Michael Smith

Pioneer
DISC Type : dis

Chief Technology Officer at Imagemakers

Kansas City, Missouri, United States

Overview

Michael is the Chief Technology Officer at Imagemakers and the founder of RefactorOps, a consultancy focused on improving engineering delivery. With over 13 years of experience leading technology teams, including as Managing Director at VML, he specializes in turning chaos into clarity. He is also the author of "The Technical Leaders Field Guide".

Michael has a long history with Scouting, having previously worked as an Aquatics Director for the Boy Scouts of America. In this role, he managed a team of instructors and was responsible for teaching swimming and lifesaving skills, showcasing an early passion for leadership and mentorship outside of a corporate environment.

Unique fact: He created and shares free, "battle-tested" frameworks for technical teams, such as his Definition of Done and Scope Starter templates, to help them solve real-world delivery problems.

Personality Overview

Friendly But Fast

Dynamic But Sincere

Driven But Considerate

If they are convinced, they can become very strong champions for your product  They combine a unique set of diverse traits where they are fast and friendly but can slow down to be thorough when needed They have the unique ability to win both love and respect from their team (or outsiders)

Topics They Care About

Technical Leadership
Authored "The Technical Leader's Field Guide" and founded RefactorOps to provide workshops and training for engineering leaders on practical, predictable delivery.
AI in Development
He frequently posts about AI being a tool to commoditize coding, arguing that developers who effectively use AI will replace those who don't.
Scalable Delivery
His career focuses on solving delivery challenges at scale by implementing practical architecture and scalable processes over trendy tools or theories.

Media Appearances

Michael has no verified media appearances

Work History

10-2025
Chief Technology Officer at Imagemakers
5-2023 - 9-2025
Managing Director Technology at VML
10-2018 - 5-2023
Group Director, Technology | Solutions Architect at VML
11-2015 - 10-2018
Director Technology at VML
Aquatics Director at Boy Scouts of America

Education

Michael has no verified education history

More Information

Social Presence :

Prographics :

Exp : 10 Location : Kansas City, Missouri, United States Job Level : Leadership Designation : Chief Technology Officer at Imagemakers
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Insights For Selling To Michael

During A Call Or A Meeting

DO's

  • Ask them for a lunch or coffee once some rapport has been established
  • Build a trustworthy relationship while keeping the product center-stage
  • Keep your pitch focused on the impact but nurture the relationship too

DONT's

  • Avoid focusing only on the product or its ROI, keep building trust subtly
  • Don’t hesitate from asking questions or pushing them, but take a formal approach
  • Don’t be very informal during the early interactions even if they are being so themselves

When Cold Calling

When Writing An Email

While Negotiating & Closing

    The secret to closing fast with Michael is

  • Nothing less than a strong combination of proof of results, relationship and high levels of professionalism is effective with them.
  • Will you ever get a clear answer from Michael

  • They can say no while staying friendly, but can also be pursuaded to reconsider

Insights For Deal Planning

    How fast (or slow) will Michael move?

  • They are generally fast movers and can take quick decisions
  • Can Michael take some risk or not?

  • They have high risk-appetite but can get ahead of themselves once in a while. Observe carefully

You And Michael

Personality Compatibility


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