Hiring a professional for an executive position is a big responsibility. Making the wrong match could cause your company to stray from its goals. That also translates to wasted time and resources.
In this article, we’ll talk about how to hire a CTO to ensure he or she will positively impact the business.
1. Understand What the Role Entails
Before hiring a CTO, you need to have an in-depth understanding of the role and the duties it implies. That way, you can identify the qualifications and qualities to look for in a candidate.
CTOs lie at the forefront of all technological processes within a company. They have to oversee and guide all employees to benefit the organization. As such, they need to single out potential hazards or risks using specific tools. CTOs also need to be aware of any opportunity and new trend they can leverage to affect their organizations positively.
Good CTOs are responsible for educating all staff and the rest of the executive team about new technologies they bring in. As such, they should ideally be an expert in programming, networking, and software development.
However, technical knowledge and skills are not enough. To be efficient, CTOs must command authority. Therefore, they must have an excellent leadership ability to lead technical projects and empower team members when undergoing major technological shifts.
A combination of general and specific skills will point you toward the right direction when choosing the ideal candidate for the CTO role.
2. Know What Your Organization Needs and Its Current Stage of Development
Before hiring a CTO, think about the company’s needs, especially regarding upcoming innovations. What are the company-specific requirements in terms of technological implementation? What processes need improvement and what skills do they require? What stage are you in regarding business development and growth? Are you heading toward a specific goal, such as to double your staff and workload?
You must have a crystal clear vision of your goals as an organization to choose a CTO that can lead your company toward the right path.
3. Personality Matters
Technological skills and achievements are not all that matter. Your potential CTO must have a unique personality. They need to contribute positively to the organization’s culture and ecosystem.
And a personality cannot be determined just based on a resume. For instance, it’s important to examine how the candidate behaves under stress. When facing significant obstacles during the screening or trial process, observe carefully.
Another crucial factor is learning how much time the candidates spent with previous companies. What made them quit? Can they see themselves adopting the organization’s values and goals and being faithful even when trouble arises?
Potential CTOs must have strong working ethics and awareness of the team’s diversity and needs. Their position will demand impeccable integrity as they will have to choose the tools to impact processes and systems in all levels.
4. Evaluate the Potential CTO’s Achievements and Experience
When hiring someone for an executive position, look at their achievements and work experience. In most cases, you can see these on candidates’ CVs. Good resumes must outline how potential hirees can harness their experiences and skills to improve the company’s well-being.
Some characteristics to look for include thorough knowledge of IT trends and the ability to spark innovation and come up with excellent strategies. CTOs must be savvy about budgets and business plans as well. They also need experience in conducting technological analyses and research. Great candidates should also have good communication, leadership, and administration skills.
You should also get an idea of how they make an organization or a project succeed and how they will fulfill your company’s needs.
Specific educational background is necessary, too. Good CTOs should have a bachelor’s degree in technology or valid networking and software development certificates. However, it is not uncommon for self-taught candidates to become great achievers as well. Your recruitment should be open to all kinds of backgrounds. Your hiring procedure should include a process for assessing commitment, creativity, and initiative, too.
5. Where Can You Hire a CTO?
This question comes when you have all parts of the puzzle on hand: Where do you find CTO candidates?
You cannot make mistakes here as a considerable chunk of your organization’s future will lie in the chosen individual’s hands. Many companies thus choose to outsource the technical tasks of hiring to an agency.
Agencies have a database of fulfilled projects in your industry, so you do not need to gamble. Do a thorough check of available portfolios. Assess if they have in-depth knowledge of the market. Then, consider the challenges your company faces. Do they have strategies to overcome these obstacles?
Outsourcing may be the best option for companies as it makes the process much easier. You can team up with great field experts and share a pool of experience and knowledge that a single individual cannot offer. It also saves time and money.
Certain companies also offer an innovative model of offshoring called “yourshoring,” which allows for better customization. A professional human resource (HR) team picks and chooses talents that most suit your company and will guarantee they comply with your organization’s mission, vision, and values.
Conclusion
A CTO is a great asset if the chosen candidate fulfills his or her role excellently. To choose the best one, know your company’s specific needs. Is the candidate’s resume backed with solid skills and working experience? Does he or she have the personality that fits the values of your organization? If you’re just starting the hiring process and would like to do it safely, outsourcing may be your best bet.
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