Adam Horner

The CTO Playbook

Technology EN ↓ 103 episodes

Join Adam Horner, a CTO with over 30 years in the tech industry, on The CTO Playbook — the podcast dedicated to helping CTOs excel. Perfect for CTOs and tech leaders navigating the complexities of their roles, each episode offers clear insights, innovative strategies, and practical advice from top leaders in tech. With Adam’s extensive experience mentoring engineers and tech leaders, and over a decade as a CTO, you’ll gain the tools and knowledge to build and refine your own CTO playbook. Whether you're tackling complex projects, fostering innovation, leading teams, or shaping your company's t...

Author

Adam Horner

Episodes

53: Why Most Tech Managers Fail at Feedback (and How Top CTOs Fix It) 21.07.2025 41:22

Are you getting the most out of your individual contributors? Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this episode, I sit down with Matan Kubovsky to dive into the art of managing individual contributors through wee...

52: How to lead with presence: 5 habits every technology leader needs 14.07.2025 15:17

Being busy isn’t your problem—being absent is. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this special episode, Adam dives into the hidden cost of not showing up—at work, at home, and especially as a leader. If you...

51: Leadership, Change & Stillness: What Tech Leaders Can Learn from Hiking 07.07.2025 45:41

You’re leading everyone else—but are you quietly abandoning yourself? Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. This episode features executive coach and former engineer Natalya Tarasova, who brings a rare blend of te...

50: From Chaos to Clarity: Using KPIs to Protect, Persuade, and Prioritize as CTO 30.06.2025 34:24

Your KPIs aren’t just underperforming—some of them are actively lying to you. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this episode, Adam sits down with Lior Gerson, co-founder and CEO of Target Board, a company that...

49: What’s the Point of Your Tech Team? Why Most CEOs are Missing the Signals 23.06.2025 54:15

"Compliance doesn’t make you good—so how do you really know if your tech team is any good at all?" Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this episode, Adam sits down with Andy Graham, former CTO with 30 years o...

48: Why great CTOs slow down to think, and see what others can’t 16.06.2025 17:35

"Most CTOs spend all their time chasing rabbits—and miss the real future right in front of them." Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this sharp, no-fluff episode, Adam cuts through the chaos CTOs face dail...

47: The Future of Distributed Architecture and Durable Execution with Temporal CTO, Maxim Fateev 09.06.2025 45:20

What if the most complex part of your backend system... just vanished? Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this episode, Adam sits down with Maxim Fateev, CTO and co-founder of Temporal, a platform quietly revol...

46: The CEO’s Playbook for Hiring the Right CTO with Warren Beazley 02.06.2025 52:46

Most CEOs hire the wrong CTO—not because of a talent shortage, but because they don't know what they're actually looking for. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this episode, Adam sits down with returning g...

45: From Crisis to Clarity: Rob Kalwarowsky’s Playbook for Transformational Leadership 26.05.2025 39:22

What if the part of you causing burnout is the same one that got you where you are? Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this episode, Adam sits down with Rob Kalwarowsky—executive coach, TEDx speaker, and author...

44: The tech behind the scenes at The CTO Playbook 19.05.2025 15:43

Ever wondered what it really takes to produce a high-quality tech podcast from scratch—while wrangling kids, late nights, and a studio in your basement? Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this rare behind-the-s...

43:The CTO’s Guide to Performance-First Architecture with Victor Nicollet (Lokad CTO) 12.05.2025 47:25

Victor Nicollet is an expert in mechanical sympathy for software, focusing on how software design can better align with the hardware it runs on for smarter, faster systems. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In th...

42: From Chaos to Clarity: 9 Principles for Leading in a World of Citizen Developers 05.05.2025 24:12

In this episode, you'll learn how the rise of citizen builders is reshaping software creation, why leadership now demands alignment over control, how to measure real impact across teams, and what it takes to scale safely in a world of AI-assisted development. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcas...

