Road to CTO

Kuba Lang
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Short stories of how technology leaders got to where they are. One CTO, one journey, no filler. New episode every Wednesday. Road to CTO is a short-format podcast for engineers and engineering managers aiming for the CTO role, and for tech leaders curious how their peers got there. Each episode is one conversation about the path, the turning point, and the lessons learned along the way. Guests range from first-time startup CTOs to engineering leaders at global scale-ups. Hosted by Kuba Lang, CEO of Cyrantos, who has spent the last decade helping companies hire technology leaders. Want to share your road? Reach out at hello@roadtocto.com.

Episodes

  1. 2d ago

    #1 - Alessio Garofalo: From army officer to CTO of a city of the future

    An officer in the Italian Army at 18. CIO and CTO of a city that didn't exist yet at 40. Alessio Garofalo's road to the top had no map, and that's exactly why it's worth hearing. Alessio Garofalo: former CIO and CTO of NEOM, Amazon leadership across the UK and Japan, now leading transformation at NATO in Portugal. In this episode: ■ Why he never once hired above his team, and what it cost him ■ The rule he gives every future CTO: get your hands dirty first ■ What people want from a leader, and why it's the same on every continent ■ Why waiting to be offered an opportunity fails 90% of the time Chapters: 00:00 From the Italian Army to NEOM and NATO 03:30 What people want from a leader, on every continent 04:36 Public sector vs private: the same decisions, different drivers 07:12 Robotics, security and the trends worth watching 10:17 The real job of a CTO is not technical 13:25 Three rules for future CTOs (and a bonus one) 16:01 The book: "City by Mistake" 17:27 Alessio's superpower Follow Alessio LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alessiogarofalo1985/ Alessio's book "CTO by Mistake": https://www.amazon.com/CTO-Mistake-Survival-Alessio-Garofalo/dp/B0C4MVSHHY Road to CTO. New episode every Wednesday. Hosted by Kuba Lang. Kuba on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kubalang/ All platforms: https://roadtocto.com Want to share your road? hello@roadtocto.com

  2. 4d ago

    Road to CTO: Trailer

    Welcome to Road to CTO - the podcast designed for software engineers, tech leads, and aspiring engineering leaders making the transition from writing code to steering technical strategy and leading teams. In this trailer, we dive into what this show is all about: Real-world insights on technical leadership and scaling engineering teams.Navigating trade-offs between business goals, architecture, and tech debt.Lessons learned from experienced CTOs and tech founders. Subscribe now to never miss an episode as we unlock what it really takes to become a successful CTO. Website: roadtocto.com

Trailer

About

Short stories of how technology leaders got to where they are. One CTO, one journey, no filler. New episode every Wednesday. Road to CTO is a short-format podcast for engineers and engineering managers aiming for the CTO role, and for tech leaders curious how their peers got there. Each episode is one conversation about the path, the turning point, and the lessons learned along the way. Guests range from first-time startup CTOs to engineering leaders at global scale-ups. Hosted by Kuba Lang, CEO of Cyrantos, who has spent the last decade helping companies hire technology leaders. Want to share your road? Reach out at hello@roadtocto.com.

Information

  • Creator
    Kuba Lang
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    2
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Kuba Lang
  • Show Website
    Road to CTO