I've consulted with a number of companies that don't understand both roles, the differences between them or the contribution each makes to the success of the company. Agree that hiring a VP Eng is easier than a CTO when a company reaches that stage.

Also have worked as a VP Eng and a CTO on a number of occasions, enjoy both but don't enjoy the cross-over pressure that comes when the roles aren't understood … CTO managing the eng team or Eng VP doing CTO work.

Thanks again! Great blog, too.

http://mitchellashley.typepad.com/the_converging_network/2007/10/cto-and-vp-engi.html

If I could do it all again, I’d like to strictly focus on handling the vision for the future, and prototyping next generation projects, leaving the day to day management to project managers and a VP engineering. Of course, I was a technical CTO, while other CTOs can’t code their way out of paper bag but excel at management.

I’ve walked both sides of this line (VP and CTO) and, after much haranguing decided that what I enjoy and what I am good at is the VP role. While I am not sure I “suck” at the CTO role, it definitely is not what I enjoy and I think there are lots of other people who are great at it where I will never be.

For me, it comes down to what do you love.

I think of a CTO as a visionary and a technologist. A CTO is someone who can see the future. They love riding the wave of technology imagining where it is going and helping to create the future. They are into what is “cool” and on the leading edge. They likely are into nifty “gadgets” because they are always trying to imagine “what might be”. They are looking 3-5 years out. This is where they thrive.

In contrast, as a VP, I am far more pragmatic than that. I can’t see more than 18 months out (and even that is a really, really long time.) Technology is a tool to me — I very rarely am trying to find problems I can solve with it. I don’t do “cool”. Instead, I have a problem in my hand and go out to find a technology that I can use. I live very much in the here and now, trying to figure out how to move as quickly and efficiently as possible.

I couldn’t agree more that you really need both roles. Your CTO is your visionary charting the course through unexplored lands whereas your VP is the one who makes sure the boat keeps on sailing as effectively as possible.

I think that making a CTO do the VPs job or making a VP do the CTOs job is asking for trouble since they will likely neither do it well nor will they enjoy it.

-Eric

Another side of this though… Will we even need teams of 20 developers ever again? I am blogging about this very thing on R/WW this week

Alex

http://falseprecision.typepad.com/my_weblog/2007/10/cto-vs-vp-engin.html

-t