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The CTO Playbook

The CTO Playbook

By: Adam Horner
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 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 tech strategy, this podcast is your go-to resource. Adam’s journey from engineer to strategic CTO was challenging. He learned through the school of hard knocks, making avoidable mistakes and facing countless challenges. Often out of his comfort zone and wishing for more guidance, he created this podcast to provide the support and advice he once lacked. Tune in for engaging interviews, leadership tips, and the latest in technology strategy. Each episode is designed to help you lead with confidence and level up as a CTO. Listen now to start your journey with The CTO Playbook and build your own playbook to excel in your role.Copyright 2024-2025 Economics Management Management & Leadership Personal Development Personal Success
Episodes
  • 52: How to lead with presence: 5 habits every technology leader needs

    52: How to lead with presence: 5 habits every technology leader needs
    Jul 14 2025

    Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!


    Being busy isn’t your problem—being absent is.

    

    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’ve ever coasted through a Zoom call, half-listened to a teammate, or checked your phone while spending time with your kids, this one will hit hard.


    Adam pulls back the curtain on what it really means to lead with presence—not perfection—and how that simple act can radically transform trust, engagement, and team performance. You’ll hear personal stories, hard-won lessons, and five tactical steps to build a leadership style grounded in consistency and connection. Whether you're burned out or just trying to level up, this episode delivers the wake-up call (and the playbook) you didn’t know you needed.


    You’ll Learn:


    • How showing up with full presence activates trust, connection, and influence
    • Why “being there” isn’t the same as actually being present
    • What distracted leadership signals to your team—and how it erodes performance
    • How to create friction against distractions and train consistent focus
    • Why celebration is a strategic act—not a soft one
    • How to structure 1:1s that deepen trust and engagement
    • What a simple “thank you” does to long-term team motivation
    • Why consistency beats charisma in high-stakes leadership
    • How to audit your calendar for high-impact presence opportunities
    • What missed moments teach us about recommitment and integrity


    Timestamps:


    [00:00] Introduction

    [02:20] Why presence matters more than perfection

    [03:08] The real meaning of “showing up”

    [03:47] Story: daughter calls out her dad for not watching

    [04:29] Story: child notices when phone is put away

    [05:07] Why absence creates disconnection—even in the same room

    [05:35] What presence looks like in a professional setting

    [06:10] How presence builds or destroys trust

    [06:45] Story: transforming a demoralized team through consistency

    [07:56] The role of showing up in changing team culture

    [08:25] Why presence includes celebrating wins

    [08:58] Story: the 15-minute celebration that stuck

    [09:50] Why being noticed beats being rewarded

    [10:36] What makes consistency so difficult

    [11:05] The support systems that enable presence

    [12:02] Step 1: know where presence matters most

    [12:22] Step 2: create friction for distraction

    [12:45] Step 3: celebrate outcomes deliberately

    [13:04] Step 4: practice active presence in 1:1s

    [13:30] Step 5: acknowledge your misses and recommit


    Resources Mentioned:


    The CTO Playbook Platform | Website


    Find more from Adam on LinkedIn and YouTube, and check out Adam's CTO coaching company Synova Tech.
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    15 mins
  • 51: Leadership, Change & Stillness: What Tech Leaders Can Learn from Hiking

    51: Leadership, Change & Stillness: What Tech Leaders Can Learn from Hiking
    Jul 7 2025
    Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!You’re leading everyone else—but are you quietly abandoning yourself?This episode features executive coach and former engineer Natalya Tarasova, who brings a rare blend of technical credibility, Eastern philosophy, and mountaineering metaphors to the world of tech leadership. With a background in physics, machine learning, and organizational coaching, Natalya doesn’t just talk about change—she’s lived it through multiple career pivots and international moves. Her perspective is especially powerful for high-performing CTOs who’ve built their careers on delivering results but feel disconnected from their own needs.In this conversation, Adam and Natalya break down why so many senior tech leaders are brilliant at leading others but terrible at leading themselves. You’ll learn how to recognize when you’ve put yourself last for too long, how to approach inner transformation with the same strategy you’d use for scaling a system, and why burnout often hides behind high output. Expect unconventional insights on emotional regulation, breathing as a leadership tool, the myth of waiting until you’re “ready,” and how to rewire your mental architecture for sustainable impact. This episode is a must-listen if you’re ready to stop sprinting and start leading from stillness.You’ll Learn:How high performers unknowingly sabotage themselves by avoiding stillnessWhy “putting yourself first” is essential—not selfish—for sustainable leadershipHow to use mountaineering metaphors to map out complex personal growthWhat breathing techniques reveal about nervous system regulation under stressHow to shift from reactive change to intentional transformationWhy visualizing your “inner mountain” creates clarity in career transitionsHow to identify the emotional weight you're carrying that’s slowing your progressWhat Eastern philosophy teaches about integrating body, mind, and identityHow to coach others more effectively by first learning to coach yourselfWhy most CTOs delay change until they feel “ready”—and why that’s a trapTimestamps:[00:00] Introduction[04:58] What constant career change reveals about personal adaptability[06:36] The hidden cost of being too externally focused[09:08] Are you a victim of change or a driver of it[10:18] How to take control of your state and response[12:30] Why CTOs say they don’t know how to put themselves first[14:56] Using a mountain metaphor to visualize growth[17:05] Why high achievers struggle to slow down[18:16] The role of stillness in understanding motion[20:12] Why breathwork is the fastest reset for high performers[23:12] How to prepare for the next phase of your leadership[25:11] How to know when it’s time to move[27:09] What leaders need to leave behind to grow[28:12] Change is not linear—it’s a spiral[30:01] What most high performers miss when working on themselves[31:07] Why change starts with rewiring your identity[33:00] Giving yourself permission to fail and learn[35:03] Why emotional empathy can’t be intellectualized[37:06] How embodied wisdom changes your leadership presence[39:04] The hidden power of integrating personal and professional growth[41:05] How self-leadership creates ripple effects across teams[42:12] The 4-step change framework for CTOs[44:05] Why timing your next change is a skill, not luckYou can connect with Natalya on LinkedIn and learn more about her company, Tarasova Coaching on its website.Find more from Adam on LinkedIn and YouTube, and check out Adam's CTO coaching company Synova Tech.
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    46 mins
  • 50: From Chaos to Clarity: Using KPIs to Protect, Persuade, and Prioritize as CTO

