The CTO Playbook
Episodes
89: Engineering Velocity for CTOs: How Superhuman Moves Fast Without Sacrificing Quality
30 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
If your team feels busy but nothing meaningful gets delivered, this might explain why.Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the le...
88: The CTO Role Has Changed — Why Doing More Isn’t the Answer
24 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Why does the CTO role feel heavier after you start winning?Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for...
87: AI Governance for CTOs: Turning AI Risk Into Competitive Advantage
17 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
What if the biggest risk in your AI strategy isn’t the technology, but the assumptions you never question?Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOp...
86: Why Communication Is Now a Core Skill for CTOs and Senior Engineering Leaders
10 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
What if the most underused asset in your tech organization is your voice?Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership plat...
85: From Firefighting to Flow: How CTOs Build Teams That Learn Fast
03 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
What if speed as a CTO has less to do with urgency and more to do with discipline?Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — ...
84: Why Your Definition of Done Is Limiting Engineering’s Business Impact
24 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
What if redefining one simple phrase could change how your entire organization delivers value?Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com —...
83: Are We Building the Right Things? A CTO’s Guide to Influence, Ethics, and Responsible Innovation
17 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
82: Are You Running Fast in the Wrong Direction? A CTO’s Guide to Clarity with Jason McGhee
10 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
81: The Culture Playbook for High-Performing Engineering Teams — with CTO Pasha Jam
03 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
80: Gut Instinct in Tech Leadership: When to Trust It, When to Challenge It
27 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
79: What Engineers Really Need from Their Leaders: A Conversation with Massimo Belloni
20 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
78: The Hidden Cost of Getting Paid: Why Trust Is a CTO’s Blind Spot
13 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
77: The CTO Guide to Scaling Operational Maturity — Lessons from Amazon to Startups
06 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
76: How Great CTOs Influence Regulators, Auditors, and Certifications
30 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
75: The Hidden Systems Behind High-Performing Engineering Teams
23 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
74: How Great CTOs Lead: Rory Herriman’s Five-Part Framework for High-Performance Technology Teams
16 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
73: How Avalanche Rescue Taught Me to Lead Calmly in Crisis | Leadership Lessons for CTOs
09 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
72: Why OKRs Fail — and What to Use Instead (with Radhika Dutt)
02 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com, the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to hel...
71: The Real Reason Digital Transformations Fail — It’s Not Technology or People
25 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com, the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to hel...
70: A Better Way to Explain Your Platform to Non-Technical Executives
17 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
69: Breaking Free from Vendor Lock-In: A New Playbook for Modernising Legacy Systems
10 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
68: Startups, AI, and the Funding Reset: What Investors Really Want in 2025
04 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
67: People, Process, Technology: The Leadership Formula Every CTO Needs
28 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
66: CTO Playbook: Leading Change Without Chaos — Giorgia Prestento
20 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
65: Unrealistic Planning, Broken Collaboration — and How to Fix Both
13 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at www.theCTOplaybook.com — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to ...
64: What Got You Here Won’t Get You There — CTO Leadership with Catherine Stagg-Macey
06 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook here, the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clari...
63: How Corey Hart Scaled a Crisis Team Fast — Without Losing Trust
29 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook here, the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clari...
62: Tech Debt Is Killing Your Team — Here’s What to Do About It
22 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook here, the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clari...
61: Why I Coach CTOs: Lessons from Avalanches, Startups, and Rebuilding Teams
15 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook here, the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clari...
60: What Do You Do When No One’s Watching? The Truth About Proactive Leadership
08 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at our website — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you le...
59: The Future of the CTO: Etienne de Bruin on Leadership, Liquid & Lasting Impact
01 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at our website — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you le...
58: You’re Not Leading If You’re Not Listening – Wesley Eugene on Empathy and Influence
25 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at our website — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you le...
57: Why Leaders Fail to Grow — Even When They’re Doing Everything ‘Right’
18 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at our website — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you le...
56: 14 Things Great CTOs Stop Doing (And You Should Too)
11 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Build your own CTO Playbook at our website — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you le...
55: CTO Leadership Secrets: The Power of IQ, EQ, and FQ with Faris Aranki
04 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Are you managing your individual contributors in a way that fuels growth, performance...
54: CTO Secrets to Scaling Fast: Lessons from COVID, Culture & Code with Peter Wong
28 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Are you managing individual contributors the best way possible?In this episode,...
53: Why Most Tech Managers Fail at Feedback (and How Top CTOs Fix It)
21 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Are you getting the most out of your individual contributors?In this episode, I sit d...
