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For Companies At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead the tech team, build core systems, and design scalable services.
- Company: Join a dynamic tech startup focused on innovation and growth.
- Benefits: Enjoy early-stage equity, high ownership, and a fast-paced work environment.
- Why this job: Shape foundational decisions and grow into a CTO role with supportive founders.
- Qualifications: Proficient in modern backend languages and experienced with cloud infrastructure.
- Other info: Ideal for engineers who thrive in greenfield projects and value code quality.
The predicted salary is between 43200 - 72000 £ per year.
We’re looking for a high-caliber engineer to join as a CTO. You should be deeply hands-on with code, technically opinionated, and capable of building production systems from scratch. This is a role for someone who enjoys execution but also has the potential (or ambition) to lead technology at a company-defining level.
What You'll Do
- Build and own core infrastructure and backend systems
- Design and implement APIs, data models, and scalable services
- Collaborate closely with founders on product direction and technical architecture
- Ship code fast, validate assumptions, and iterate
- Lay the groundwork for the future engineering team (tooling, processes, and architecture)
Core Technical Requirements
- Proficient in one or more modern backend languages (e.g. Python, Go, TypeScript, Java, Rust)
- Strong systems design skills — you can model real-world systems and reason about scale, latency, and trade-offs
- Comfortable building from zero — greenfield work doesn’t scare you; in fact, you prefer it
- Experienced with cloud infrastructure — AWS, GCP, or similar; IaC (Terraform, Pulumi, etc.) is a plus
- Competent with databases and data modeling — SQL and NoSQL, designing schema for scale
- Comfortable writing tests and deploying production systems — you care about code quality and reliability
Bonus Experience (Not Required, but Valuable)
- Worked at a Pre-Seed or Seed-stage startup through to Series A
- Built or deployed software used by enterprise customers
- Experience with applied machine learning or MLOps (not just academic or notebook-based work)
- Exposure to event-driven architectures, streaming systems (Kafka, etc.), or real-time data pipelines
- Frontend experience in React, TypeScript, or similar modern frameworks
What We Offer
- Early-stage equity and the opportunity to shape foundational decisions
- High ownership, zero bureaucracy — build what matters, fast
- Founders who value engineers, ship code, and work closely with you
- A role that grows with you — if you have CTO potential, you’ll have a path
You should apply if: You’re an engineer first — you solve problems through code, you like building things that work, and you’ve got the technical depth to back it up.
CTO - Tech Startup employer: Nihires
Contact Detail:
Nihires Recruiting Team
StudySmarter Expert Advice 🤫
We think this is how you could land CTO - Tech Startup
✨Tip Number 1
Network with other tech professionals and founders in the startup ecosystem. Attend meetups, conferences, or online webinars where you can connect with individuals who might have insights into the CTO role or even know about opportunities at startups like us.
✨Tip Number 2
Showcase your hands-on coding experience by contributing to open-source projects or building your own side projects. This not only demonstrates your technical skills but also your passion for engineering, which is crucial for a role like CTO.
✨Tip Number 3
Familiarise yourself with the latest trends in cloud infrastructure and modern backend languages. Being well-versed in these areas will help you stand out as a candidate who can lead technology decisions effectively.
✨Tip Number 4
Prepare to discuss your vision for building scalable systems and your approach to leading a tech team. Articulating your thoughts on architecture and team dynamics will show us that you’re ready for the responsibilities of a CTO.
We think you need these skills to ace CTO - Tech Startup
Some tips for your application 🫡
Tailor Your CV: Make sure your CV highlights your technical skills and experience relevant to the role of CTO. Focus on your proficiency in backend languages, systems design, and any experience with cloud infrastructure.
Craft a Compelling Cover Letter: In your cover letter, express your passion for building production systems from scratch. Mention specific projects where you've demonstrated your ability to ship code quickly and iterate based on feedback.
Showcase Leadership Potential: Even if you haven't held a formal leadership position, highlight instances where you've taken initiative or led projects. Discuss how you envision shaping the future engineering team and processes.
Demonstrate Problem-Solving Skills: Include examples of complex problems you've solved through code. Discuss your approach to system design and how you've managed trade-offs in previous projects, especially in greenfield environments.
How to prepare for a job interview at Nihires
✨Showcase Your Technical Skills
Be prepared to discuss your proficiency in modern backend languages and systems design. Bring examples of past projects where you built production systems from scratch, as this will demonstrate your hands-on experience and technical depth.
✨Demonstrate Problem-Solving Abilities
During the interview, focus on how you approach problem-solving through code. Share specific instances where you validated assumptions and iterated on solutions, highlighting your ability to ship code quickly and efficiently.
✨Discuss Collaboration with Founders
Since this role involves close collaboration with founders, be ready to talk about your experience working with leadership teams. Emphasise your ability to align technical architecture with product direction and how you can contribute to shaping the company's future.
✨Express Your Vision for the Future
Articulate your thoughts on laying the groundwork for a future engineering team. Discuss your ideas on tooling, processes, and architecture that can help scale the company effectively, showing that you have a long-term vision for the role.
