The Role of CTO: A Rantifesto

The Role of CTO

Camille Fournier, CTO, Rent the

Runway

@skamille

A Rantifesto!

ARE YOU A VESTIGIAL

APPENDAGE?

YOUR JOB IS ALWAYS

CHANGING, YOUR COMPANY IS

ALWAYS EVOLVING

GROW AND EVOLVE WITH

THIS OPPORTUNITY

!CTO

THE BEST ENGINEER IN THE

COMPANY

The natural

conclusion

of a

successful

engineering

career

THE SAME THING AT EVERY

COMPANY

So then, what IS a CTO?

A strategic role

AN EXECUTIVE ROLE

A TECHNICAL LEADERSHIP

ROLE

How do I keep up?

Don’t give up the management stuff too

quickly!

LEARN ABOUT THE BUSINESS

YOUR BUSINESS IS IN

Focus on collaborating with people

outside of engineering

We are more than “just

programmers”

Show up for what is needed.

People … grow according to the

demands they make on themselves.

They grow according to what they

consider to be achievement and

attainment. If they demand little of

themselves, they will remain stunted. If

they demand a good deal of

themselves, they will grow to giant

stature—without any more effort than

is expended by the nonachievers.

Peter Drucker, “The Effective

Executive”

EVOLVE

@skamille