52: How to lead with presence: 5 habits every technology leader needs
14 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Being busy isn’t your problem—being absent is.In this special episode, Adam...
51: Leadership, Change & Stillness: What Tech Leaders Can Learn from Hiking
07 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!You’re leading everyone else—but are you quietly abandoning yourself?This epis...
50: From Chaos to Clarity: Using KPIs to Protect, Persuade, and Prioritize as CTO
30 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Your KPIs aren’t just underperforming—some of them are actively lying to you.In t...
49: What’s the Point of Your Tech Team? Why Most CEOs are Missing the Signals
23 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!"Compliance doesn’t make you good—so how do you really know if your tech team is ...
48: Why great CTOs slow down to think, and see what others can’t
16 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!"Most CTOs spend all their time chasing rabbits—and miss the real future right in f...
47: The Future of Distributed Architecture and Durable Execution with Temporal CTO, Maxim Fateev
09 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!What if the most complex part of your backend system... just vanished?In this episode...
46: The CEO’s Playbook for Hiring the Right CTO with Warren Beazley
02 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Most CEOs hire the wrong CTO—not because of a talent shortage, but because they don...
45: From Crisis to Clarity: Rob Kalwarowsky’s Playbook for Transformational Leadership
26 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!What if the part of you causing burnout is the same one that got you where you are?In...
44: The tech behind the scenes at The CTO Playbook
19 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Ever wondered what it really takes to produce a high-quality tech podcast from scratc...
43:The CTO’s Guide to Performance-First Architecture with Victor Nicollet (Lokad CTO)
12 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Victor Nicollet is an expert in mechanical sympathy for software, focusing on how sof...
42: From Chaos to Clarity: 9 Principles for Leading in a World of Citizen Developers
05 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!In this episode, you'll learn how the rise of citizen builders is reshaping software ...
41: Steel Thread, Event Storming & Target Architectures — Zac Beckman's Guide to Predictable Delivery
28 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Zacharias Beckman is a technology leader and creator of the Customer Obsessed Deliver...
40: Mastering the Art of Influence: How to Get Executive Buy-In for Your Big Ideas
21 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!In this episode, you'll learn how to win support for a tough proposal, avoid getting ...
39: Preparing for the Jump From CTO to CEO with Andre Louca
14 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Andre Louca is a former CTO who became the CEO of a deep tech startup focused on AI a...
38: Why Cultural Transformation Fails (And How CTOs Can Get It Right) with Eric Johannsen
07 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Eric Johannsen is an engineering leader, author, and father of triplets who has helpe...
37: Scaling, Strategy & Survival: The CTO Playbook for Large Enterprises with Sarah Greasley
31 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Sarah Greasley is an IBM Distinguished Engineer turned CTO with over 40 years in tech...
36: The CTO’s Guide to Managing Large Engineering Teams Effectively
25 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOsIn this episode, you'll learn how to shift from one-on-one coaching to group leadershi...
35: Why Scaling a Company Feels Impossible (And How to Do It Anyway) with Kevin Howren
18 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Kevin Howren is the Chief Product and Technology Officer at NPACT, where he has led m...
34: The Five CTO Archetypes: Which One Are You?
11 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs! In this episode, you'll learn what CTO coaching is, who it’s for, the impa...
33: The Fractional CTO Formula for Success with Dan Gwalter
04 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs! Dan Gwalter is a fractional consultant and former IT director who helps busines...
32: How to Run 1:1s That Actually Improve Performance
25 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!In this episode, you'll learn how to structure effective one-on-one meetings with eng...
31: The Fatal Flaw of 10x Developers (Here’s What Actually Matters)
18 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Matt Watson is the CEO of FullScale and previously bootstrapped an SaaS company to $3...
30: How to Align Data, Teams, and Strategy for Business Success: Ritavan's Framework
11 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Ritavan is a machine learning expert, author of Data Impact, and has worked in indust...
29: How to Scale a Developer-First Startup with Daniel Jarjoura
04 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Daniel Jarjoura is the Managing Director at Avolta, specializing in helping engineeri...
28: The No.1 Reason Startups Fail and How to Avoid It with Dr. Georgios Christou
28 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!In this episode, you'll learn the top mistakes founder engineers make when starting a...
27: How to Stop Hiring the Wrong People with Stephan Schmidt
20 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Stephan Schmidt is a CTO coach and the author of “Amazing CTO”.In this episode, y...
26: Microsoft Insider Reveals The Biggest Leadership Mistakes with Dave Wascha
14 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!David Wascha is a seasoned product and tech leader with experience at Microsoft, MOO,...
