Episode 31

full
Published on:

25th Feb 2025

Great CTOs Know When to Fight

🎯 CTO Leadership: Navigating Peacetime vs. Wartime Strategies

Dive deep into the dynamic role of CTOs and how their leadership approach drastically shifts between peacetime and wartime scenarios. Matt Watson breaks down why established companies and startups require fundamentally different CTO strategies, and how some organizations must navigate both simultaneously.

Explore the fascinating dichotomy between peacetime CTOs (focused on stability and calculated risks) and wartime CTOs (driving rapid innovation and quick decisions). Learn why some companies need both approaches and the challenges this creates for technical leadership.

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💡 Core Insights:

Peacetime CTOs prioritize stability and risk management

Wartime CTOs focus on rapid innovation and quick execution

Many companies must balance both approaches simultaneously

Company stage directly influences CTO leadership style

The challenges of maintaining dual operational modes


⏱️ Key Timestamps:

00:00 - Introduction to CTO Responsibilities

00:37 - Peacetime vs. Wartime Leadership

01:16 - Established Company CTOs

01:37 - Startup CTO Requirements

02:40 - Managing Both Modes

03:37 - Balancing Innovation and Stability

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About the Podcast

Product Driven
How to build better software and software teams
Building software products requires caring more about the product than it does the technology used to build the product. On this podcast, we discuss bringing a product driven mindset to every step of the product development process.

About your host

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Matt Watson