Career Path Of A CTO At Scholarly
Kelly, a Loyola Marymount University graduate with degrees in film production and computer science, gained early experience through internships at various software companies before co-founding a venture-backed startup. After its closure in 2015, Kelly joined Gusto as engineer number 20, witnessing its growth to 2,500 employees before transitioning to their current CTO role at Scholarly, demonstrating a career path marked by entrepreneurial ventures and significant contributions to scaling technology companies.
Career Exploration, Startup Experience, Software Engineering, Resilience, Leadership
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Kelly Sutton
CTO
Scholarly
Loyola Marymount University
N/A
Computer Science
Education, Technology
Product / Service / Software Development and Management
Honors Student
Video Highlights
1. Kelly pursued dual degrees in film production and computer science, demonstrating a diverse skillset.
2. She gained valuable experience through internships at various software companies, highlighting the importance of practical experience.
3. Her entrepreneurial journey, including starting and eventually closing a venture-backed company, showcases resilience and learning from setbacks.
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path, starting with your experiences in college? What internships or jobs did you have before your current role?
I graduated from Loyola Marymount University in 2010 with degrees in film production and computer science. During the summers, I interned at software companies.
I interned at several software companies in the Pacific Northwest and one in New York City. None of them exist anymore, which is typical for startups, but I learned a lot.
I also participated in improv in college, which was a significant part of my time at LMU. After graduating, I moved to New York City and worked for a startup where I had previously interned.
About a year in, I decided to start a company with a colleague. We left that company, raised venture funding, and operated for three to four years.
We never quite found product-market fit, but we learned a lot. We had to shut the company down in 2015. Afterward, I moved to San Francisco to work for Gusto, a company that provides payroll, benefits, and HR for small businesses in the US.
I was engineer number 20 there and stayed until the company grew to about 500 software engineers and 2,500 employees. Then, I left to start the company I am currently running.