25: Step-by-Step Guide to Hiring and Onboarding
07 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!In this episode, you'll learn how to streamline your recruiting process, craft compel...
24: War-Time Lessons Every Startup Leader Must Know with Roman Labunsky
31 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Roman Labunsky is the co-founder and CTO of an early-stage cybersecurity startup base...
23: Two CTOs Face Off in a Christmas Showdown
24 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!In this episode, it’s a CTO Christmas Tale! You'll learn the importance of steady l...
22: The Secret to Leading Diverse Tech Teams with Alena Ipanova
17 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Alena Ipanova is an expert in cultural intelligence and intercultural leadership.In t...
21: 4 Steps to Becoming a Leader Worth Following with Adrian Stanek
10 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Adrian Stanek is a seasoned CTO and leadership mentor known for his practical insight...
20: How to Master Communication for Effective Leadership
03 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!In this episode, you'll learn how to communicate effectively as a CTO, master nonverb...
19: Tech Leaders Need Empathy, Not Just Code with Gareth Thomas
26 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Gareth Thomas is a seasoned CTO with over 25 years of experience building and leading...
18: Coaching Managers for Excellence with Zach Goldberg
19 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Zach Goldberg is a seasoned CTO and author of “The Startup CTO's Handbook”.In thi...
17: Funding Success Made Simple with Thorgeir Einarsson
12 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!Thorgeir Einarsson is a seasoned CEO and advisor who has helped hundreds of tech star...
16: How to Build an Engineering Strategy that Scales Without Wasting Resources
05 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Adam talks about how to create a strong engineering strategy and prioritize creating roadmaps that align with company goals while eff...
15: The Hidden Threats Facing Product And Tech Leaders with Todd Zino
29 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Adam and Todd talk about why tech and product leaders need to expand their roles in today's market, why many startups struggle with t...
14: Blueprint for Growing Global, Remote-First Engineering Teams with Magnus Lenngren
21 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Magnus Lenngren is an engineering leader and a three-time unicorn builder.In this episode, you'll find out how to scale remote-first engineering teams...
13: How To Network and Build Powerful Connections with Zoe Cunningham
14 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Zoe Cunningham is a director at Softwire and author of Networking Know-How.In this episode, you will learn what most people get wrong about networking...
12: Upgrade Your Bitcoin Knowledge (2024 Edition) with Adem Bilican
12 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!In this episode, Adam interviews Adem Bilican, the CTO at Relai, the App, a...
11: The Parable of the Firefighter CTO
30 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to learn more about how to be a great CTO!In this episode, Adam discusses how CTOs can transition from...
10: The Five S's for Delivering Technical Presentations with Dipak Mistry
23 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to learn more about how to be a great CTO.In this episode, Adam interviews Dipak Mistry, a senior arch...
9: How Being a Friendly Leader Could Be Stifling Your Innovation with Carol Palombini
16 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to learn more about how to be a leader!In this episode, Adam interviews Carol Palombini, a psychologis...
8: How to Cross the CTO Chasm (and Why Most Don’t Make It Across!)
09 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to learn more about the five-step playbook!In this episode, Adam dives into the challenges of transiti...
7: How Empathy Drives Change (Innovation Tips for CTOs) with Daniel Walters
02 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to learn more about empathic, dynamic reteaming!In this episode, Adam interviews Daniel Walters, a sea...
6: Strategies for a Healthy CTO-CPO Relationship with John Broome
26 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to learn more about startups and scale ups!In this episode, Adam interviews John Broome, a seasoned product lead...
5: What Kind of CTO are YOU?
19 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
If you are finding this podcast helpful, please rate and review so other CTO's can join the conversation.In this episode, Adam explores the different ...
4: The 2 Most Critical Components of a CTO Career with Andy Skipper
12 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Adam speaks with Andy Skipper, the founder of CTO Craft and a seasoned CTO coach. Andy delves into the benefits of coaching for new C...
3: 5 Steps to Land Your Dream CTO Role with Warren Beazley
05 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Adam interviews Warren Beazley, a seasoned CTO recruiter, about how tech leaders can effectively communicate their professional ident...
2: The Key Relationship That Drives Startup Growth with Steven Renwick
29 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Adam interviews Steven Renwick, who dives deep into the relationship between the CEO and CTO in early-stage startups. Steven shares h...
1: My Story on How I Learned to Thrive as a CTO
11 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to the CTO Playbook! I'm Adam Horner, your host, with over 30 years in the tech industry and more than a decade as a CTO. In this podcast, we ...