CTO Team Building & Technical Leadership 2

Question 1

A CTO notices senior engineers are hoarding knowledge and not mentoring junior staff. What is the most effective structural intervention?

Accepted Answer

Create a formal mentorship program with defined goals and recognition tied to it

Answer

A formal mentorship program with recognition incentivizes knowledge sharing by making it a valued, rewarded behavior rather than an imposed burden.

Question 2

When scaling an engineering org from 20 to 100 engineers, which team topology model best maintains delivery speed?

Accepted Answer

Stream-aligned teams with platform and enabling support teams

Answer

Stream-aligned teams (from Team Topologies) reduce cognitive load and hand-offs, maintaining fast flow as the org scales.

Question 3

A principal engineer consistently delivers excellent code but creates conflict in design reviews, dismissing others' ideas. As CTO, what is your first action?

Accepted Answer

Have a direct private conversation addressing specific behaviors and their impact

Answer

A private, direct conversation with specific behavioral feedback is the appropriate first step before escalating to formal processes.

Question 4

Which metric best indicates whether a technical team has psychological safety?

Accepted Answer

Frequency of team members raising concerns and proposing improvements

Answer

Amy Edmondson's research shows teams with psychological safety frequently voice concerns, take risks, and propose changes without fear of reprisal.

Question 5

A CTO is building a distributed team across three time zones. What single practice has the highest impact on team cohesion?

Accepted Answer

Async-first communication with documented decision-making processes

Answer

Async-first communication with documented decisions ensures all time zones participate equally and creates a searchable knowledge base.

(CTO) Certified Chief Technology Officer Practice Test

(CTO) Certified Chief Technology Officer Practice Test

CTO Team Building & Technical Leadership 2