41: Steel Thread, Event Storming & Target Architectures — Zac Beckman's Guide to Predictable Delivery 28.04.2025 46:28

Zacharias Beckman is a technology leader and creator of the Customer Obsessed Delivery Playbook. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this episode, you're going to learn what the Customer Obsessed Delivery Playbo...

40: Mastering the Art of Influence: How to Get Executive Buy-In for Your Big Ideas 21.04.2025 22:10

In this episode, you'll learn how to win support for a tough proposal, avoid getting blindsided in meetings, use informal conversations to map your allies and blockers, and turn neutral teammates into advocates. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity,...

39: Preparing for the Jump From CTO to CEO with Andre Louca 14.04.2025 48:11

Andre Louca is a former CTO who became the CEO of a deep tech startup focused on AI and computer vision.  Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this episode, you'll learn what it takes to move from CTO to CEO...

38: Why Cultural Transformation Fails (And How CTOs Can Get It Right) with Eric Johannsen 07.04.2025 34:48

Eric Johannsen is an engineering leader, author, and father of triplets who has helped lead multiple startups to successful exits. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this episode, you're going to learn what cul...

37: Scaling, Strategy & Survival: The CTO Playbook for Large Enterprises with Sarah Greasley 31.03.2025 49:25

Sarah Greasley is an IBM Distinguished Engineer turned CTO with over 40 years in tech, known for leading large-scale transformation projects at companies like IBM, Direct Line, and AWS. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic...

36: The CTO’s Guide to Managing Large Engineering Teams Effectively 25.03.2025 29:50

In this episode, you'll learn how to shift from one-on-one coaching to group leadership, how to reduce politics and knowledge gaps in large engineering teams, how to build a high-trust leadership environment, and how to implement an open-door policy for better team alignment. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey....

35: Why Scaling a Company Feels Impossible (And How to Do It Anyway) with Kevin Howren 18.03.2025 38:08

Kevin Howren is the Chief Product and Technology Officer at NPACT, where he has led major organizational changes, doubling the customer base and scaling SaaS assets under management from $50 billion to over $100 billion. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with...

34: The Five CTO Archetypes: Which One Are You? 11.03.2025 42:21

In this episode, you'll learn what CTO coaching is, who it’s for, the impact it can have, and how to find the right coach for your goals. Adam Horner shares common CTO challenges, the skills needed to succeed at the executive level, and a framework for accelerating leadership growth. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO...

33: The Fractional CTO Formula for Success with Dan Gwalter 04.03.2025 59:45

Dan Gwalter is a fractional consultant and former IT director who helps businesses navigate growth challenges. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this episode, you're going to learn why Dan left a high-paying c...

32: How to Run 1:1s That Actually Improve Performance 25.02.2025 32:33

In this episode, you'll learn how to structure effective one-on-one meetings with engineers, how to maintain alignment between individual performance and company goals, how to use a rolling agenda for tracking progress, and how to transition from weekly check-ins to quarterly and annual reviews seamlessly. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform...

31: The Fatal Flaw of 10x Developers (Here’s What Actually Matters) 18.02.2025 44:10

Matt Watson is the CEO of FullScale and previously bootstrapped an SaaS company to $35 million ARR before a $150 million exit. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this episode, you're going to learn what skills...

30: How to Align Data, Teams, and Strategy for Business Success: Ritavan's Framework 11.02.2025 53:11

Ritavan is a machine learning expert, author of Data Impact , and has worked in industries such as banking, energy, and real estate. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this episode, you're going to learn how to...

29: How to Scale a Developer-First Startup with Daniel Jarjoura 04.02.2025 1:00:07

Daniel Jarjoura is the Managing Director at Avolta, specializing in helping engineering-led companies prepare for mergers and acquisitions. Build your own CTO Playbook at  www.theCTOplaybook.com  — the leadership platform built for the full CTO journey. Coaching, podcast, and community to help you lead with clarity, confidence, and strategic impact. In this episode, you'll learn the impo...