Wanted: Someone to Make My Life Easier

The job posting reads:

Hands-on Director/VP of Engineering

Looking for someone to build the engineering team for our fast-growing startup. Must be able to hire and inspire a high-performing development team, build the organization, and define new processes to support a larger team and a more complex product. Must be hands-on with our chosen technology stack and able to code at least 20% of the time. Should be able to grow as we grow, taking on more leadership while remaining a technical leader. Email CTO@mystartup.com with your resume and Github address.

It’s one of many that I see in the Denver area as overwhelmed CTOs try to clone themselves to support their company’s growth. With limited budgets and unlimited demands on their time, these leaders look for a “twofer” hire: someone who can lead the engineering organization without taking a seat away from a working developer.

At lunch with some local CTOs, though, the conversation around the table tells a different story:

“It feels like I’m spending all of my time interviewing when I should be coding,” says the CTO of a predictive analytics company, shaking her head. “I know that getting new people in the door will help in the long run, but my team is bottlenecked now. And the newbies have to be set up with new equipment…