Location: Frankfurt Germany (Onsite)

Employment Type: Full-time

About the Role

We are hiring on behalf of one of our clients for a Chief Technology Officer (CTO) who will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of a leading enterprise software platform serving the energy and utility industry. This is a highly strategic, hands-on technology leadership position reporting directly to the Executive Board. As CTO, you will define the company's long-term technology vision, own the target architecture, and drive the technical decisions that enable the organization to become the industry's ecosystem of choice. This role is ideal for an experienced technology executive who combines deep architectural expertise with executive-level strategic thinking. You will collaborate closely with senior leadership while remaining actively involved in architecture reviews, technology evaluations, proof-of-concepts, and critical engineering decisions. Unlike traditional engineering management roles, this position focuses on technical leadership through expertise, influence, and credibility rather than direct operational management.

Key Responsibilities

Technology Strategy & Enterprise Architecture

• Define and own the company's long-term technology strategy aligned with business objectives.

• Design and evolve the enterprise target architecture for a scalable cloud-native software ecosystem.

• Establish architecture principles, engineering standards, and technology governance across the organization.

• Drive platform, API, integration, security, and data architecture strategies.

• Evaluate emerging technologies and recommend strategic investments that create long-term competitive advantages.

• Lead build-versus-buy decisions and technology evaluations with clear business justification.

Architecture Leadership

• Lead architecture reviews for strategic initiatives and complex technical programs.

• Design scalable cloud-native platforms, distributed systems, and modern enterprise architectures.

• Guide engineering teams on architecture decisions, best practices, and technical standards.

• Develop proof-of-concepts and prototypes for critical technology initiatives where appropriate.

• Ensure architectural consistency across multiple products and engineering teams.

Cloud & Platform Engineering

• Define cloud architecture and platform engineering strategy using modern cloud-native technologies.

• Drive adoption of Kubernetes, container platforms, Infrastructure as Code, observability, automation, and DevOps practices.

• Guide decisions around API-first architecture, event-driven systems, microservices, and modern data platforms.

• Ensure platform scalability, reliability, security, and operational excellence.

AI & Innovation

• Evaluate and drive adoption of modern AI technologies, including Generative AI and agentic systems, where they create measurable business value.

• Identify technology trends and innovation opportunities that strengthen the company's product ecosystem.

• Support engineering teams in adopting modern development practices and AI-assisted software engineering.

Executive & Industry Leadership

• Act as the company's primary technology advisor to the Executive Board.

• Present technology strategy, investment proposals, and architectural direction to executive stakeholders.

• Represent the company in discussions with customers, partners, technology vendors, and industry organizations.

• Collaborate closely with Product Management, Engineering Leadership, and other business stakeholders to align technology with business priorities.

Requirements

Must Have

• Extensive experience as a CTO, Chief Architect, Head of Architecture, Distinguished Engineer, or similar senior technology leadership role.

• Proven ownership of enterprise architecture for large-scale software products, SaaS platforms, or complex distributed systems.

• Strong expertise in cloud-native architecture, preferably on AWS.

• Deep understanding of API-first architecture, distributed systems, event-driven architecture, and modern platform engineering.

• Hands-on experience with technologies such as Kubernetes, Docker, Infrastructure as Code, CI/CD, and cloud automation.

• Strong understanding of enterprise data architecture, security architecture, and software scalability.

• Experience defining long-term technology strategy while remaining technically hands-on.

• Demonstrated ability to influence engineering organizations through technical leadership rather than formal authority.

• Experience collaborating with executive leadership and presenting technology strategy at board level.

• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills.

• Fluent English, both spoken and written.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience within ERP, enterprise software, SaaS, or regulated industries.

• Experience designing platform ecosystems, API marketplaces, or partner integration platforms.

• Strong AWS expertise, including services such as EKS, Aurora, EventBridge, IAM, and related cloud-native technologies.

• Experience with open-source technologies such as Kubernetes, PostgreSQL, Kafka, Terraform, and observability platforms.

• Experience with Generative AI, AI platforms, or agentic systems.

• Experience supporting mergers, acquisitions, platform integrations, or enterprise transformation initiatives.

• Experience building technical communities and mentoring senior engineering leaders.

• German language skills are considered an advantage.

About Sperton

This Position is Sponsored by Sperton Global, a recruitment and consulting company with an international reach. We are committed to helping our clients achieve success in their hiring processes, finding the right people for the right positions.