    50: From Chaos to Clarity: Using KPIs to Protect, Persuade, and Prioritize as CTO
    Jun 30 2025

    Join The CTO Playbook Slack Community to connect with other CTOs!


    Your KPIs aren’t just underperforming—some of them are actively lying to you.


    In this episode, Adam sits down with Lior Gerson, co-founder and CEO of Target Board, a company that's redefining how tech leaders track and prove their impact. With two decades of experience leading both e-commerce and SaaS companies, and advising giants like Macy’s and Sephora, Lior brings a brutally honest take on why most CTOs are flying blind when it comes to metrics—and how to fix it.


    This conversation is a no-BS breakdown of the most overlooked lever in engineering leadership: meaningful, actionable KPIs. You’ll learn how to turn your data into a defensive shield, why most dashboards are vanity theater, and what it actually takes to align your metrics with strategic business outcomes. If you’re a CTO tired of being reactive—or worse, irrelevant—this is your wake-up call. Expect a tactical playbook for building real visibility, accountability, and leverage inside your org.


    You’ll Learn:


    • How bad KPIs create blind spots—and how to replace them with metrics that drive results
    • Why most dashboards fail to align with business outcomes (and what to do instead)
    • How to use KPIs as a defensive shield to prove your value as a CTO
    • What engineering leaders can learn from consumer companies about data discipline
    • Why many CTOs unconsciously resist accountability—and how that holds teams back
    • How to build a metric system that connects engineering output to revenue
    • Why founder-led companies often ignore metrics—and what fractional CTOs must do differently
    • How to identify whether your team is measuring for impact or just checking boxes
    • What makes a KPI actually meaningful (hint: it’s not speed or story points)
    • How to avoid the DORA trap and surface the metrics your exec team actually cares about


    Timestamps:


    [00:00] Introduction

    [00:52] Why KPIs are critical infrastructure, not just reports

    [01:28] Common CTO struggles with metrics and alignment

    [03:54] The shock of entering a $100M SaaS company with no metrics

    [05:32] The impact of analytical leadership on performance

    [06:18] Why understanding other C-level roles gives CTOs an edge

    [07:12] How fractional CTOs prove impact fast

    [08:48] Why engineering teams resist accountability and tracking

    [10:51] How internal pressure forces KPI adoption

    [11:23] Using metrics as a defensive shield in leadership

    [12:42] How lazy KPI systems fail ambitious CTOs

    [14:11] Why every team needs different metrics to improve

    [15:28] Why most BI teams can’t deliver what CTOs need

    [16:42] How Target Board replaces data teams in days

    [17:52] Why DORA metrics don’t move the business needle

    [19:07] Connecting metrics to revenue and business outcomes

    [20:26] Why paychecks depend on the metrics people ignore

    [22:13] What causes misalignment between execs and data

    [23:31] How OKRs can sabotage team performance

    [25:01] Why full metric visibility empowers better decisions

    [27:01] Automating metric modeling across platforms

    [28:13] The hardest part of using KPIs effectively

    [29:58] The mindset shift needed to use metrics well

    [31:09] What data can’t fix when politics blocks accountability

    [32:28] A step-by-step playbook for KPI-driven execution


    You can connect with Lior and his company on Linkedin.


    Find more from Adam on LinkedIn and YouTube, and check out Adam's CTO coaching company Synova Tech.
    Show More Show Less
    34 mins

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