This site uses cookies to improve your experience. To help us insure we adhere to various privacy regulations, please select your country/region of residence. If you do not select a country, we will assume you are from the United States. Select your Cookie Settings or view our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Cookie Settings
Cookies and similar technologies are used on this website for proper function of the website, for tracking performance analytics and for marketing purposes. We and some of our third-party providers may use cookie data for various purposes. Please review the cookie settings below and choose your preference.
Used for the proper function of the website
Used for monitoring website traffic and interactions
Cookie Settings
Cookies and similar technologies are used on this website for proper function of the website, for tracking performance analytics and for marketing purposes. We and some of our third-party providers may use cookie data for various purposes. Please review the cookie settings below and choose your preference.
Strictly Necessary: Used for the proper function of the website
Performance/Analytics: Used for monitoring website traffic and interactions
I've recently received several emails from people looking for a technicalcofounder for their startup. "I'm looking for a partner / cofounder who can not only head the technical aspects and build a working model of the site, but someone with the connections to put a great development team together when we need it.
I did a presentation this week at Coloft that looked at how Non-Technical Founders can go about getting their MVP built. And the back-end is something that a non-technical founder can manage. Equity-Only CTO and Equity-Only Developers Technology Roles in Startups Want to Know the Difference Between a CTO and a VP Engineering?
As a cofounder you are *always* selling. Even if you’re the most technicalCTO out there, you have to get comfortable with this reality. Having a cofounder who loves selling doesn’t (fully) solve for this. There are coaches, advisors, blog posts, and courses that can help you get better at sales.
I had a recent email dialog with the founder of a company looking for a CTO for their startup. Did they really need a Startup CTO or Developer or both? And do I fit as a Part-Time CTO , Technology Advisor , CTO Founder , Acting CTO ? He needed some kind of CTO and as well Developers.
How does a newly hired Chief Technology Officer (CTO) find and grow the islands of innovation inside a large company? How not to waste your first six months as a new CTO thinking you’re making progress when the status quo is working to keep you at bay? But this is the first time he was the CTO of a company this size.
This is not only sad but incredibly frustrating, because it is so easy to see how a great technology can be developed and commercialized if only - if only the CTO hadn't been impulsive and insecure and brought on a business partner too early in the game. … And it’s not just inexperienced CTOs. Lack of confidence? Camaraderie?
Thus I was happily surprised when I found the classic book, “ The Tech Entrepreneur’s Survival Guide ,” by Bernd Schoner, PhD, and cofounder of ThingMagic, which leans heavily on the people side of the equation. You need to have a technical genius on the team to get your startup product off the ground. The trusted leader.
It may give non-technical founders a bit more insight into working styles when it comes to developers. If you’ve ever seen an athlete use a big word in a slightly wrong way, that’s how you sound when you use technical language and you don’t quite know what it means. I.e., they need a developer more than they need a CTO.
As the organizer of the LA CTO Forum , I get lots of inquiries by job seekers and people looking for CTO / VP Engineering talent. I’ve written quite a bit about aspects of this topic, especially from the perspective of startup founders looking for talent – you can find these in: Startup CTO.
Thus I was happy to see a new book, “ The Tech Entrepreneur’s Survival Guide ,” by Bernd Schoner, PhD, and cofounder of ThingMagic, which leans heavily on the people side of the equation. You need to have a technical genius on the team to get your startup product off the ground. Outsourcing your core competency does not work.
When I talk with early-stage companies, often the discussion starts with them asking me about Hiring a CTO for Your Startup , or Finding a TechnicalCofounder for Your Startup or How to Find Programmers for Your Startup. The startup founder is definitely not ready to hire a CTO. Far from it. Great post Gabriel!
Do you have a TechnicalAdvisors: Every Web/Mobile Startup Must Have One ? Have you conducted Problem, Solution and Feature Interviews with customers? Have you Documented Your MVP for Your Developer s? Have you looked through Things You May Have Forgot in Your MVP and provided answers to these?
