Chief Technology Officer

pstrongPETE TONG DJ ACADEMY /strong /ppstrongChief Technology Officer (CTO) /strong /ppemRome, Italy · Full time · On site / hybrid · Reports to the CEO · Builds and leads the technology team (target ~5 to 6 engineers by End 2027) /em /ppstrongAbout Pete Tong DJ Academy /strong /ppPete Tong DJ Academy (PTDJA) is the career platform for the next generation of DJs and producers. Founded with Pete Tong and Carl Cox and a roster of world class artists, we combine structured education, community and real career opportunities in one subscription, serving members in more than 140 countries. We have just raised to scale, and our mission is to empower one million artists. /ppstrongThe role /strong /ppWe are hiring a CTO to own the platform behind PTDJA and turn it into a product members love and competitors cannot copy. Today we run a modern, integrations first stack: a community campus, subscription billing, CRM and automation. Your mandate is to evolve it into our proprietary product machines: artist pages, a release manager, a gig finder, an AI feedback engine and a personalized member journey, while building the data platform (event tracking, warehouse, predictive analytics) that powers every growth and retention decision we make. You report to the CEO, inherit a lean web/IT function, and hire the founding engineering team. /ppstrongYour north star /strong /ppShip fast, build only what differentiates, and make every member feel the product knows them: reliability up, proprietary features live, and one trusted data platform behind every decision. /ppbr / /ppstrongWhat you will own /strong /pullistrongPlatform architecture and the integrations first stack: /strongcommunity campus, subscription billing, CRM and marketing automation, website and funnels, and the glue between them. /lilistrongThe proprietary product roadmap: /strongartist profile pages, release manager, gig finder and event tools, a points and unlocks journey, and the feedback machine. /lilistrongThe data platform: /strongevent tracking design, BigQuery warehouse, product analytics (Mixpanel), and predictive churn and LTV models, one source of truth serving the growth and retention teams. /lilistrongApplied AI in production: /strongAI feedback on student mixes and tracks, AI first customer care, and personalization, pragmatic LLM products with real users and measured quality. /lilistrongSecurity, GDPR compliance, uptime, vendor management and the technology budget. /strong /lilistrongBuilding and leading the engineering team: /strongweb/IT (in place), a data/BI engineer, full stack product engineers and an applied AI engineer, hired by you. /li /ulpstrongKey objectives (first 12 months) /strong /ppstrongData foundation /strong /ppShip the event tracking + warehouse + predictive layer as the company's single source of truth /ppstrongProduct machines /strong /ppTake the first proprietary features (artist page, release manager) from concept to live /ppstrongAI in production /strong /ppLaunch AI feedback and AI first support with measured quality and adoption /ppstrongBuild the team /strong /ppHire the founding engineers and set a fast, pragmatic engineering culture /ppbr / /ppstrongRequirements (must have) /strong /pullistrong8+ years in software and product engineering, /strongwith at least 3 years leading engineers (CTO, VP or Head of Engineering at a startup or scaleup). /lilistrongYou have shipped consumer facing products /strong(subscription, app, marketplace or platform) with real users and revenue, not only internal or enterprise systems. /lilistrongBuy over build judgement: /stronga track record of assembling SaaS building blocks (billing, community, CRM, automation) and building custom only where it creates advantage. /lilistrongModern web stack fluency /strong(for example TypeScript, React, Node or similar), and you still read, review and occasionally write code. /lilistrongData platform ownership: /strongyou have designed event tracking and owned a warehouse plus product analytics stack that a business actually ran on. /lilistrongAI shipped to production: /strongat least one LLM or ML feature live with real users, and you can explain how you evaluated its quality. /lilistrongSmall team, fast cycles: /strongcomfortable being hands on with 2 to 6 engineers and no platform team around you; br / cost aware by instinct. /lilistrongFluent English (working language). /strongBased in Rome or willing to relocate; br / able to work on site / hybrid. /li /ulpstrongNice to have /strong /pulliPassion for or background in music, audio or the creator economy (audio ML experience is a real plus). /liliEdTech, membership or community platform experience (Circle or similar ecosystems). /liliYou have scaled a product from thousands to hundreds of thousands of users. /liliExperience with subscription billing systems and payment/dunning flows. /liliWorking Italian (or willingness to learn). /li /ulpstrongWhat we offer /strong /pulliA rare chance to build the platform behind a category defining brand in electronic music, reporting to the CEO. /liliReal ownership: the architecture, the roadmap, the team and the budget are yours. /liliCompetitive compensation with a performance bonus tied to clear KPIs, and upside for the right person. /liliA creative, ambitious team, a world class artist network, and members whose careers your product helps launch. /li /ulpbr / /p