Krasimir Kostadinov has been shaping the world of software development since 2004. As the CTO of Scalefocus, he leads strategy, innovation, and engineering excellence, turning accumulated knowledge into cutting-edge solutions.
Beyond the tech world, he’s fascinated by astrophysics, collects watches, and enjoys fun trivia. Let’s dive into his thoughts on leadership, technology, and the universe (both literal and digital).
Tech & Career
Your career has taken you from a developer’s desk to the CTO role. What’s been the most unexpected part of that journey?
Two children and a wife.
You’ve worked with a variety of technologies over the years. Is there one fundamental principle that guides how you approach engineering challenges?
A good engineer is the exact opposite of Maverick in Top Gun. Don‘t do, just think. Don‘t save yourself 5 minutes of reading stack traces by doing 3 hours of debugging. Also (old but still gold) on the topic of engineering challenges – if you want Windows performance on Linux, just type :(){ :|:& };: in the console and hit enter.
P.S. DO THIS AT HOME. Never in production.
What’s one common misconception about being a CTO?
They know everything about technology.
How do you balance innovation with the practical realities of business needs?
Budgets & ROI.
What’s a recent technology or trend that genuinely excites you?
Any technology I look into detail fascinates me – there are so many great and elegant solutions in everything we use (things like Seiko Spring Drive, Toyota‘s e-CVT) – recent battery developments, thorium reactors, some aspects of AI (analysis of unstructured data, small language models, protein folding etc.).
Leadership & Growth
You’ve moved through multiple leadership roles at Scalefocus. What’s been the biggest lesson you’ve learned?
Keep your ego in check & keep learning from everyone around you.
You often talk about fostering internal talent. What qualities do you look for in future tech leaders?
Leaders must be smart and wise. One will get them and the people they are responsible for out of any tough situation. The other will prevent them from putting their teams in tough situations altogether.
Smarts you can tell by people‘s answers, wisdom – by their questions. Also the ones that start by having a goal to be a leader are seldom leadership material.
Learn to follow so you can lead, but once you are a leader create leaders, not followers.
Beyond the Code
You’re passionate about astrophysics – if you could apply one software engineering concept to understanding the universe, what would it be?
Separation of concerns.
If you weren’t in tech, what would you be doing instead?
Trawling in the Mediterranean.
What’s a fun fact about you that most people wouldn’t expect?
I glow in the dark, but really, really faintly and my brain can hold up to 2.5 petabytes of data. The same is true about you.
Editor’s note: If you know Krasi, you are well aware that he doesn’t do well with blitz interviews, so read along for his full answers.
Krasi’s Blitz
Android or iOS?
I am a former Android developer, so I am a bit biased. As a CTO I like both OS-s – twice the revenue for the same functionality delivered.
Just don‘t send older iOS or Android devices ﺳ ﻻ ﻻ ﺍ ﺎ ﺕ ﻝ ﺍ ﻝ ﺏ ﻝ ﻝ, జ్ఞా, ري🇮🇹, ⚫️ or 𝖍𝖊𝖑𝖑𝖔̵̠̋ – I‘ll let you find out which text causes issues with which OS.
Seaside or Mountains?
Nature in all its beauty – seaside, mountains, desert, forest, plains, wetlands, tundra, caves, islands, valleys, lakes, rivers, volcanoes, coral reefs, hills, fjords, meadows, cliffs, waterfalls, canyons, deltas, bays, estuaries, geysers, hot springs, buttes, sandbars, dunes, badlands, coulees, countryside, basins, marshes, ridges and scrublands.
I am still to visit – jungles, the savanna, pampas, glaciers, mangroves, rain pools, coal seams, crater lakes, steppes, marshes, foggy moors and much, much more.
Dogs or Cats?
I like both and (according to the Little Prince have been tamed by both). I love dogs, but cats are so much easier to live with.
Coffee or Tea?
Coffee, although I am not a coffee aficionado – I would even drink Nescafe.
Early Bird or Night Owl?
I have small children – so I say yes.
PS or Xbox?
You have misspelled PC and I don’t know the other one – Xbox – sounds like what Elon Musk might name his next truck.
