A chief technology officer (CTO), also known as a chief technical officer or chief technologist, is an executive-level position in a company or other entity whose occupation is focused on the scientific and technological issues within an organization.[1]
Chief technology officer
Synonyms
CTO chief technologist
A CTO is very similar to a chief information officer (CIO).[2] CTOs will make decisions for the overarching technology infrastructure that closely align with the organization's goals, while CIOs work alongside the organization's information technology ("IT") staff members to perform everyday operations.[2] A CTO should be aware of new and existing technologies to guide the company's future endeavors.[3] The attributes of the roles a CTO holds vary from one company to the next, mainly depending on their organizational structure.[4]
In the United States, the average salary for a CTO ranges between $130,000 and $195,000 per annum depending on the company's sector.[2] According to a 2018 report from the InfoSec Institute, CTOs in the financial sector earn around $200,000, while e-commerce CTOs earn around $76,000.[2]
After World War II, large corporations established research laboratories at locations separate from their headquarters. The corporation's goals were to hire scientists and offer them facilities to conduct research on behalf of the company without the burdens of day-to-day office work. This is where the idea of a CTO focusing on the overarching technology infrastructures originates.[5]
At that time, the director of the laboratory was a corporate vice president who did not participate in the company's corporate decisions. Instead, the technical director was the individual responsible for attracting new scientists, to do research, and to develop products.[6]
In the 1980s, the role of these research directors changed substantially. Since technology was becoming a fundamental part of the development for most products and services, companies needed an operational executive who could understand the product's technical side and provide advice on ways to improve and develop.[7]
This all led to the creation of the position of Chief Technology Officer by large companies in the late 1980s with the growth of the information technology industry and computer (internet) companies.[4]
Overview
A CTO "examines the short and long term needs of an organization, and utilizes capital to make investments designed to help the organization reach its objectives... [the CTO] is the highest technology executive position within a company and leads the technology or engineering department".[8] The role became prominent with the ascent of the IT industry, but has since become prevalent in technology-based industries of all types – including computer-based technologies (such as game developer, e-commerce, and social networking service) and other/non-computer-focused technology (such as biotech/pharma, defense, and automotive). In non-technical organizations as a corporate officer position, the CTO typically reports directly to the chief information officer (CIO) and is primarily concerned with long-term and "big picture" issues (while still having deep technical knowledge of the relevant field). In technology-focused organizations, the CIO and CTO positions can be at the same level, with the CIO focused on the information technology and the CTO focused on the core company and other supporting technologies.
Depending on company structure and hierarchy, there may also be positions such as R&D manager, director of R&D and vice president of engineering whom the CTO interacts with or oversees. The CTO also needs a working familiarity with regulatory (e.g. U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Environmental Protection Agency, Consumer Product Safety Commission, as applicable) and intellectual property (IP) issues (e.g. patents, trade secrets, license contracts), and an ability to interface with legal counsel to incorporate these considerations into strategic planning and inter-company negotiations.
In many older industries (whose existence may predate IT automation) such as manufacturing, shipping or banking, an executive role of the CTO would often arise out of the process of automating existing activities; in these cases, any CTO-like role would only emerge if and when efforts would be made to develop truly novel technologies (either for facilitating internal operations or for enhancing products/services being provided), perhaps through "intrapreneuring".
To fulfill the role of a company's CTO, a person must meet many qualifications such as the following: bachelor's degree, master's degree, certifications, years of experience within the relevant field, and technology-related management skills.[9]
As technology has become essential in the business world, new positions continue to arise. A CTO, may additionally interact with a newer position, a Chief Security Officer (CSO), or more accurately referred to as Chief Information Security Officer. The role of a CSO in comparison to a CTO would be to protect the network from being penetrated which could lead to privacy and legal issues for the company. All executive positions relating to technology must collaborate within companies to have the best working infrastructure and will report to the CEO.[10]
^Smith, Roger D. (2003). "The Chief Technology Officer: Strategic Responsibilities and Relationships". Research-Technology Management. 46 (4): 28–36. doi:10.1080/08956308.2003.11671574. S2CID 154123520.
