Tech Leadership Dynamics

I’ve heard many CEOs complain that they can’t find a good CTO.

A real funny thing from an engineer’s perspective, it’s often much more difficult to find a true business person. -0-;;;;;

Why might this be?

Comfort and security: It’s comfortable to be an employee at a big company with ESOP, which can lead to better outcomes than founding a company. Engineers might have less interest in starting their own companies, while most business people eventually aim to become CEOs.

Network limitations: CEOs may have connections with founding engineers (potential CTOs), but they struggle to assess their capabilities. Within their own domains, people can easily identify talent. A business person might know who would make a good CEO or VP of Sales. However, it’s challenging to recognize a good engineer. They can’t be judged by communication skills alone—we speak different languages, after all! 😊

The AI boom has shifted this dynamic. Some believe it’s possible to run a company without a technically-minded founder. Yet, many young professionals with engineering backgrounds becoming successful CEOs.

One explanation? It might be harder for business people to learn coding than for engineers to learn sales. Young professionals with engineering backgrounds have a much better understanding of upcoming market trends regarding the AI boom, making it a more popular choice than traditional startup setups.

I still believe smart people can learn anything well, this could reshape the tech leadership landscape in the coming years.

The real question is: are they willing to do so?