How to Create an Awesome Founding Team – Start-up Lessons

Ideas are easy, implementation is hard – Key to Success is the Founding Team.

A common challenge faced by every entrepreneur is that they don’t have the bandwidth, skills to do everything that is required to build their start-up. One can outsource part of the work or hire employees, but that approach means more time and money to manage the work. Further, there are many more aspects related to the founding structure of a Start-up.

There are few decisions in business that are more important than deciding whether you'll be a lone wolf or make your pack with those that you may, or may not, already know.

Found or Co-Found?

Although there many reasons that going alone might sound appealing including but not limited to, owning more of the company, being completely in control of decision-making, create a personality of organization mimicking yours, and avoid ego pitfalls however there are considerably more reasons that should direct you otherwise. In case you have decided to go solo let’s have a closer look at a shortlist of reasons why you should reconsider a solo approach to your entrepreneurship journey.

1.     Starting a Start-up is hard. Very hard.

When you have an idea it’s easy to get excited after all, you’re going to create a unicorn and will have your picture on the cover page of Forbes, right? This is nothing but adrenaline flowing in your veins. But when you begin executing on your disruptive new idea you will realize that there is a lot of work to be done. While keeping your head above water isn’t fun, doing it alone is far more difficult.

2.     Distribute the load. And stress.

An enormous amount of work is required to launch a new Start-up, a truckload of work and with it stress is inevitable. It’s important to know that your family, friends or employees aren’t going to understand what you’re going through and share your load and de-stress you by understanding your mental state. It is always better to put yourself in a situation to share the stress with someone that you’re working with every day.

3.     You understand your business. Need someone else too

The number of details and intricacies to run a Start-up will be orders of magnitude greater than your wildest expectations. Problems are going to come up, you would need the perspective of another person that understands your business like you do to find a solution. You may have gone out and built a great advisory team, panel of experts and mentors however, they are not available 24X7. You need a perspective, a piece of advice, a support system available to you when you’ve had a "eureka" moment or are struggling to come up with a solution to a problem. That person can only be a co-founder.

4.     Split the initial expenses. Share costs in difficult times.

Starting a business can be expensive, initial fundraising without a product or prototype is really difficult unless of course you are born with a silver spoon. Having a co-founder will allow you to split the initial costs of getting a working product or prototype going, which will, in turn, help you to raise funds. Business never runs on a predefined script, there are times when things go downhill and cash flow are challenged, a co-founder can share the financial burden.

5.     Investors love teams. Not the one-man army.

If the founder burns him or herself out or gets hit by a bolt of lightning, both the company and investment are likely gone. Investors do see it as a reality. Unless it’s a truly otherworldly opportunity and all the stars align, it’s just not worth the risk to invest in solo entrepreneurs as an investor. Investors worry about a single entrepreneur getting overloaded, disabled or led astray, with no balancing and supporting partner, so raising funds is most difficult if you are alone.

If you are concerned about giving up equity? Don’t be. You need to decide if you rather own 50 percent of something or 100 percent of nothing?

Who should be your Co-Founder?

One you decided not to go solo, choosing a co-founder is not an easy task, and shouldn’t be taken lightly. While it is not as important as finding a life partner, it is also not very far from that. Remember, this is your livelihood.

It’s okay to be excited about getting your business started, but finding a co-founder is not something to rush. Finding a co-founder is more of chemistry than physics, consider the following traits that you should look for when selecting a co-founder.

1.     Having Complementary strengths.

In a relationship, you’re at your best when each person brings something to the table that complements and supports the other. If you know your strengths, it is easy to define your roles in the partnership, and that definition makes it easier to hold one another accountable as the business grows. To make correct decisions it is vital to have someone who can see things from a fresh perspective. You’ll challenge each other to consider things you wouldn’t normally see on your own. Further, a complementary approach is a perfect model for many Start-ups as it divides the load.

2.     A knowledge seeker.

An excellent co-founder is one who recognizes that they have a lot more to learn. This recognition that the individual doesn't know all, coupled with a willingness to un-learn and learn, will greatly contribute to growth in the right direction. The attitude of constant improvement is a strong value to have. Those who are best suited for a Start-up life are the ones ready to learn more and take the business beyond what they thought was possible.

3.     Share the same passion.

It is both important and hard to find a co-founder who recognizes your drive and passion and shares it. Uniting over a common interest, a reason to start a business is a typical way for founders to come together. A common passion of co-founders has propelled many companies to the top in their industry. So before you jump into business with someone else, ensure that they are committed to the same core values. It’s costly to share your company to someone who quickly loses interest or just has a limited motivation for getting rich.

4.     One with adaptability.

A successful business needs co-founders to be able to think on their feet and adapt to changing situations. In any business, you’re likely to encounter a fair number of variables, so find someone who won’t sweat on the small stuff and can be flexible when the going gets rough. A person is not a co-founder material if he/she is above handling the small tasks that need to be dealt with, if he/she becomes uncomfortable when tough decisions need to be made, or if he/she does not own up to achieve excellence. A co-founder should have the drive to push the company forward, and the humility to smile while doing the smallest of tasks.

5.     An energy dissipater.

Starting a business is hard work and guts to risk, it’s not for the faint of heart. While you might think you’ve got enough energy for the team, but you will need someone to backup that has at least as much, if not more, than you. Growth, scaling, and survival will take a lot of energy, and together you need to have sufficient to keep achieving set out goals. When you’re all but sucked out of energy and are exhausted, you want a co-founder with energy to spare who can pick not just the team but you too and get you motivated to keep running.