^ abcdMargaret, Rouse. "What is Chief Technology Officer (CTO)? - Definition from WhatIs.com". SearchCIO. Retrieved 2019-11-08.
^D'Angelo, Matt (November 1, 2018). "What is a CTO?". www.businessnewsdaily.com. Retrieved 2019-11-14.
^ ab"What Is a Chief Technology Officer?". Business Research Guide. Retrieved 2019-11-08.
^Smith, Roger. "The Role of the Chief Technology Officer in Strategic Innovation, Project Execution, and Mentoring" (PDF). Princeton.
^F., Larson, Charles (2001-11-01). "Management for the New Millennium-The Challenge of Change. (One Point of View)". Research-Technology Management. 44 (6). doi:10.1080/08956308.2001.11671457. ISSN 0895-6308. S2CID 151234119.
^Lewis, W.W.; Lawrence, H.L. (1990). "A new mission for corporate technology". Sloan Management Review. 31 (4): 57–67.
^. Investopedia. 2011-07-11. Archived from the original on 2017-12-25. Retrieved 2017-12-12.
^"How to Become a Chief Technology Officer". work.chron.com. Retrieved 2019-11-21.
^Fruhlinger, Josh (2018-05-08). "What is a CSO? Understanding the critical chief security officer role". CSO Online. Retrieved 2019-11-21.
Pratt, Mary K (22 January 2007). "The CTO: IT's Chameleon". Computerworld.com.
Berray, Tom; Sampath, Raj (2002). (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-08-30. Retrieved 2009-07-06.
Medcof, John W.; Yousofpourfard, Haniyeh (2006). (PDF). International Association for Management of Technology. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2013-07-17.
Noble, Jason (2018). "Day in the life of a CTO" . CTO Academy
March 29, 2023
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This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Chief technology officer news newspapers books scholar JSTOR August 2017 Learn how and when to remove this template message A chief technology officer CTO also known as a chief technical officer or chief technologist is an executive level position in a company or other entity whose occupation is focused on the scientific and technological issues within an organization 1 Chief technology officerSynonymsCTO chief technologistA CTO is very similar to a chief information officer CIO 2 CTOs will make decisions for the overarching technology infrastructure that closely align with the organization s goals while CIOs work alongside the organization s information technology IT staff members to perform everyday operations 2 A CTO should be aware of new and existing technologies to guide the company s future endeavors 3 The attributes of the roles a CTO holds vary from one company to the next mainly depending on their organizational structure 4 In the United States the average salary for a CTO ranges between 130 000 and 195 000 per annum depending on the company s sector 2 According to a 2018 report from the InfoSec Institute CTOs in the financial sector earn around 200 000 while e commerce CTOs earn around 76 000 2 Contents 1 History 2 Overview 3 Notable CTOs 4 See also 5 References 6 Further readingHistory EditAfter World War II large corporations established research laboratories at locations separate from their headquarters The corporation s goals were to hire scientists and offer them facilities to conduct research on behalf of the company without the burdens of day to day office work This is where the idea of a CTO focusing on the overarching technology infrastructures originates 5 At that time the director of the laboratory was a corporate vice president who did not participate in the company s corporate decisions Instead the technical director was the individual responsible for attracting new scientists to do research and to develop products 6 In the 1980s the role of these research directors changed substantially Since technology was becoming a fundamental part of the development for most products and services companies needed an operational executive who could understand the product s technical side and provide advice on ways to improve and develop 7 This all led to the creation of the position of Chief Technology Officer by large companies in the late 1980s with the growth of the information technology industry and computer internet companies 4 Overview EditA CTO examines the short and long term needs of an organization and utilizes capital to make investments designed to help the organization reach its objectives the CTO is the highest technology executive position within a company and leads the technology or engineering department 8 The role became prominent with the ascent of the IT industry but has since become prevalent in technology based industries of all types including computer based technologies such as game developer e commerce