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What Startup Advisors Do I Need?

SoCal CTO

A large part of this conversation is what kinds of advisors startups should be looking for. A little while ago, I suggested that Every Web/Mobile Startup Should Have a Technical Advisor. The conversation with Bob was about what the composition of advisors should look like. Connected Advisors? Investors discount this.

CTO Coach 241
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Startup CTO or Developer

SoCal CTO

I’ve been having discussions with several people recently about the role of the CTO (Chief Technology Officer) in very early stage companies. In December 2007, I described how I commonly take on an Acting CTO Role in a Start-up. I used an image from Roger Smith that describes the varying roles of a CTO as the company matures.

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Finding a Technical Cofounder for Your Startup

SoCal CTO

I've talked about that in lots of other posts, so you can visit some of these to help determine what you specifically need: Startup CTO or Developer Startup Software Development – Do Your Homework Before You Develop Anything Key ingredients in the equation are: How complex is the system? Your technical advisor can likely help.

CTO Hire 211
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Announcing a Deal I’ve Wanted to Talk About for a Year

Both Sides of the Table

I acted as the occasional mentor, advisor and coach to Ethan. In industry this is known as “yield management” and of course it needs to exist. Ethan took great inspiration in this from Alex Rampell of TrialPay (an advisor to the company) who had written about this concept of “ Service as a SKU.”

CTO Coach 359
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Be Careful About Being a Meddling Startup CEO

Both Sides of the Table

” Of course I agree with this. In practice it can be a fine line between sparring partner / coach and stepping over the line to brute-force persuasion. Of course by the next quarter if I felt ripped off I could advocate for 7% or maybe ops requirements needed to be upped to 20% for one quarter.

Startup 150
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Lead Developer to CTO at a Startup

SoCal CTO

I seem to encounter a lot of people who want to attach a CTO label to me as I'm the only programmer on the founding team of three. While I do fill that role at the moment, I'm a little hesitant to refer to myself as a CTO as we still haven't launched a product, acquired a single user, or turned or a penny in profit. Who will do that?

CTO Coach 231
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How Amavitae Wants To Help Youth Find A Career They'll Love

socalTECH

We came together with the idea of designing something that specifically addresses the skills and opportunity gap in our country. Since then, I have worked extensively with mentoring youth, and helping them figure out what's possible in terms of careers. The two guys who teach this course have written a book, which is very interesting.

Help 100