As technology becomes the engine of competitiveness, the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) is moving up the corporate ladder—from technical oversight to strategic influence. In regions like Iberia and Latin America, where diverse realities coexist and digital ecosystems are rapidly advancing, the CTO is expected to be the visionary who transforms technological disruption into sustainable growth and organizational resilience.
The landscape presents multiple challenges: modernizing legacy infrastructures without disrupting critical operations, navigating budget constraints, adapting to evolving regulatory frameworks, and meeting the expectations of increasingly digital and demanding consumers who compare experiences on a global scale. At the same time, unique opportunities are emerging: to achieve technological leaps by adopting cloud, AI, and automation without the burden of decades-old legacy systems; to capitalize on the expansion of sectors such as fintech, e-commerce, renewable energy, and digital health; and to harness young, adaptable talent communities with high learning capacity and flexibility.
Traditionally seen as "the person responsible for IT operations on the executive committee," today’s CTO has evolved into a true business architect — an agent of cultural transformation who dismantles silos and fosters collaboration between business and technology. Acting as a translator between domains, the CTO transforms complex trends into clear, actionable roadmaps. As the architect of resilience, they build systems designed to withstand economic shocks, supply chain disruptions, and cyberattacks. In their role as an innovation partner, they engage with startups, universities, and tech hubs to accelerate the delivery of disruptive solutions.
Just as the CTO moved from an operational profile to a digital and transformational leadership role in 2015, by 2025 they will establish themselves as an orchestrator of ecosystems—positioning the company within a web of collaborations where innovation is co-created with partners and clients.
Real-World Impact
In the short term, five strategic priorities define their agenda:
- Continuous modernization. Evolving platforms and processes without compromising daily operations.
- Resilience. Building architectures that ensure reliability and availability in an environment where disruption is the norm.
- IT/OT convergence. A key enabler in industries where the line between digital and operational is fading, unlocking unprecedented efficiencies.
- Future cloud infrastructure. Flexible, scalable architectures that optimize costs, preserve data sovereignty, and support new regulatory and competitive frameworks.
- Synthetic employees and agentic enterprises. The adoption of GenAI for agent generation breaks rigid processes and enables intent-driven corporate behaviors.
These priorities do not replace other critical focus areas—cybersecurity, AI, automation, or sustainability—but rather provide an integrated framework for them. In practice, they translate into measurable impact:
- In retail, unified data architectures personalize offerings for millions of customers in real time, boosting retention and lifetime value.
- In banking, migrating core systems to the cloud reduced costs and enabled faster time to market for new digital products.
- In energy, real-time IoT platforms optimized power distribution, reducing losses and advancing sustainability. In industrial sectors, the integration of IT and OT systems revolutionized plant operations by streamlining workflows, improving efficiency and minimizing unplanned downtime.
Similarities and Gaps
Iberia and Latin America share a language and cultural values, but differ in technological maturity, access to capital, and regulatory frameworks.
In Spain and Portugal, the CTO operates in an advanced environment with a strong focus on regulatory compliance. In Latin America, technology adoption is accelerating but continues to face challenges such as connectivity gaps, economic volatility, and regulatory diversity. This diversity calls for adaptive leadership—strategies that succeed in one country may require significant adjustments in another. Flexibility emerges as a critical leadership capability for navigating diverse regional dynamics.
Looking ahead, the CTO in Iberia and Latin America is expected to lead the creation of open business platforms, drive the adoption of GenAI and Agentic AI, deploy infrastructure-as-code solutions that scale within minutes, and ensure operations are sustainable by design — with carbon neutrality becoming a competitive requirement. The CTO’s ability to define a comprehensive cyber resilience strategy — from prevention to automated recovery — will be a critical differentiator in an environment where downtime is becoming increasingly unacceptable.
The CTO role is undergoing a profound transformation. The CTO must align technology, business, and organizational culture to succeed—combining vision with pragmatism. Many companies are already redesigning this role. The ‘T’ in ‘technology’ is becoming synonymous with ‘transformation.’ That’s why we increasingly see the CTO seated at the Board table—leading technological transformation from within the organization itself.
Are organizations giving the CTO the strategic space and influence needed to truly become the architect of that future? Contact me to share your answer: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robertogarciagodoy