My Perspective on : Strengths and Weaknesses that Set Founders Apart

The success of a founder-led company has always fascinated me, especially because I know the challenges and rewards of building a business from scratch. I’ve experienced firsthand the ups and downs, from the spark of an idea to scaling it into a functioning, thriving entity. Recently, I came across an interesting research that explores the distinctive characteristics of founder CEOs and compares them to professional managers. While no two founders are the same, certain patterns emerge that help us understand what makes us different—and why those differences are both a strength and a potential weakness.

The Unique Strength of Founders

As a founder myself, I completely agree with the notion that founder CEOs are “spikier” than professional managers. Our strengths are amplified, but so are our weaknesses. The ability to envision something that doesn’t exist and the persistence to make it real is what sets founders apart. From my journey, I’ve seen that creativity and innovation are our greatest assets. When I founded insiderOne, it wasn’t just about launching a platform—it was about creating something revolutionary, something that hadn’t been done before. That’s the mindset a founder has, the ability to see what others might dismiss as impractical.

According to the research, 36% of founders are strong innovators. I’d say that innovation is not just about coming up with new ideas—it’s about thinking beyond the current frameworks and challenging the status quo. For instance, with insiderOne, I envisioned a platform that integrates AI in a way that forces people to rethink hiring and career development. It’s not just solving a problem; it’s reimagining how things can be done.

The Deep Emotional Investment

Founders don’t just run businesses—we live and breathe them. I’ve always felt that there’s a deeper emotional connection between a founder and their company. The research highlights how founder CEOs embody their company’s culture, often rallying the entire team behind a common purpose. This is something I’ve seen in my ventures. Whether it’s insiderOne or my previous startup, the culture is driven by the passion and energy of the founder. I’ve seen how that kind of leadership can inspire fierce loyalty and commitment, especially in the early stages when the future is uncertain, and success seems distant.

At the same time, that emotional investment can be a double-edged sword. We founders often have difficulty stepping back, delegating, or allowing others to take control. I’ve struggled with this personally—trusting someone else to take charge when the company is your brainchild can be one of the hardest things to do. This resonates with the research’s finding that many founders, myself included, often find it challenging to release control. I’ve learned, however, that scaling a business demands that we let go of some things, even if it feels counterintuitive.

Drive and Resilience

When I read that 76% of founder CEOs possess extraordinary drive and resilience, it struck a chord. As a founder, you have to be relentless. This isn’t just about working long hours but having the emotional resilience to bounce back from failures and setbacks. When I lost my father at 12, I had to learn to be resilient early on. That trait carried through to my entrepreneurial journey. When things go wrong—and they often do—it’s the founder’s drive that keeps the ship afloat. Founders are wired to keep pushing forward, even when others might give up.

Founders’ Blind Spots

However, this kind of relentless drive can sometimes make us blind to certain realities. The research points out that founders can be overly optimistic and may underestimate risks. I’ve fallen into that trap. When you’re building something from scratch, you almost have to believe in the impossible. But that belief can sometimes cloud your judgment when it comes to assessing potential pitfalls. It’s a balancing act—being optimistic enough to keep pushing forward while remaining realistic enough to avoid disasters.

The study also highlighted something I’ve personally experienced: delaying the decision to upgrade talent or let go of early team members. As founders, we often form deep connections with our first employees. They’re the ones who stood by us when the company was nothing more than an idea. However, as the company grows, it becomes clear that not everyone can scale with it. Letting go of these people is incredibly hard, and I’ve made the mistake of holding on too long in the past.

Bridging the Gap: Founder Mode vs. Manager Mode

One of the key takeaways from the research is that the future success of a company often depends on bridging the gap between founder mode and manager mode. Founders bring the vision, creativity, and emotional investment, but there comes a point where operational excellence is needed to scale the company. That’s where professional managers excel—they know how to implement processes and systems that keep things running smoothly. I’ve seen firsthand the importance of finding that balance.

Ultimately, what sets founders apart is our ability to think differently, take risks, and remain deeply invested in the success of our business. But as the research suggests, we also need to be aware of our limitations and bring in the right support to ensure that the company can thrive in the long run. It’s not about replacing founder mode with manager mode, but about finding a synergy between the two. I’ve learned that knowing when to pivot from one mode to another can be the key to sustaining long-term success.

Learnings that I could summarize:

1. Founder CEOs exhibit stronger strengths and weaknesses compared to non-founder CEOs, making them “spikier.”

2. Creativity, innovation, and vision are among the strongest traits of founders, with 36% of them standing out as exceptional innovators.

3. Founders are deeply emotionally invested in their companies, often embodying the company’s culture and rallying the team behind a shared vision.

4. Founders possess extraordinary drive and resilience, pushing boundaries and overcoming challenges with persistence.

5. The emotional attachment founders have to their businesses can make it difficult to delegate, leading to control and autonomy issues.

6. Founders tend to underinvest in operational governance and may delay upgrading talent or removing underperformers.

7. Many founders are overly optimistic, underestimating risks based on past successes.

8. Success lies in balancing founder-driven innovation with operational rigour, creating a hybrid model between founder mode and manager mode.

This balance is something I strive for in all my ventures.