The 14th CTO Colloquium: Denver, CO
The 14th CTO Colloquium: Strengthen Your Foundations
A two-day catalyst event
Dates: September 18–19, 2025
Venue for Both Days: Code Talent, located in River North
Address: 3412 Blake St, Denver, CO 80205
Great leadership begins with strong foundations.
The 14th CTO Colloquium is a two-day experience for CTOs who are ready to reinforce sustainable growth through clarity, consistency, and intentional leadership.
At the core of this event is the official launch of LIQUID: How CEOs & CTOs Unlock Flow and Momentum in Complex Systems, a new book by Etienne de Bruin, Kathy Keating, and Scott Graves. LIQUID introduces the CTO Sentinel, the foundation behind the CTO Levels framework, a powerful model to help technical leaders align with reality, assess their impact, and move forward with purpose.
Agenda
Day 1 – Thursday, September 18: Colloquium Talks (Denver)
This day will be filled with short, expert-led talks designed to spark reflection, with intentional pauses for breakout discussion and peer feedback. Nothing about this day is passive. It’s an exchange of ideas among experienced CTOs, like you.
Talk 1: Who Do You Need to Be as a CTO? (Kathy Keating)
This session dives deep into the often-overlooked truth: your leadership identity sets the tone for every system, team, and product you touch.
We will cover:
The importance of consistency in our industry.
Why we should stop resolving solved problems.
How our brand of leadership shapes everything we build and scale.
Talk 2: Strong Foundations Drive Success (Etienne de Bruin)
We unpack what assessments, such as the CTO Levels framework, reveal about your organization’s true foundation and why so many teams hit a ceiling not because of a lack of vision, but because of misalignment below the surface.
We’ll address:
What assessments reveal about a company's grounding.
Why strong foundations are essential to growth and revenue.
How the CTO Levels framework is being used to drive strategy and profitability.
Talk 3: Speaker TBA
Schedule:
3:00 – 3:30 PM: Welcome & Light Refreshments
3:30 – 4:15 PM: Who Do You Need to Be as a CTO? + Peer Breakout
4:15 – 5:00 PM: Strong Foundations Drive Success + Peer Breakout
5:00 – 5:30 PM: Break
5:30 – 6:15 PM: Talk 3 + Peer Breakout
6:15 – 6:30 PM: Closing Reflections
7:00 PM: Optional Networking Dinner
Day 2 – Friday, September 19: Forum, Lunch & Mini Golf
Sometimes, the best breakthroughs occur when you're not at your desk.
This day is intentionally designed to get you out of your head and into a deeper connection with yourself, your peers, and your leadership path.
Morning: Forum-Style Sessions
Step into small-group breakouts grounded in the proven 7CTOs Forum model. You’ll revisit Day 1’s insights through the lens of your own experience, tackle real-world leadership challenges, and walk away with fresh perspectives through peer-powered clarity.
Midday: Group Lunch (Denver – venue TBA)
Pull up a chair. Break bread with fellow CTOs in a relaxed, low-pressure setting to continue the conversations that matter. No small talk. Just real connection with tech leaders walking a path like yours.
Afternoon: Mini Golf at Puttshack
Yes, mini golf at Puttshack Denver. Because science, and life, tell us when we break routine, we unlock creativity. And when CTOs stop solving and start playing, big ideas often sneak in the side door. Expect laughter, connection, and a friendly competition to close out the Colloquium with levity and energy.
Why Attend
Reinforce the structural foundations of your leadership
Engage deeply with peers who understand your challenges
Explore a clear framework for assessing and growing your impact
Apply tangible insights to real-time organizational and personal decisions
Step back from daily noise to realign with what matters most
Registration
Ticket Sales Open June 3
Early Bird (until July 1): $149
Standard: $249