> You will pick up all that biz stuff easily anyway, especially with all the other entrepreneurs out there to help you.
I give that a maybe (at best). I've seen many companies that had two tech people going at it that forgot the business in favor of the technology. They eventually had an amazing technology that nobody cared about. That, IMO, is the biggest risk of not having a dedicated biz guy.
> My suggestion would be to just find another tech person who can talk to a room of people and has some level of confidence.
I like the idea of finding somebody who was a tech person (in fact, I think it's a requirement for a tech startup), but their focus in the startup should be 100% business. Now, of course, every startup member is giving 150%, so that leaves time left over to help on the tech stuff. ;)
Depending on your startup, I think you need somebody with at least some experience in the sales and/or marketing. Engineers often trivialize these jobs, but they are not easy and can't be picked up in an afternoon with "Sales for Dummies."
I'm a former tech guy who moved into product management and then into my current role as the biz founder. I spend most of my time talking to potential customers, potential partners, doing research to make sure we have a competitive differentiator, and, on the side, building the website (we are a B2C product) and testing.
I give that a maybe (at best). I've seen many companies that had two tech people going at it that forgot the business in favor of the technology. They eventually had an amazing technology that nobody cared about. That, IMO, is the biggest risk of not having a dedicated biz guy.
> My suggestion would be to just find another tech person who can talk to a room of people and has some level of confidence.
I like the idea of finding somebody who was a tech person (in fact, I think it's a requirement for a tech startup), but their focus in the startup should be 100% business. Now, of course, every startup member is giving 150%, so that leaves time left over to help on the tech stuff. ;)
Depending on your startup, I think you need somebody with at least some experience in the sales and/or marketing. Engineers often trivialize these jobs, but they are not easy and can't be picked up in an afternoon with "Sales for Dummies."
I'm a former tech guy who moved into product management and then into my current role as the biz founder. I spend most of my time talking to potential customers, potential partners, doing research to make sure we have a competitive differentiator, and, on the side, building the website (we are a B2C product) and testing.