Andreas
CEO & Founding Partner
from Belgium
CTO sounding board: leadership coaching for SaaS CTOs
Behind-the-scenes support by our team of CTOs in residence for your CTO or technical lead to enhance their skills, drive effective change, and grow their teams confidently.
In SaaS startups, CTOs wear many hats—from technical visionary to team architect, and often even a change manager. Balancing these responsibilities, especially while leading a growing team, can be a daunting challenge.
Our CTO sounding board service offers personalised leadership coaching designed specifically to help your CTO navigate these complexities, foster dynamic leadership, and lead their teams effectively through change.
Our service goes beyond typical consulting; it’s a partnership that helps CTOs grow as leaders. We combine hands-on mentoring with strategic insights to ensure your CTO is equipped not just with technical knowledge, but also with the interpersonal skills and business acumen required to thrive.
By providing ongoing support, we help CTOs make informed decisions, manage change with confidence, and effectively communicate their vision to both technical and non-technical stakeholders. And this can be done, if wanted, fully behind the scenes.
Why choose our CTO sounding board service?
The CTO role is more than just coding and technology decisions—it's about driving the technical direction, enabling growth, managing change, and keeping the team cohesive and motivated. Our CTO sounding board service is here to support CTOs in becoming not just technical leaders, but dynamic business leaders who are skilled in managing interpersonal dynamics and organisational growth. Here's why working with us makes a difference:
- Expert guidanceGain access to seasoned mentors who have successfully led technical teams through different stages of growth in dynamic and demanding environments.
- Tailored leadership coachingWe offer one-on-one leadership coaching tailored to address your CTO’s unique challenges, from scaling a technical team to implementing change management models
- Pragmatic, actionable advice We focus on giving your CTO actionable insights grounded in real-world experience, enabling them to make effective and timely decisions that drive both team and business growth.
- Confidential sounding boardBeing a CTO can be isolating. We provide a safe, confidential space for your CTO to share ideas, discuss challenges, and develop strategies—free from judgement.
More about the role of a CTO in a SaaS
Our approach to leadership coaching
Our approach is rooted in real-world experience. We pair your CTO with an experienced mentor who understands the complexities of leading a SaaS company, from technical scaling to navigating change management. Here are some of the core areas we focus on.
Change management models
Change is inevitable in the startup world. Whether it's scaling up, adopting new technologies, or pivoting to new business models, your CTO will need to lead their teams through change confidently. We guide CTOs in understanding and implementing effective change management models that help minimise resistance, improve team buy-in, and ensure a smoother transition during periods of change.
Dynamic leadership for a growing team
Leadership isn’t static—especially not in a growing SaaS startup. CTOs need to adopt a dynamic leadership approach, shifting their style as the company scales, new people join, and the organisational needs evolve. We help your CTO develop dynamic leadership skills so they can flex their style based on what the team needs at any given point in time.
Whether it's hands-on support for junior developers or stepping back to give autonomy to a senior engineering lead, dynamic leadership is about adaptability and being able to read the needs of the team. It ensures that technical leads are not only effective in their roles but also that they create an environment where individuals feel supported and motivated.
One-on-One leadership coaching
Our one-on-one leadership coaching sessions are designed to empower your CTO to lead with empathy and clarity. We focus on helping your CTO improve not just technical capabilities but also their ability to inspire, communicate, and drive positive outcomes for the business.
Coaching sessions are highly personalised, zeroing in on areas where your CTO feels challenged—whether it’s handling difficult team dynamics, presenting complex technical challenges to non-technical stakeholders, or improving their strategic decision-making capabilities. This kind of targeted, individual attention helps CTOs grow into well-rounded leaders who can handle whatever comes their way.
Improving interpersonal skills
Technical leadership is often as much about people as it is about technology. Interpersonal skills are crucial for a CTO to succeed, especially in a remote or hybrid setting where misunderstandings can easily arise. We focus on interpersonal skills like active listening, conflict resolution, and effective communication, enabling your CTO to foster a culture of trust and transparency within their team.
