Your CTO Should Actually Be Technical

In this insightful piece, Aditya Agarwal argues that CTOs must be deeply technical to truly lead engineering teams, offering a nuanced exploration of why technical prowess is critical for making quality tradeoffs, commanding team respect, and driving technological innovation. The article provides a concrete framework for understanding how technical leadership translates into strategic decision-making, using real-world examples from Dropbox and Facebook to illustrate how "highly technical people very often have a deep passion for technology" that enables them to inspire teams and make critical architectural choices. Readers will gain a provocative perspective on why engineering leaders should not just manage, but deeply understand and excel at the technical craft.