Top 10 CTOs to follow: who shapes modern technology
The names of big companies and hottest startups are everywhere in the news. We follow every update, discussing and sharing it on social media — the publicity of brands is enormous. Which is not much you can say about people, who bring these companies to their technological excellence — CTOs.
Yes, Chief Technology Officers most often stay behind the spotlight (maybe, with few exceptions of Microsoft CTO, Kevin Scott, and Amazon CTO, Werner Vogels) doing the hard work of bringing innovation to the market. It’s shame though since these people have so much to tell about technology implementation and business digitalization. To change the situation, we decided to create the list of CTOs to follow on social media, based on their LinkedIn and Twitter activity. If you are interested in what does a CTO do in a big corporation or how to become a CTO, what can be better than the experience of the best minds in technology? Let’s start then.
Please, note: it’s not a rating of CTOs. There are many great CTOs (Tesla CTO, JB Straubel, or Uber CTO Thuam Pham) whose impact on technology is enormous but they don’t post on Twitter or LinkedIn that often. Our goal is to find most regularly updated accounts, the ones, where you can frequently receive tech insights.
Top-CTOs to follow in social media
David Heinemeier Hansson (Creator of Ruby on Rails, Founder & CTO at Basecamp)
David Hansson is definitely a man of many talents. He is not only famous for developing a popular framework Ruby on Rails but also for car racing! Yes, that’s exactly how the famous CTO at Basecamp spends his free time, not forgetting to regularly update his Twitter.
So, what will you find on a profile of a renown framework creator? For one thing, he consults young startupers (yes, a popular CTO finds time to hang out with followers). Also, he provides tons of expertise on web development and enterprise digitalization.
Mark Russinovich (CTO of Microsoft Azure)
https://twitter.com/markrussinovich
Can one person find time to do everything? Yes, if this person is Mark Russinovich. One glance on his social media account is enough to understand the magnitude of his tech impact. The CTO of Microsoft Azure and the author of many bestselling books like Rogue Code, Trojan Horse, and Zero Day, he finds time for regular Twitter updates as well. Mark posts updates on Windows, gives insider information on CTO responsibilities in Microsoft, shares event reviews and expertise on cybersecurity. Moreover, he manages to regularly talk to his followers, answer questions and retweet their publications.
Ruben Spruijt (CTO at Frame, Microsoft MVP, Citrix CTP, and VMware vExpert)
Ruben’s Twitter and LinkedIn updates are a real treasure. Not only he shares his experience of working as Chief Technology Officer at Frame, a newly founded cloud platform, but also collects all best industry updates. Both on Twitter and Linkedin, Ruben does his weekend ‘top blog picks’ where he gathers best websites and publications for developers and CTOs to read. He gives a valuable insider perspective on technology updates and events, shares his expertise as a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional, and gladly answers questions.
Gerri M. Flickinger (EVP/CTO of Starbucks)
https://twitter.com/gmflickinger
Gerri M. Flickinger is an inspiring example of successful women in tech. In 2015, she joined Starbucks not to become just the CTO of the company, but the first CTO of the company. Gerri is constantly on cutting-edge of technology, cooperating with tech giants like as Google and Adobe. The best part is, she shares updates on all her innovative projects on Twitter and LinkedIn, providing her followers with tons of inspiration.
Greck Brockman (Former CTO of Stripe, co-founder and CTO of Open AI)
On his LinkedIn account, Greg Brockman describes himself with four words: ‘I love to build’. Coding is his passion, and he is happy to share the exciting journey of creating technology.
His Twitter updates are all about exploring the joy of writing innovative code, making solutions other people haven’t even thought of.
If you are interested in Artificial Intelligence, his account is a must-follow. Where else can you find that many insider updates on robotics — and with such an incredible graphic demonstration!
Solomon Hykes (Co-founder of Docker, formerly known as Dotcloud)
https://twitter.com/solomonstre
On the Twitter profile, Solomon describes himself as ‘entrepreneur and hacker’. Writing about him, Forbes used a phrase ‘The Godfather Of Software’s Container Craze’. No wonder, Hykes has so many things to share with his followers, since his legacy is quite impressive. A member of the famous Forbes ’30 under 30’ list and a co-founder of Docker, he constantly shares the insider routine of the development team, provides expertise on container-based development.
Susie Wee (CTO of Cisco)
The head of Cisco DevNet Innovations, Susie Wee works on developing an online community for software engineers with 80 000+ active users. She is indeed one of the greatest minds in technology which is undoubtedly proven by her achievements and experience. 15 years as a researcher and later as CTO at Hewlett-Packard, the member of Technology Hall of Fame, and now a CTO of Cisco, Susie shares her expertise on software development, does detailed event reviews and publishes tips on NetDevOps.
Lauren Mosenthal (CTO at Glassbreakers, software engineer, UX research and interaction design)
https://twitter.com/laurenmosenthal
Lauren Mosenthal’s Twitter account is a great source of the latest technology and design update. While writing this article, I actually spent twenty minutes scrolling her feed — it’s so good! If you’d like to be updated on technology updates, this is definitely the right place to go to. As a CTO at Glassbreakers, Lauren has gorgeous tips on UX-design and software development. She also provides great expertise on management own startup, based on her own experience.
Paul Daugherty (Chief Technology & Innovation Officer in Accenture)
The Accenture’s chief technology officer, Paul Daugherty is implementing cutting-edge innovative solutions in Accenture Labs, leading the team of company developers and engineers. In the Twitter profile, he shares updates from Innovation Forum, TechVision, and many others. With profound expertise in AI and Blockchain, Paul shares rare insights and insider perspective on latest worldwide innovations. He is a true opinion leader — best development professionals participate in his threads. Only these discussions between front-runners are already a good reason to follow his Twitter.
Chris Wolf (VP & CTO, Global Field and Industry at VMware)
As the CTO at VMware, Chris Wolf is responsible for implementation of innovative technologies, including IoT and Cloud. As a former Research Vice President at Gartner, he does a good job in providing strong analytical points regarding latest IT-trends. As if all of the mentioned above wasn’t enough, Chris also gives super-inspiring insights on VMware development routine. So if you want to read all there is to know about cloud services and digital workspace infrastructure, his account is definitely a match.
What unites all technology front-runners is their deep passion for development and innovation. They think ahead, solve global problems and make a difference. Tech advancements don’t appear just by themselves, it’s these people who make it possible.