By enhancing interpersonal skills, we help your CTO build stronger relationships within the company—whether it's with developers, product managers, or even external stakeholders. This focus ensures that communication flows smoothly, teams work cohesively, and technical initiatives align with business objectives.
Aligning technical roadmaps with business goals
One of the common challenges we address through our CTO Sounding Board service is aligning technical initiatives with overall business goals. CTOs are often focused on building and scaling the technology but may struggle to communicate how their technical roadmaps align with the company’s strategic vision.
We help CTOs articulate the value of technical initiatives to other members of the leadership team, ensuring that both technical and non-technical stakeholders understand the importance of specific projects, whether it’s an infrastructure overhaul or a new feature release. This alignment ensures that technical initiatives are seen as valuable components of the company’s success.
Our in-house CTOs will be your sounding board
Key benefits of Our CTO sounding board service
Leadership Development
Equip your CTO with the skills and mindset they need to lead confidently, inspire their teams, and align technical priorities with business objectives.
Interpersonal Growth
Improve the CTO's interpersonal skills so they can become a more effective leader, capable of managing both the technical aspects of the role and the human dynamics.
Strategic Vision
Assist your CTO in crafting and communicating a clear technical vision that aligns with the overall business goals, fostering greater cross-functional collaboration.
Managing Change Effectively
Guide your CTO through implementing change management models that help the team adapt smoothly and minimize disruption.
Our leadership services explained by our CEO
Scroll to the video gallery to learn more about how we help startups
Client testimonials
Here's what people think about us
Lawfty: a nationwide network of vetted injury lawyers
CTO Coaching from madewithlove has been a game changer for me. Clive has helped me navigate the challenges we faced as we kicked off the rebuild of our application and doubled our team size. We also work on identifying my leadership style and ensuring team values are clearly dictated to my team. I wish I started sooner!
Elizabeth Rotunno (Director of Engineering)
Phished: Revolutionize the cyber awareness of your company
Madewithlove has been a fantastic partner for over two years. They helped us scale our team and build a future-proof platform that grows with our business. Their expertise in scalable architecture, pragmatic approach and overall professionalism has been key to our success. Highly recommended!
Arnout Van de Meulebroucke (CTO)
Helpper: a sharing economy platform for budget holders who need or are seeking additional support
In a short time, madewitloves interim CTO has noticeably improved how our development team works. The extensive experience and expertise have made our team more efficient and effective. In this way, our team managed to establish a solid foundation for future growth. The straightforward and expert advice on technical decisions, especially with complex issues, has been very valuable for our team. During a period of growth, this guidance has greatly helped us, allowing us to look to the future with more confidence.
Dries De Roeck (Product manager)
Our trusted clients and investors
How we work with SaaS companies
Our CTO sounding board service is tailored to the unique needs of SaaS companies and the challenges that come with scaling a technical team. We understand that no two companies are alike, so our mentorship and leadership coaching approach is always adapted to fit your specific situation.
We’ve helped companies grow by not just building better products but by building better teams. Our work involves guiding your CTO through everything from managing technical debt effectively to creating a culture of continuous improvement—ensuring that your engineering team isn’t just keeping up but thriving.
Must reads about CTOs in tech startups
Why founders need to care more about software licensing and SBOMs
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How to manage technical debt as part of your agile process
How to manage technical debt effectively to keep startups agile with strategies for documenting and prioritising technical debt, integrating it into your roadmap, and creating a culture of continuous improvement. Keep your codebase healthy and your team productive with these actionable tips.
How to minimise the impact of developer onboarding
Discover strategies to optimise developer onboarding, minimise costs, and improve time-to-market. Learn how to tackle challenges like code complexity, technical stack adaptation, knowledge transfer, and team integration while fostering a supportive and productive environment for new hires.
Let's discuss how we can help your CTO
Arrange a free, 30-minute call with Andreas (our CEO) to find out how we can help you or your CTO . There’s no commitment—we just want to understand your needs.
We’re getting booked up pretty quickly, so the sooner you get in touch, the sooner we can help you…