A CIO position does not have to be static. As you move forward in your career, you may decide to explore different possibilities. For example, it’s not unusual for CIOs to move into CTO positions. This is a great way to shift from managing internal IT operations to driving innovation for your company.

When phrased this way, CTO is an exciting prospect for CIOs, but a learning curve is required. You must expand your technical leadership skills to be successful in your new role. With the right approach, you will determine which innovative technology will effectively drive growth in your organization.

CIO vs CTO: What’s the Difference?

The first step of the transition from CIO to CTO is getting clear on the differences between the two roles. Here are some factors to consider:

• Focus: A CIO’s focus is on internal operations while a CTO’s focus is on external operations.
• Management: A CIO manages external consultants and internal IT departments. A CTO manages engineers and developers.
• Objective: A CIO’s objective is to increase organizational efficiency. A CTO’s objective is to increase revenue.
• Goal: A CIO’s goal is to drive productivity. A CTO drives innovation.

Grasping and Understanding of the CTO Role

The role of the CTO evolves as new technology emerges. The CTO must have a deep understanding of updated technology and the risks and opportunities it presents to their organization. They must use that information to develop a holistic plan for implementing the technology in a way that benefits their company.

Beyond that, the role of the CTO is anything but stagnant. With digitization permeating so many business departments, it’s hard to define where a CTO’s role starts and ends. However, all CTOs have one common responsibility. They must have a broad understanding of products and technology and pay equal attention to both business aspects to drive their organization to success.

How to Ensure Success as a CTO

A CTO must possess or develop the following traits to establish themselves as a successful technology leader:

• A firm grasp of design thinking and how it relates to customers, specifically in a B2B environment.
• Great familiarity with the company’s current technology.
• A desire to learn about new technologies.
• The ability to understand the risks and opportunities of new technology.
• The capacity to explore and cultivate external networks with other businesses, educational institutions, and investors.
• Highly skilled in systems engineering.
• A desire to establish their company as a disruptor in the industry.

CIOs may already possess many of these traits. A shift in focus can help them further develop the necessary skills to become successful CTOs. It may not be a huge leap, but more a matter of initiating the right approach.

Understanding Various CTO Styles

CIOs will achieve a smoother transition into a CTO role by understanding typical CTO leadership styles and adapting the one best suited to their organization. They include the following:

• Challenger: Challengers thrive in a startup environment characterized by sparse resources. They use the early stages of development to their advantage, taking over research and development and injecting their unique perspective. The focus here is on external interfaces and portfolio management.
• Owner: Owners are similar to challengers in their controlling outlook, but they have more resources under their belt. They take full ownership of development, personnel, and budget allowing them to control their organization’s research and development. Their focus is on strategy, portfolio management, and personnel.
• Influencers: Influencers own far less control of their environment. They thrive in low-resource startup atmospheres. They work closely with other leaders, acting as a sounding board and coaching them through research and development issues to find the best solutions. Influencers focus on internal and external interfaces.
• Enablers: Enablers are secondary to other leaders thriving in high-resource environments. Their objective is to accelerate research and development by creating more efficient processes, improving skills, generating revenue, and collaborating on ideation. Enablers focus on staff development, internal interfaces, processes, and personnel.

Generally, enablers and influences fit in well in low technology-intensive environments while challengers and owners establish themselves as leaders in technology-driven organizations.

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