The CTO of many technical startups was the original founder. Naïve cofounders have found themselves squeezed out in some well-known cases, including Facebook. In all cases, roles and titles should be clear, but not necessarily tied to any given percent of equity. But don’t get greedy.
Thus I was happily surprised when I found the classic book, “ The Tech Entrepreneur’s Survival Guide ,” by Bernd Schoner, PhD, and cofounder of ThingMagic, which leans heavily on the people side of the equation. You need to have a technical genius on the team to get your startup product off the ground. The trusted leader.
I always tell entrepreneurs that two heads are better than one, so the first task in many startups is finding a cofounder or two. Giving a cofounder a salary won’t get you the “fire in the belly” you want. Each cofounder should get equity for value, based on these key variables: Lived a key role in a previous startup.
I also recommend having board members and a group of advisors who can provide different perspectives and contribute to a healthier partnership. Hell, even shouting matches will happen. It’s inevitable. This is why it’s essential to have an unbiased middle man to mitigate any conflicts that pop up.
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Tuesday, February 27, 2007 Stanford Podcasts - eHarmony - Greg Waldorf I was just pointed to a set of great podcasts done by Stanford B-School and particularly, I just listed to the podcast by eHarmonys Greg Waldorf. He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO.
Two more entrepreneurial ventures later, Gleb cofounded online backup provider Backblaze to help consumers affordably, automatically, and safely back up their data. What are the pros and cons of starting a business alone versus with cofounders? The required number of cofounders for success is: “Zero” – You don’t need a cofounder.
But these look for founders who have a technical or business model insight and a team. Accelerators provide these teams with technical and business expertise and connect them to a network of other founders and advisors. I don’t have a killer idea, or a technical team, but I do know how to build, grow, and manage teams.”.
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Tuesday, February 20, 2007 Innovation and Geography I ran across a post in Read/Write Web - Does Location Matter in Web Innovation? eHarmongy) as an acting CTO. My only other complaint is that right now its very hard to find good technical people at all levels.
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Saturday, February 17, 2007 Finding Good Developers in Los Angeles? Im part of a CTO group that meets once a month to discuss various topics. He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO. He has been the CTO for several start-ups, most notably eHarmony.
Jane and Dick, our fearless cofounders of SayAhh, have set up an accounting system and created their first set of financial statements. This week they set out to create their cap table and hire a CTO. Jane and Dick want to bring in their friend Praveena as CTO, but they don’t know how to structure the compensation.
Even if they realize that they need real technical strength at the top, they are not sure how to attract and select the talent and expertise they really need. That means every entrepreneur needs to learn how to attract, hire, and manage technical people for their team. Don’t fall for a technical pitch you can’t fathom.
Another major hire was Ryan Lissack who joined as CTO. Ryan was not only a senior engineer at Salesforce.com (he ran mobile and also ran content management) but was also my cofounder at Koral and lead architect at BuildOnline. Ynon started as shareholder, board member & advisor and switches to full-time executive.
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Friday, March 9, 2007 Map of VC Investments Found this Map of 2006 VC Investments post. He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO. He has been the CTO for several start-ups, most notably eHarmony. ► February (2) CTO Founders / Cofounders Part-Time Startup CTO?
Tony Karrer is CEO/CTO of TechEmpower , a Los Angeles Web Development firm, and is considered one of the top technologists in e-Learning. He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO. He has been the CTO for several start-ups, most notably eHarmony. ► February (2) CTO Founders / Cofounders Part-Time Startup CTO?
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Friday, February 23, 2007 Events and Networking in Los Angeles One of the issues I discussed in Innovation and Geography was that the geography and traffic in Los Angeles generally makes it more difficult for networking. He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO.
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Saturday, February 17, 2007 About this Blog Ive been thinking about doing a blog with my thoughts on technology and whats happening in the Los Angeles area technology scene for a while, but it was Ben Kuos recent start of a blog that inspired me to actually go ahead and do it. Thanks Ben.
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Sunday, February 25, 2007 Interesting Model for University President Saw a post by Paul Kedrosky pointing us to Graeme Thickins on How Stanford Does It. He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO. He has been the CTO for several start-ups, most notably eHarmony.
