Looking for a CTO. Must be able to go to meetings and do emails.

If I ask someone what is a dog, an educated adult does not respond with what a dog does, that is, barks, wags it's tail, provides a companionship. Because the question is not what the dog does, but what it is.

It is then ironic that when I ask highly intelligent people what is a CTO, I get the wags the tail and barks kind of answer.

  I was talking to a bunch of CTOs a while back at a social gathering. The question what is a CTO came up. Almost everyone defined the job in a very long, convoluted and a boring way, e.g. CTO is one who manages people, budgets, requirements, vendors, etc and provides leadership, innovation, uptime etc.

The issue is that such renditions describe what a CTO does, but not what s/he is.

It is no better than saying that a CTO goes to meetings and responds to emails. The latter I would argue is more accurate because that's what CTOs do vast majority of their time, do meeting and emails, and not necessarily all these other things. 

If I rephrase the question and ask what is the purpose of the CTO, I still get the same dog answers - budgets, uptime, innovation, etc

  However, one of the many things CTOs must be able to do is to put complex things in a short and digestible form. 

Here is what I think the CTO is in a very short form. 

The CTO is a provider of a technological advantage for the company.

 That's it.

Everything else - innovation, uptime, leadership, etc are skills and responsibilities, and means and ways to achieve one's purpose. To achieve the technological advantage the CTOs must drive transformation, efficiency and innovation, inspire and lead, manage vendors and technological partnerships, etc- in other words do whatever it takes to achieve the technological advantage.

We live in a society over-focused on skills and abilities - at expense of purpose. This is why people have trouble formulating what they are and what they are here for.

Why is this important to know what your purpose is ?

Because only then can you start putting everything you do in a logical structure, and decide better what is and is not important to spend your energy and time on.

 Let's start with what the dog is, and not what it does.

After I published this post, I received this email:

Dear Mr. X

If you become a CTO of a dog pound, barking and wagging the tail are essential skills. After all, finding a common language with your stakeholders is key.

Whether you bark or wag the tail will speak volumes about your leadership style.

---

Popular short articles:

Do good to others not because if who they are, but because of who you are. (424,000 Likes)

I hired someone over 50 years old. And, Oh My God. (269,000 Likes, 35M views)

Loyal employees are worth much more than their weight in gold (224,000 Likes)

Better to have a good boss in a bad company, rather than a bad boss in a good company ! (200,000 Likes)

If you do not like where you are, move. You are not a tree. (179,000 Likes)

I HIRED someone with EMPLOYMENT gap of 12 years. And, Oh My God ! (168,000 Likes, 16M views)

A homeless man applied to a job. (154,000 Likes)

Employees will stay if (144,000 Likes)

You are killing yourself for a job. (143,000 Likes)

Your value does not decrease based on someone's inability to see your worth. (144,000 Likes)

Never Punish Loyal Employees For Being Honest. (112,000 Likes)

#1 reason managers fail (108,000 Likes)

Looking for a job ? (106,000 Likes, 7M views)