Building the Company
Founders, equity, hiring, board and leadership as the company grows.
Tech Entrepreneur
Idea
Find a problem worth solving and prove people have it. Where every first-time founder starts.
Core: start here
- Founder Equity SplitDividing ownership among co-founders, and why equal by default deserves thought.
- Co-founder AgreementA written agreement on roles, equity, vesting, decisions and what happens if someone leaves.
- Vesting ScheduleEarning equity over time, usually with a cliff, so departed founders don't keep it all.
1 more idea concepts
- Personal RunwayHow many months you can survive without salary before starting.
MVP
Ship the smallest thing someone will use or pay for, and set up the company properly.
- Contractors vs EmployeesFreelancers versus employees: cost, control, legal risk and commitment.
- Startup AdvisorsExperienced people who advise in exchange for a small amount of equity, and how to pick them.
- Outsourcing DevelopmentHiring an agency or offshore team to build the product, and the risks for a startup.
Product-Market Fit
Get users who stay, pay and tell others; raise your first real round.
Core: start here
- Employee Stock OptionsRights for employees to buy shares at a fixed price, used to share upside.
- First HiresChoosing your first employees, who shape the culture as much as the product.
6 more product-market fit concepts
- Founder SalaryPaying yourself enough to live but little enough to extend runway.
- Shutting Down a StartupClosing a company responsibly: employees, investors, customers and legal steps.
- Co-founder ConflictDisagreements and breakups between founders, among the most common startup killers.
- Option PoolShares set aside for future employees, and why investors ask for it before they invest.
- Startup CompensationBalancing salary and equity when you can't match big-company pay.
- Founding EngineerAn early engineering hire with broad ownership and meaningful equity.
Growth
Make acquisition and revenue repeatable; hire, raise and build a board.
Core: start here
- Board of DirectorsThe group that oversees the company and the CEO on behalf of shareholders.
- Founder as CEOThe CEO's real job: vision, people, money and decisions nobody else can make.
- The CTO Role as You GrowHow a technical founder's job shifts from writing code to hiring, architecture and strategy.
3 more growth concepts
- Board MeetingsPreparing and running board meetings that help rather than perform.
- Company ValuesWritten principles that guide decisions when the founders aren't in the room.
- Letting People GoFiring and layoffs: doing them legally, quickly and humanely.
Scale
Run the company: organization, moats, new markets and exits. Repeat-founder territory.
- Hiring ExecutivesBringing in experienced leaders above early employees, and why it often goes wrong.