What’s a CTO? A Quick Breakdown of Key Duties and Their Value to a Business

There are more than 352,000 CTOs — also known as chief technology officers — working in the U.S. right now.

This is a fast-growing field, and lots of businesses are bringing CTOs onto their teams as key decision-makers. Have you been considering doing the same?

If you’ve been asking yourself questions like “what’s a CTO?” and “does my business need a CTO?” keep reading.

You’ll find answers to these and all your other most pressing CTO-related questions.

What’s a CTO?

A chief technology officer is a type of computer and information systems manager. They are responsible for making all kinds of decisions related to the technological system a business uses and/or sells.

CTOs have a lot of responsibility. The following are some of the primary tasks they’re expected to carry out:

• Think of and develop technical strategies and principles for all of the company’s operations
• Facilitate all aspects of a company’s new technological concepts, from conception and progression to growth and implementation
• Consults with heads of various departments to ensure everyone is working together and utilizing tech in the proper way
• Carry out research on new technologies the company can use
• Present information on this technology in a way that other members of the company can understand

Most CTOs have degrees and ample amounts of experience in fields like Information Technology (IT) or computer programming.

Does My Business Need a CTO?

You now know more about what a CTO does and how they can help you make decisions on important business matters like what kind of software to use and what new developments are taking place in the tech sector. However, you might still be on the fence about whether or not you need one for your business.

There are a lot of reasons why you may want to hire a CTO, including the following:

Stay Informed

As a business owner, you likely don’t have a ton of time to spend researching and learning about the latest technological advances and finding ways to implement them. A CTO will have more time to handle this and help you stay informed on the most important pieces of information.

Stay Competitive

Having a CTO who can stay abreast of the latest advances in the tech world will help you stay one step ahead of your competition. If you want to make sure your business continues to have a competitive advantage, you definitely ought to consider bringing on a CTO.

Continue to Grow

If you’re ready for your business to grow and reach a new level, you need to continue building your staff.

A CTO will be a valuable addition to your team and will help you ensure you’re making decisions that will lead to long-term growth and development for the company.

Find New Solutions

A CTO who has a background in IT or another technical field will bring a new perspective to your business. This, in turn, will lead to new solutions to old problems and help you to continue to be innovative and stand out from the crowd.

Improve Strategy

CTOs can also help you refine your business strategy and ensure you’re taking steps that will benefit the company long-term.

They’ll help you avoid disruption and ensure you’re using technology in the best way possible. They can also help you learn about and choose investments that will benefit the company’s bottom line.

Tips for Hiring a CTO

If you’re ready to move forward with hiring a CTO, here are some tips you ought to keep in mind. They’ll help you ensure you find someone who’s qualified and will work well with the rest of your team:

Know What You Want Them to Do

In order to find the right person to fill the CTO position, you first need to know what you want them to do for your company.

What kinds of responsibilities will they carry out? What will their essential roles be?

The more specific you can get with your job description, the easier it will be for you to find candidates who are a good fit.

Create a List of Essential Skills

Create a list of essential skills you’re looking for, too. Be sure to rank this list of skills in terms of high, medium, and low priority as well. This will help you sort through candidates and make it easier for you to choose between them.

Look Beyond Basic Skills

Skills like coding, leadership, and mentoring abilities are important, of course. Remember to look beyond the basics, though. There are some things that can be learned and other things that a person either has or doesn’t.

Consider whether a candidate is motivated and enthusiastic, for example. Pay attention, too, to how well they seem to fit in with your company culture. These things will have a huge impact on the effect they have on your business, for better or for worse.

Tap Into Your Network

Sure, you could post a job listing for a CTO on sites like Indeed and LinkedIn. Remember, though, that a lot of the best candidates for a job are the ones who aren’t actively looking.

Don’t be afraid to tap into your network and ask friends or colleagues if they know of anyone who fits the job description and might be interested in joining your team.

Hire Your CTO TOday

Now that you can answer the question “what’s a CTO?” with confidence, do you think your business needs a CTO? CTOs bring a lot to the table, especially for businesses that are part of the tech industry or want to break into it.

If you are planning on hiring a CTO for your business, be sure to keep the hiring information listed above in mind. These tips will make it much easier for you to find a CTO who fits with your business and helps to elevate it to the next level.

Do you need more help in building your business or choosing new people to add to your staff? If so, we have lots of helpful articles in the Business section of our site. Give them a read today!