ABOUT THIS EPISODE
In this conversation Ben speaks to the Founder and Chief CTO Coach at CTO Craft, Andy Skipper. Andy was previously the CTO at MADE.com, Lumitrix and Comic Relief before founding CTO Craft.
After finding himself in a CTO role at a pre-product startup almost by accident, Andy had his first experience of burnout. Experiences like this early on in his career seem to have fuelled Andy to look for opportunities that save people from similar circumstances, highlighting red flags to people early so they don’t have to learn through experience.
They discuss self-awareness, Andy’s early influences and the value of professional coaching, as well as Andy’s own experience with chronic illness and how that’s affected how he uses his energy effectively.
Andy has a deep care for individuals, learning from environments where he wasn’t able to access the support he needed to grow. He now places a lot of focus on helping to improve the individuals within a team, not the entire unit, putting more emphasis on a coaching style of leadership, driven by empathy.
Their conversation is highly personal - and by going so deep - they uncover truths all of us experience - but don’t articulate.
Multiple people recommended Ben speak to Andy - and after listening - he thinks you’ll see why
