How wide is CTO?

[Csdn exclusive report]In various major Enterprise Center, CTO (Chief Technology Officer, Chief Technology Is one of the most important figures in software development projects. With the introduction of the cxo concept in China, CTO has become increasingly known.
What technical strength does a successful CTO need? What if I can make some achievements in the CTO position? Csdn reporter interviewed Lu Jianwei, a CTO who has been engaged in software development for a long time, to explain the true outlook of excellent CTO.

The concept of CTO

CTO is the chief technology officer. It is responsible for R & D of cutting-edge technologies and focuses on cutting-edge technologies and the future. Business . Because most software companies in China are too small to set up special Project Management Positions, so the CTO is still responsible Management Responsibilities of the R & D department.
Lu Jianwei believes that, compared with foreign cto, domestic CTO is obviously insufficient in tracking international technical standards. Most of what is done in China Product Technology, in fact, has been carried out in foreign research and industrial implementation for many years, almost all have mature practices and standards, but domestic developers are still exploring how to do it themselves, it is still in the steel-making stage of the Earth furnace. However, CTO in China is doing well in the transformation and balance between R & D tracking and productization, and can make more competitive products with very limited resources. This also demonstrates the success of localization and applicability adjustment when the CTO concept is introduced in China.

Four capabilities go to the position of CTO

Lu Jianwei has been engaged in software development and software development management for many years. Based on his own work experience, he summed up the four basic capabilities required for a CTO:Business Vision,Technical vision,Product Architecture,Management Talent.
In his view, the R & D objectives of commercial software companies must ultimately be put into commercial profit. Therefore, for new applications, new products, and new profit models, it is always necessary to constantly track, analyze, sort out, and introduce.
The second is technical attention, because the development of a generation of products is related to the enterprise's future 7-8 years Development Important responsibilities and high cost. Therefore, we must choose technologies that conform to future development trends, adopt more advanced product frameworks, and set foot on the trend of the times. Otherwise, we will not be able to start from the development of the times.
Specific to the product development, the product architecture to be used requires a lot of detailed technical support. A good product architecture enables application developers to quickly implement their requirements by writing a small amount of code, and provides stability, performance, customization, Technical Support Diagnosis and deployment are all very good. This is the charm of architects. Of course, the CTO does not need to debug every technical detail. This can be done by architects or architecture groups, but the overall framework must be controlled by the CTO, because this is the root of a product.
The software development process management capability is directly related to R & D organization structure construction and Sustainable Development, team coordination of exception handling, requirement quality, product progress, product quality and competitiveness assurance, the product concept is transmitted among marketing personnel, implementers, service personnel, and customers. Therefore, excellent management and development process management capabilities are also one of the necessary CTO skills.
Tracking and communication of industry trends is essential, and it is also necessary to constantly sort out and summarize them. This is also the conclusion that Lu Jianwei has made after so many years of CTO.

How does CTO develop?

In the face of the surging tide of new technologies and new ideas, Lu Jianwei has always adopted the principle of "advantageous to use". Only when new technologies are obviously conducive to improving R & D productivity and production quality, he will only invest manpower to collect detailed information, translate materials, make demonstrations, do R & D department seminars, and do import projects. Technically, if the new technology cannot generate productivity and cannot improve work efficiency, it cannot be used for actual development and production. From the perspective of enterprise development, because enterprises are always in the brutal business competition, they do not have the free money to study and test the technology, only pay for the technology that can improve productivity and profit, in fact, this is the best way to verify the usefulness of a technology. Applicability is the first principle that he decides whether to adopt new technologies.
Speaking of future career development, Lu Jianwei believes that he has the motivation and vitality to continue to develop in the enterprise management software industry. In combination with the relationship between new technologies in development and enterprise operations, he enjoys continuing to work hard in the software development industry and is willing to communicate with end customers/users, and learn about their current challenges, opportunities and solutions. All of this makes him feel full. In his previous work experience, he has many opportunities to work in pure technology products. However, if you are away from a specific enterprise application, you cannot imagine how many special usage and effects the new technology will produce in the enterprise application. Only by continuing to manage the software industry can he feel the joy of combining technology development with practical applications.

Developer self-improvement

Lu Jianwei has had conversations with many friends, including many technicians who have been engaged in the software industry for many years. They are often confused about their future, and they do not know how to develop in the next step. In addition, the IT industry generates a new wave every year. In the face of the ever-changing IT industry, many friends are worried about the trend.
In his opinion, although there are many new technologies every year, there are not many mainstream stages and branches. From the era of host/terminal, the era of C/S, and the era of B/S to the era of RIA; from process-oriented, object-oriented, component-oriented to service-oriented; from hardware, operating systems, development languages, middleware to clients, from servers, desktops, mobile devices to embedded devices. This is generally the process and level view. Developers do not need to cover all aspects at all. As long as they grasp the future trend and the core they are good at, they can continue to improve themselves and seize a place in the changes of the times.