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Startups – How to Build Out
        Your Early Team

Lessons from Both Sides
of the Table

 Mark Suster

 Startup Grind, February 2013

 @msuster
 Ex software developer
                            (‘91)

                           BuildOnline
                            (’99)

                           Koral /
Both Sides Of The Table
                            Salesforce.com (’05)

                           VC at GRP Partners
                            (‘07)
When You First Start

  “Co Founders”
My Priorities When Funding Early-Stage


           Product
  Market

                     Team
Why is the Team So Important?




                                 Departures
                                 Departures
                                   Staff
                                    Staff
   FF
En undin
 En undin                                                              r
  vvrr
   i i oo gg
        nm                                                         meer
                                                                 toom n
         nmeen
            nt t                                             Cusstctioon
                                                              Cu a cti
                                                              Reea
                                                               R
                            Shit happens.
                             Shit happens.
                             Great teams
                              Great teams
                               handle
                                handle
                           adversity better
                            adversity better


                                                 AA
                                               M bblil
                                                M ii
                     onn
                                 Disasters
                                 Disasters




                 tiitio                         oo tiy
                                                  nn ty
               ti                                  ee too
                                    PR




             eet                                    titi t
                                    PR




            pp                                        zeze
           m
         oom
        CC
The Co-founder Mantra is a Sacred Cow in Silicon
           Valley – I Believe It’s Overplayed




http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2011/05/09/the-co-founder-mythology/
The Reality is That Over Time Many Founders Fight
Huge Premium for Taking First Leap. Can Hire
Cofounders with Large Equity & Keep Creative Control
But I Know You’re Going to All Want Co-Founders So
    Just Make Sure You Understand Prenuptials




http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2009/08/18/founders-ownership-and-stock-options/
And Be Careful About Having Too Many Co-Founders:
     It’s the Largest Dilution You’ll Ever Face
I Think VCs Care More About Not Having a Single-
 Point-of-Failure than Exact Cofounder Founding
              Situation or Economics
Seed to A

“Building the Early Team”
Configuration of My Ideal Founding Team: CEO
                  Plus 4-5 Engineers
                                                                 Financially numerate
                                                  CEO
                                                   CEO           Product management
                                                                 Ability to lead / hire



                           CTO //
                            CTO
                           Senior
                            Senior
                          Architect
                           Architect




       eng
        eng                   eng
                               eng                   eng
                                                      eng


http://www.quora.com/Startups/What-would-the-ideal-web-technology-start-up-team-be-composed-of
Pet Peeves for Me

       Don’t outsource your tech development

       Don’t have a consulting firm build your core product

       Don’t have tons of business people before you have
        product completed

       Don’t overplay your advisory board. (I just care about
        your investors & management)



http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2009/10/12/should-your-startup-have-an-advisory-board/
Don’t Hire People All Like Yourself. Diversity
          in Startup Teams Matters
Product Management: One of Most Underrated
         but Important Skills in a Startup


          design //
           design                      PM
                                        PM                  customer
                                                             customer
            eng
             eng

 Solve functional problems    Capture requirements

 Architecture                 Test value / determine
                                whether customer will pay
 Performance
                               Competitor reviews
 Which tech stack to use?
                               Prioritizing roadmap
 Usability / process flows
Many Investors Will Tell You to Bring on
   Experienced Team Early. Don’t.
Hire People Who Punch Above Their Weight Class




http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2011/03/17/whom-should-you-hire-at-a-startup-attitude-over-
aptitude/
Your First Sales Reps Should Be Evangelical &
         Consultative (versus relationship managers)




                                                        Not
                                                        Not




http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2010/10/12/startup-sales-why-hiring-seasoned-reps-may-not-work/
http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2010/04/08/journeymen-mavericks-superstars-understanding-salespeople-at-startups/
Engineering needs three distinct management skills:
      people, process, & technology leadership




http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/want-to-know-difference-between-a-cto-and-a-vp-of-engineering/
Many Startups Have Too Many C’s. They Are Usually a
Fudge For Co-Founders to Feel Good About 1 Founder
                  Becoming CEO




http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2011/09/12/why-your-startup-doesnt-need-a-coo/
http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2011/09/17/further-thoughts-on-startup-operations/
Functional Responsibilities Help Better Divide
         Work & Make People Accountable.

                                   CEO
                                    CEO




    VP
     VP          VP
                  VP       VP
                            VP              VP
                                             VP         VP
                                                         VP        VP
                                                                    VP
Engineering
 Engineering   Product
                Product   Sales
                           Sales          Marketing
                                          Marketing   Finance
                                                       Finance   Biz Dev
                                                                  Biz Dev




 I am reluctant to see “president” or “COO”
A to B Round
(when you’re ready to
        scale)
Most Founders Get Bogged Down in Minutiae. You
  Can Get Huge Benefit from an Office Manager who
                Doubles as an Admin




http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2011/10/28/the-controversial-first-role-to-hire-after-your-a-round/
Hire a VP of Finance – Look for Somebody Who Can
    Help with Ops, Legal, HR, Office Space, etc
Board Construction
       Limit number of VCs on the board
       Be very careful about board observers. They are the
        equivalent of board members.
       Limit management officially on the board – makes
        changes over time too difficult.
       You can assign your founder seats to startup ceos if
        you’re worried about control (you control seat)
       Strong industry independents on board – but make
        them write small checks to be committed.

