CTO Perspective | Codemotion Interview

CTO perspective | Codemotion interview

Pedro Sánchez, CTO of Bravent

Pedro Sánchez highlights the importance of adapting, taking responsibility and maintaining focus in order to be a good CTO in the tech industry.

Today, in our CTO Perspective series, we bring you this interview for Codemotion, where Pedro Sánchez Naranjo, CTO of Bravent, shares with our community his experiences, recommendations and reflections on his professional journey.

Pedro, a telecommunications technical engineer graduated from the University of Malaga, joined Bravent in 2019 as a senior web developer after several years of experience in the industry. Since then, he has held various positions, from developer to technical lead, until assuming the position of CTO of the company in 2022. Currently, he collaborates in pre-sales, technical management, project management and recruitment of technical staff both nationally and internationally.

“The CTO position is like an iceberg. It’s a position where you do a lot of things, all of them very important because they affect the company’s business, but maybe you don’t have the visibility that you have when you are a technician and you do a big project. Maybe it’s because you’re doing things that are more internal and therefore less visible, but in my opinion they are very important. So I think an iceberg would be the closest thing to a CTO, most of it is hidden underwater and only a small fraction is visible from the surface. “

Technical will be the focus of the CTO position.

As discussed in previous articles, the figure of the CTO has undergone a major evolution in recent years, which means that these roles will need to strive even harder to stay current.

It is expected that the profile will continue to combine technical knowledge with management skills, albeit with an even greater emphasis on the technical. In Pedro’s opinion, management will not have as much weight as the technical side, where a more focused approach will be required.

It will be a challenging position due to the constant emergence of innovations in the technology field, such as what we are seeing with Artificial Intelligence lately. Keeping up with such a dynamic environment will be a real challenge for any CTO.

I want to be CTO

“Be clear about it” says Pedro with a chuckle.

Pedro tells us that the position of CTO can be quite stressful, you go from managing a team or an area to manage an entire company at a technical level and it is a big leap.

“I specifically come from the Data and Cloud area, but once you become CTO you go on to manage all the technical areas of the company and you have to study a lot as well as get up to date with all the technologies that are being worked on in your company. So the change is quite big, both on a technical level and on the management side. In the end all that is a lot of time that you have to spend, not only in your working day, but also in your free time to keep up to date with everything. So for those who want to take the leap, the first thing I would say to them is that they have to be clear about the effort it will entail. The second thing is that it’s a very nice position, which allows you to have a complete vision of what your company does, you learn a lot about the business and you deal with many customers (some people don’t like this more commercial part, but I love it and I think it enriches a lot).”

Like everything else in life; Patience and prioritization.

When does a CTO leave the learning phase and consider himself good at his job? As we read at the beginning of the article, the role of the CTO can be compared to an iceberg where you can’t see everything underneath, as in other roles with big projects.

Pedro explains that being a role in which you are constantly growing, it takes years to be considered a good CTO.

However, he could share with us 3 characteristics that he considers most important:

• Being up to date with all the technologies, since you are going to be the guide of your company and you will have to advise them where to go in the different areas and what to apply to do more business. So you have no choice but to be up to date.
• You have to strengthen your management and people skills. You have to keep in mind that during the day you are going to deal with a lot of people and that everybody has days that maybe they get up on the wrong foot. You must know how to manage these situations and not let them affect you.
• Finally, you must be patient and know how to prioritize. If you are a very impatient or restless person I think it would cost you more, because throughout the day you are going to get a lot of things on which you must focus 100% and if you go from one to another or get distracted with little things because in the end they consume your day and you do not get there.

These characteristics are fundamental to face the daily challenges and successfully guide the company into the future in a changing technological environment.

We must not lose focus

When it comes to evaluating a good CTO, as in any company, there are objectives to be met each year, especially in areas that are in constant growth and innovation.

A CTO not only drives the technical areas but also puts the focus on marketing or business departments. For example, on the marketing side, he encourages to do events, to participate in community events and even if he does not fit in the organization what he does is to lead and push the team knowing the general objectives of the company.

On the business side, you have to keep your company from being outdated and always be working on cutting-edge technologies.

In conclusion, the interview with Pedro Sánchez Naranjo, CTO of Bravent, offers a clear vision of the challenges and responsibilities facing a CTO today. He highlights the importance of keeping up to date with technology, strengthening management and people skills, and being patient in order to succeed in this constantly evolving role.