I actually have worked with two coaches over the past six years who’ve helped me explore my very own tendencies as a pacesetter. I feel you would describe me in some ways as a “typical” founder: goal-driven, detail-oriented, dissatisfied with rules, processes and hierarchies.
And so, when Paul Graham’s recent contribution “Founder mode”, I used to be able to prefer it. I had even heard a version of Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky’s speech that he was referring to at a previous event, so the groundwork was laid for me to prefer it.
I didn’t prefer it. I feel the Y Combinator co-founder’s post presents a false dichotomy and I felt it was counterproductive to the discussion concerning the role of founders.
I like founders and I feel we bring really special things. We have the DNA that claims “the status quo is not good enough” and the willingness to place in the trouble to make things higher. And Graham’s post points to a trait I absolutely have: I do not lead over my subordinates, but as a substitute cultivate close relationships with great people across the corporate. If I would like to know something, I am going straight to the source. Passing information up and down the hierarchy results in bad results.
Management under scrutiny
The problem I actually have with the post just isn’t what it says about founders (which is primarily good), but what it says about managers (which is primarily bad). This line particularly is just incredibly damaging: “Among C-level executives are some of the most skilled liars in the world.”
Graham later explains that he’s talking concerning the tendency of such leaders to “manage up” – that’s, to get the specified result from their boss. To call this “lying” is unfair at best. People at every level of a company are taught to good at managing upwardsBecause it’s crucial on your personal success to have a boss who shares your perspective on what you might be working on. When managing upwards, you don’t have to lieYou work extra hard to display why your hard-won perspective is correct, to release budget, and to do whatever it takes to maneuver things forward. That’s exactly what you are paid to do.
But let’s leave that time aside for a moment. The meta-problem with this post is that it creates a false dichotomy between managers and founders. Founders have this innate magic, while managers are only power-hungry bureaucrats.
Indispensable C-level executives
I’ve now hired some pretty experienced C-level executives to hitch my team. And I fully realize that they’ve different innate tendencies than I do. I actually don’t think I’d be well fitted to any C-level job (apart from the one I actually have).
But I hired these people because they really have incredibly vital skills, experience and knowledge that I don’t have. And almost no founders have that.
Things like: How do you construct a worldwide sales team that consistently hits goals? How do you create a compensation system that scales to hundreds of employees worldwide? How do you assemble a team of a whole lot of engineers and product people to create a consistent and integrated product experience?
Why should a founder know the way to do something like this? In general, founders are people who find themselves really near the issues, and so they most frequently experience these problems “closest to the metal.” Not within the ranks of management.
And it turns on the market are literally vital things to find out about the way to do these difficult things. I do not know many firms which have grow to be hugely successful without hiring senior leaders to scale. It’s just… a part of the method.
What startup founders must do
There are two things that founders absolutely must but do it.
First, they should hire leaders with integrity, people who find themselves good people. Company culture is commonly strong, but in addition still evolving. Leaders have the chance to alter it once they join the corporate, and it’s worthwhile to hire individuals who will change it for the higher, in a way that’s consistent with the way in which you should see the corporate grow.
Second, they need to truly create a dynamic within the leadership team that brings out the very best in everyone. The best teams are diverse, and a team stuffed with founders feels like a nightmare. It’s often very difficult to maintain a team of senior leaders together whenever you’ve never managed people at that level before, but it might probably be done. This is what I devote a number of my time and a focus to, and my coach is invaluable in that.
If you might be a founder and feel like your leaders are manipulating you, I’d ask you simply two questions:
1. Have you hired the best people? Not all C-level executives are the identical.
2. Do you Your job to form a world-class team from these great leaders?
On my journey as a founder, I’ve found that the very best strategy to discover the basis reason behind an issue is commonly to look within the mirror.
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