenarios to truly assess their problem-solving capabilities and judgment. ?? Missing Structured Evaluation Criteria? Without a clear assessment framework, bias and emotion creeps in.? Define specific leadership, technical, and strategic benchmarks to make objective hiring decisions. Want to learn more? Hoola Hoop can help. #TechHiring #Leadership #Engineering

?? 3 Pitfalls When Interviewing CTOs & VPs of Engineering ?? Overemphasizing Technical Skills? Technical prowess clearly matters, but exceptional CTOs need outstanding leadership abilities and strategic vision to align technology with business objectives. ?? Relying on Past Experience Alone? Seasoned candidates typically have well-rehearsed stories about their past experiences. Challenge them with real-time scenarios to truly assess their problem-solving capabilities and judgment. ?? Missing Structured Evaluation Criteria? Without a clear assessment framework, bias and emotion creeps in.? Define specific leadership, technical, and strategic benchmarks to make objective hiring decisions. Want to learn more? Hoola Hoop can help. #TechHiring #Leadership #Engineering

Managing Your Board: Myths & Realities – [Part 2/6]: Should CEOs Focus on Keeping the Board Happy? CEOs must skillfully manage the dynamic relationship with their Board of Directors to drive success. How should you manage your board? ?? Myth #2: CEOs need to keep the board happy with selective information. ? Reality: A great board is your RISK MANAGER—they need the good, the bad, and the ugly. ?? Key Tips: ■ Don’t sell to your board, engage them. ■ Be transparent, even with bad news. ■ Build trust by sharing the full picture. ■ Rely on the board’s expertise to help you navigate challenges rather than hiding them. Transparency builds trust. Trust builds success! Want to learn more about how to manage your board? Hoola Hoop can help. LET'S CONNECT! --------------------------------------------- MANAGING YOUR BOARD: Myths & Realities Part 1/6: Is the Board Just a Necessary Distraction? https://lnkd.in/e38TyWsS Part 2/6: Should CEOs Focus on Keeping the Board Happy? https://lnkd.in/eF7zfmNx Part 3/6: Are Board Meetings Just for Updates? https://lnkd.in/e_rsFHqH --------------------------------------------- #Leadership #BoardManagement #Transparency #CEOCoach #CEOTip

This brief comes from two disparate worlds that offer an important lesson for CEOs. First, in listening to Ron Carter, the eminent jazz bassist, discuss what made a music producer brilliant at getting the most from musicians and producing notable music, he said the producer “wouldn’t know a note if it hit him in the head but he knew the [right] sound when he heard it”. Carter goes on to note that this producer would both direct the shape of the music and suggest musicians that were right for each session. The second was a conversation I was having with a English Premier League coach who said the two interconnected things that he does that drive the team’s success is having empathy for his players and staff, and thinking about what team to deploy on the pitch each week. He actually said that he and his staff think about team makeup “every two hours”. Knowing your team and having the right people in the right roles for where your organization is in the moment is both critical and hard and a necessary function of the CEO. Put in different terms, the CEO needs to be the casting director, producer and coach at all times. Let’s briefly look at these two pieces, the team and empathy… Team Membership—be it a music producer, a sports team coach or a casting director, WHO is on the team, playing what part in what role is key to making great music, producing an amazing play or film, or winning the game. The CEO has to be thinking about, to paraphrase Jim Collins in Good to Great, having the right person in the right seat on the right bus. Needs change in organizations and what might have been right at one stage may not be right at another. Having a flexible mindset to adjust resources over time, having a strategy for succession for key roles, helping members think about their fit, openly discussing the talent strategy that supports the business strategy are all the CEO’s responsibility. Empathy, commonly defined as the ability to understand and share the feelings of another, is the adjacent function and a cornerstone trait of emotional intelligence and thus leadership. When further queried on why empathy, the Premier League Coach responded, I need to understand the emotional state of my players at all times. Is someone troubled by something at home, not fully present, and so on, all of which will impact how they perform on the pitch. Leaders need to be able to understand and relate to their team members to be able to motivate and get them to perform at their best. At Hoola Hoop we coach CEOs develop the capacity to know their team while thinking about the team’s shape as it progresses. Successful strategies are as much about what you are doing as who is doing it! Marc Maltz Elevate your executive potential with executive coaching that empowers leaders. Hoop-on! #ceocoaching, #executivecoaching, #hoolahoop, #emotionalintelligence

3 Common Misunderstandings CEOs Have About CPOs As a Chief Product Officer, it's crucial to clarify these common misconceptions with your CEO. The CPO is a key, strategic role in an organization! ?? #1: CPOs are just roadmap "timekeepers" Reality: The CPO is responsible for aligning product strategy with the company's vision, driving innovation, and ensuring the product roadmap supports long-term business goals. Clarification: Highlight the strategic nature of the role in shaping product vision and contributing to high-level decisions. Focus is on 'what' and 'why', leaving the 'how' and 'when' to engineering leadership. ?? #2: CPOs solely own product success Reality: Product success is a cross-functional effort. Clarification: Educate on how product interacts with sales, marketing, and engineering and how the product org can shepherd that process. Highlight the importance of company-wide alignment for product success. ?? #3: Customer feedback should always drive the product roadmap as a "to-do" list Reality: Customer feedback can be used to validate/invalidate your strategy and long-term vision. Clarification: Explain the need to consider market trends and competitive dynamics alongside customer input for strategic foresight. #CPO #ProductLeadership #ExecutiveAlignment #ProductStrategy