http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2009/10/14/when-the-board-of-a-startup-votes-theres-a-problem/
http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2012/08/16/rethinking-board-observers-the-role-of-the-silent-observer/
http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2012/08/15/should-you-really-sit-on-other-boards-when-youre-a-startup-founder/
</Good Luck>

Mark Suster

Startup Grind , February 2013

@msuster ; BothSidesoftheTable.com

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Final startup grind

  • 1. Startups – How to Build Out Your Early Team Lessons from Both Sides of the Table Mark Suster Startup Grind, February 2013 @msuster
  • 2.  Ex software developer (‘91)  BuildOnline (’99)  Koral / Both Sides Of The Table Salesforce.com (’05)  VC at GRP Partners (‘07)
  • 3. When You First Start “Co Founders”
  • 4. My Priorities When Funding Early-Stage Product Market Team
  • 5. Why is the Team So Important? Departures Departures Staff Staff FF En undin En undin r vvrr i i oo gg nm meer toom n nmeen nt t Cusstctioon Cu a cti Reea R Shit happens. Shit happens. Great teams Great teams handle handle adversity better adversity better AA M bblil M ii onn Disasters Disasters tiitio oo tiy nn ty ti ee too PR eet titi t PR pp zeze m oom CC
  • 6. The Co-founder Mantra is a Sacred Cow in Silicon Valley – I Believe It’s Overplayed http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2011/05/09/the-co-founder-mythology/
  • 7. The Reality is That Over Time Many Founders Fight
  • 8. Huge Premium for Taking First Leap. Can Hire Cofounders with Large Equity & Keep Creative Control
  • 9. But I Know You’re Going to All Want Co-Founders So Just Make Sure You Understand Prenuptials http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2009/08/18/founders-ownership-and-stock-options/
  • 10. And Be Careful About Having Too Many Co-Founders: It’s the Largest Dilution You’ll Ever Face
  • 11. I Think VCs Care More About Not Having a Single- Point-of-Failure than Exact Cofounder Founding Situation or Economics
  • 12. Seed to A “Building the Early Team”
  • 13. Configuration of My Ideal Founding Team: CEO Plus 4-5 Engineers  Financially numerate CEO CEO  Product management  Ability to lead / hire CTO // CTO Senior Senior Architect Architect eng eng eng eng eng eng http://www.quora.com/Startups/What-would-the-ideal-web-technology-start-up-team-be-composed-of
  • 14. Pet Peeves for Me  Don’t outsource your tech development  Don’t have a consulting firm build your core product  Don’t have tons of business people before you have product completed  Don’t overplay your advisory board. (I just care about your investors & management) http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2009/10/12/should-your-startup-have-an-advisory-board/
  • 15. Don’t Hire People All Like Yourself. Diversity in Startup Teams Matters
  • 16. Product Management: One of Most Underrated but Important Skills in a Startup design // design PM PM customer customer eng eng  Solve functional problems  Capture requirements  Architecture  Test value / determine whether customer will pay  Performance  Competitor reviews  Which tech stack to use?  Prioritizing roadmap  Usability / process flows
  • 17. Many Investors Will Tell You to Bring on Experienced Team Early. Don’t.
  • 18. Hire People Who Punch Above Their Weight Class http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2011/03/17/whom-should-you-hire-at-a-startup-attitude-over- aptitude/
  • 19. Your First Sales Reps Should Be Evangelical & Consultative (versus relationship managers) Not Not http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2010/10/12/startup-sales-why-hiring-seasoned-reps-may-not-work/ http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2010/04/08/journeymen-mavericks-superstars-understanding-salespeople-at-startups/
  • 20. Engineering needs three distinct management skills: people, process, & technology leadership http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/want-to-know-difference-between-a-cto-and-a-vp-of-engineering/
  • 21. Many Startups Have Too Many C’s. They Are Usually a Fudge For Co-Founders to Feel Good About 1 Founder Becoming CEO http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2011/09/12/why-your-startup-doesnt-need-a-coo/ http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2011/09/17/further-thoughts-on-startup-operations/
  • 22. Functional Responsibilities Help Better Divide Work & Make People Accountable. CEO CEO VP VP VP VP VP VP VP VP VP VP VP VP Engineering Engineering Product Product Sales Sales Marketing Marketing Finance Finance Biz Dev Biz Dev I am reluctant to see “president” or “COO”
  • 23. A to B Round (when you’re ready to scale)
  • 24. Most Founders Get Bogged Down in Minutiae. You Can Get Huge Benefit from an Office Manager who Doubles as an Admin http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2011/10/28/the-controversial-first-role-to-hire-after-your-a-round/
  • 25. Hire a VP of Finance – Look for Somebody Who Can Help with Ops, Legal, HR, Office Space, etc
  • 26. Board Construction  Limit number of VCs on the board  Be very careful about board observers. They are the equivalent of board members.  Limit management officially on the board – makes changes over time too difficult.  You can assign your founder seats to startup ceos if you’re worried about control (you control seat)  Strong industry independents on board – but make them write small checks to be committed. http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2009/10/14/when-the-board-of-a-startup-votes-theres-a-problem/ http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2012/08/16/rethinking-board-observers-the-role-of-the-silent-observer/ http://www.bothsidesofthetable.com/2012/08/15/should-you-really-sit-on-other-boards-when-youre-a-startup-founder/
  • 27. </Good Luck> Mark Suster Startup Grind , February 2013 @msuster ; BothSidesoftheTable.com