6.     An honest person with high integrity.

When someone is involved at the ownership level, there are things a person can do that might call the ethics and morals of a company into question. Those things don't have to be illegal to permanently damage your business, either. Not to forget there are so many ways for money to disappear and for people to be dishonest. Find someone who is honest and remember, finding the right partner isn’t just about skills: It’s also about character.

7.     Emotionally stable individual.

Every member of the core team of an organization including the co-founders needs to be able to maintain their cool in the face of the rough times that are common in the Start-up environment. Emotional stability involves the ability to identify and manage your own emotions and the emotions of others and is one of the key attributes of co-founders who interact with the world outside the organization and manage internal resources. Getting angry with vendors, employees and customers is detrimental to business. Those falling apart under the weight of stress can destroy relationships and send employees running.

The success of a Start-up relies on the co-founder’s ability to stay calm and not collapse under pressure.

You need to find a co-founder that you get along within and outside of work because building your business will be an around-the-clock endeavor.

Your co-founder must be someone you trust, who will take the pitfalls in stride and grow with you.

How to find Co-Founder?

Multiple heads are better than one in a Start-up. All co-founders of a Start-up need to share the passion, long-term opportunity and risk. The challenge is how to find that elusive perfect-fit co-founder. You must not expect someone else nor delegates to someone else task to find the partner for you since it’s really very much like finding a life partner. A version of the right chemistry, similar values, and passion for different people don’t match. Yet from my own years of experience in the Start-up community, here are some common steps that have worked for me and many other entrepreneurs.

1.     Create a very precise "job description" for that ideal co-founder.

Your friend circle and family is the least likely candidate and must be the last place to look for. Take a hard look and identify your own business strengths and weaknesses, and write down what skills and experiences would best complement yours. Seek input from seasoned investors, advisors, and peers.

2.     Look for a co-founder from a different background.

In today’s global economy, your ideal founder may be from anywhere in the world, from different geography, different domain, and business culture. The start-up ecosystem across the world is flush with smart people, many of whom may be ready and able to bring new energy, alternative perspectives, and creativity to your Start-up.

3.     Network to find co-founders.

Networking hot spots like industry conferences, entrepreneur forums, meetups, and business associations are useful for finding co-founders. Also activate your professional network including peers, advisors, and mentors with clearly defined expectations. Participate in Start-up ecosystem activities including those by universities, incubators, and accelerators. Another good place to look for is social media networking sites, it helps if you join entrepreneur groups on LinkedIn and Facebook, and interact with people who meet your criteria. Also join and explore sites such as StartupWeekend, StartupAgents, and CoFoundersLab. Also start a discussion on the wealth of business blogs frequented by entrepreneurs, where you can make your interests known.

4.     Explore common interests outside of work.

Co-founder chemistry and interests are best explored outside the work environment. Find some common hobbies or sports to get acquainted with value structure, attitude, mindset, and other soft skills before giving away part of your company. Business partnerships are long-term relationships, so take your time getting acquainted before closing the deal.

5.     Relocate to more likely geography if required.

Finding a high-tech co-founder in the middle of a rural province may be a long search. There’s a reason that Bangalore and Boston are the epicentres for high-tech Start-ups. These areas may have not just your next co-founder, but also a great ecosystem your Start-up needs for investors, employees, and customers.

6.     Define major milestones and key metrics for the Start-up together.

This process is the ultimate test of a true shared vision and working style. Building a Start-up is unpredictable work, and people get busy, so it is important to make people commit. If you can’t work as a team now and agree, it probably won’t happen ever.

7.     Negotiate and document roles early, including who has the final say in what.

Even all co-founder can be equal, there is only room for one at the top to make the final decision on hard issues. When everything feels good today, it might not be the same tomorrow, so don’t be hesitant in asking the hard questions of each other. Decide important issues like who will be the chief executive officer, how expenses would be approved, etc.

The success of your Start-up, finding the right co-founder is one of the most important things. Great teams persevere, and success breeds success.

About the Author

Deepak is a well-decorated technocrat honored as Top 10 Agropreneur 2019 by Future Agro Challenge and Technology Pioneer 2018 by World Economic Forum. He is also a member of the Expert Panel of the World Economic Forum on Digital Transformation. Deepak is working on using cutting-edge technologies including Machine-Learning, Blockchain, GeoSpatial, Computer-Vision, Drones and IoT for improving the profitability and productivity of marginal farmers on one hand and providing valuable insights to agriculture ecosystem participants on the other.

Initiatives undertaken by Digi Agri under Deepak’s leadership have Increased Productivity of Farmers, Reduce their Cost of Cultivation, Enhanced Quality of Output, Catalysed Sustainability of Cultivation and hence increased Income of thousands of farmers across multiple countries. Deepak is also advising various private, public and multilateral organizations in the agriculture and technology domain.

Deepak is a regular speaker of global repute with the honour of speaking at events of high repute including Global Agriculture Summit – Greece, African Innovation Week - Ethiopia, World Economic Forum Annual Meeting of Champions (Mini-Davos) – Tianjin, WEF ASEAN - Hanoi, WEF AFRICA – South Africa.

Deepak is also a published author of multiple books on Business and Technology.