and social networking service and other non computer focused technology such as biotech pharma defense and automotive In non technical organizations as a corporate officer position the CTO typically reports directly to the chief information officer CIO and is primarily concerned with long term and big picture issues while still having deep technical knowledge of the relevant field In technology focused organizations the CIO and CTO positions can be at the same level with the CIO focused on the information technology and the CTO focused on the core company and other supporting technologies Depending on company structure and hierarchy there may also be positions such as R amp D manager director of R amp D and vice president of engineering whom the CTO interacts with or oversees The CTO also needs a working familiarity with regulatory e g U S Food and Drug Administration Environmental Protection Agency Consumer Product Safety Commission as applicable and intellectual property IP issues e g patents trade secrets license contracts and an ability to interface with legal counsel to incorporate these considerations into strategic planning and inter company negotiations In many older industries whose existence may predate IT automation such as manufacturing shipping or banking an executive role of the CTO would often arise out of the process of automating existing activities in these cases any CTO like role would only emerge if and when efforts would be made to develop truly novel technologies either for facilitating internal operations or for enhancing products services being provided perhaps through intrapreneuring To fulfill the role of a company s CTO a person must meet many qualifications such as the following bachelor s degree master s degree certifications years of experience within the relevant field and technology related management skills 9 As technology has become essential in the business world new positions continue to arise A CTO may additionally interact with a newer position a Chief Security Officer CSO or more accurately referred to as Chief Information Security Officer The role of a CSO in comparison to a CTO would be to protect the network from being penetrated which could lead to privacy and legal issues for the company All executive positions relating to technology must collaborate within companies to have the best working infrastructure and will report to the CEO 10 Notable CTOs EditNotable CTOs include 11 John Carmack Mike Krieger David Heinemeier Hansson Werner VogelsSee also EditChief creative officer Chief executive officer Chief innovation officer CINO or CTIO Chief scientific officer Chief security officerReferences Edit Smith Roger D 2003 The Chief Technology Officer Strategic Responsibilities and Relationships Research Technology Management 46 4 28 36 doi 10 1080 08956308 2003 11671574 S2CID 154123520 a b c d Margaret Rouse What is Chief Technology Officer CTO Definition from WhatIs com SearchCIO Retrieved 2019 11 08 D Angelo Matt November 1 2018 What is a CTO www businessnewsdaily com Retrieved 2019 11 14 a b What Is a Chief Technology Officer Business Research Guide Retrieved 2019 11 08 Smith Roger The Role of the Chief Technology Officer in Strategic Innovation Project Execution and Mentoring PDF Princeton F Larson Charles 2001 11 01 Management for the New Millennium The Challenge of Change One Point of View Research Technology Management 44 6 doi 10 1080 08956308 2001 11671457 ISSN 0895 6308 S2CID 151234119 Lewis W W Lawrence H L 1990 A new mission for corporate technology Sloan Management Review 31 4 57 67 Chief Technology Officer CTO Investopedia 2011 07 11 Archived from the original on 2017 12 25 Retrieved 2017 12 12 How to Become a Chief Technology Officer work chron com Retrieved 2019 11 21 Fruhlinger Josh 2018 05 08 What is a CSO Understanding the critical chief security officer role CSO Online Retrieved 2019 11 21 Top 79 Chief Technology Officers Tenfold White Papers Tenfold 2017 09 28 Retrieved 2019 11 21 Further reading EditPratt Mary K 22 January 2007 The CTO IT s Chameleon Computerworld com Berray Tom Sampath Raj 2002 The Role of the CTO four models for success PDF Archived from the original PDF on 2017 08 30 Retrieved 2009 07 06 Medcof John W Yousofpourfard Haniyeh 2006 The CTO and Organizational Power and Influence PDF International Association for Management of Technology Archived from the original PDF on 2016 03 04 Retrieved 2013 07 17 Noble Jason 2018 Day in the life of a CTO CTO Academy Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Chief technology officer amp oldid 1131966816, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