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Wednesday, February 28, 2007 Google Maps Mobile I recently downloaded Google Maps Mobile for my Treo. He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO. He has been the CTO for several start-ups, most notably eHarmony. ► February (2) CTO Founders / Cofounders Part-Time Startup CTO?
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Tuesday, March 13, 2007 8 Ways the Internet has Changed Software Marketing Great post - 8 Ways The Internet Changed Software Marketing - is an interesting take on how different it is these days to market software. He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO. Good stuff.
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Tuesday, March 20, 2007 Kevin Federline Search Engine Just saw a post - Sleep with a pop star, get your own branded search engine. He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO. He has been the CTO for several start-ups, most notably eHarmony.
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Thursday, March 1, 2007 Entreprenuer Network Great post by Ben Kuo - The Importance of the “Network&# to Entrepreneurs - the informal connections between people in the technology industry here who have a vested interest in helping entrepreneurs take their companies to the next level.
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Saturday, February 17, 2007 A Different Kind of Incubator - The Hive I recently met with The Hive a new incubator in Orange County. He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO. He has been the CTO for several start-ups, most notably eHarmony.
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Saturday, February 17, 2007 Where LinkedIn Works for Me Ive been a long time user of LinkedIn , but only recently have started getting the benefits I always expected. He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO. He has been the CTO for several start-ups, most notably eHarmony.
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Sunday, February 25, 2007 Challenge of Predicting Winners I just read a bit on the payout to YouTube from the Google Acquisition ( Internet News , CNN ). He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO. He has been the CTO for several start-ups, most notably eHarmony.
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Monday, March 12, 2007 MyShape Article - Analyst Misses the Point The NY Times did a piece today on MyShape, a start-up in Pasadena - Log in Your Measurements, and the Clothes May Fit. He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO. Attorney and Startup Business Advisor – Aaron Shec.
New entrepreneurs, especially technical ones, are excited by early adopters, and tend to focus on their feedback, which will always suggest more product features and options. In reality, too many choices actually dilutes customer interest in your existing market, and makes your job of production, marketing, and support much more complex.
link] [link] Posted byTony Karrer at 5:33 PM 0comments: Post a Comment Newer Post Older Post Home Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom) About Me Tony Karrer Dr. Tony Karrer is CEO/CTO of TechEmpower , a Los Angeles Web Development firm, and is considered one of the top technologists in e-Learning. He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO.
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Tuesday, March 20, 2007 Time Rich, Time Poor and Apple Jeremy Liew at Lightspeed Venture Partners has an interesting post: Time Rich or Time Poor? He has twenty years’ experience as a CTO. He has been the CTO for several start-ups, most notably eHarmony.
The CTO of many technical startups was the original founder. Naïve cofounders have found themselves squeezed out in some recent cases, including Facebook. In all cases, roles and titles should be clear, but not necessarily tied to any given percent of equity. But don’t get greedy. business entrepreneurs startups'
Unfortunately many founders I work with as a mentor are experts on the technical side, but have no insight into leading a team. The only real alternative is to find a cofounder who can build and lead the team, while you focus on the product.
The CTO of many technical startups was the original founder. Naïve cofounders have found themselves squeezed out in some well-known cases, including Facebook. In all cases, roles and titles should be clear, but not necessarily tied to any given percent of equity. But don’t get greedy.
skip to main | skip to sidebar SoCal CTO Thursday, March 22, 2007 Discussion Creation Among Bloggers - LinkedIn, Blogging and Discussion Groups Ive been participating in a Yahoo Group that are users of LinkedIn and who are Bloggers: [link] Its an interesting group of folks from diverse backgrounds.
We organize all of the trending information in your field so you don't have to. Join 5,000+ users and stay up to date on the latest articles your peers are reading.
You know about us, now we want to get to know you!
Let's personalize your content
Let's get even more personalized
We recognize your account from another site in our network, please click 'Send Email' below to continue with verifying your account and setting a password.
Let's personalize your content