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MenuHow/where to get a CTO/architect onboard?
No capital yet. Liquid strapped. I'm sure equity would be the answer but aren't all the great tech Dev. taken? Especially if there's no liquid. Thoughts please...
Answers
It's a tough ask because there are so many people looking for developers to work for free and not enough developers around to fill the paid jobs.
However, there are some people who if they love the idea might come on board, more likely as a side project.
To find tech co-founders have a look at the following sites:
https://www.cofounderslab.com/
https://www.founder2be.com/
http://www.founders-nation.com/
There are also meetups and networking events for founders to find tech co-founders try looking through www.meetup.com for ones local to you.
“Every generation imagines itself to be more intelligent than the one that went before it, and wiser than the one that comes after it.” --― George Orwell
But is it true ?
Are all great tech taken ? There are plenty people who are above average in everything. You don't need the best programmer in the world to be a CTO / Architect.
1) In the lack of capital, the only thing you got is your DREAM. Sell the dream and only hire someone who believes in the product/idea. Ask him what his opinion about the product is and how it can be made better.
2) His(or her) and your wavelength should match - If you are the CEO guy, he should be able read you and you should speak a common language or have a similar thought process. CEO owns the product and CTO delivers it.
What skills should you be looking for
1) Technical - If you need CTO/Architect , don't look for a programmer. A word-press or a .net programmer can be your co-founder but he need to have that big picture vision of product. Architects have a high view of product architecture and the 360 Deg view solution delivery. Need not be an expert in everything but should be able to get things done my other developers. ARCHITECT/CTO IS A MINDSET. You need to find people with that mindset.
How to find people with CTO Mindset
1) Ask them about how to build something like facebook. Check if they talk about Performance, scalability, caching,availability etc..
2) Ask how to do it lean (cheap) - They should be able to give you a ROADMAP (that is the skill you are looking for).
3) Are they aware of what is happening in the industry. Ask them what they read and listen to. Your OUTPUT is a SUBSET of you INPUT
Hope that helped. Let me know if you need any friendly help. I am at https://www.linkedin.com/in/nefinjohn
Nefin
Pro-Bono....every senior architect will help you if you have a great concept, you have thought it out, and you are willing to look at all of your own false-positives, and truly go out and validate your idea.
Navigating the challenge of bringing a CTO or architect on board when you're currently low on capital is a common concern for many startups. Equity can indeed be a compelling option, but finding the right talent, especially in a competitive tech landscape, can be challenging.
In your situation, considering a "CTO as a Service" could be a strategic move. Cleveroad offers a comprehensive CTO as a Service that can provide you with the expertise and guidance you need without the immediate financial burden of hiring a full-time CTO. You can explore more about their services here: https://www.cleveroad.com/services/cto-as-a-service/.
This approach allows you to access high-level technical expertise on a flexible basis, aligning with your current capital constraints. Cleveroad's CTO as a Service can help you make informed decisions regarding technology, guide your development strategy, and ensure you're on the right path as you build your startup.
Feel free to reach out if you have more questions or if there's anything specific you'd like to discuss further regarding your startup and technology needs. Cleveroad's experience in providing strategic technology guidance could be instrumental in navigating your current challenges.
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How to deal with co-founders that aren't pulling their weight?
I feel your pain — I've been there several times in a couple of my companies. Each situation ended up being unique, and had to be handled differently. I think there are a few things to consider before you make your decision: -- 1. What is in your cofounder's way? Is you cofounder being held up by a lack of clarity? Lack of motivation? Lack of autonomy? One of my past cofounders was very good at getting the job done, but didn't naturally have the skill to lay out tasks in a manageable way. To get around this, I worked with the whole team (4 people) to write up process documentation that removed the need to "figure out what to do next" that was tripping up this cofounder. -- 2. What job was your cofounder brought on to complete? And is it being completed? One of my companies brought on a cofounder simply to give us a marketing platform — he had a huge online audience — but he did nothing else. At first, this caused tension; once we had specifically laid out who was on the team and for what purpose, it was easier to identify where responsibilities lay. -- 3. Is your cofounder capable of doing the job? One of the more painful ordeals I've gone through in business is bringing on a good friend, then realizing that — despite his talent and intelligence — he just wasn't able to perform the job I'd hired him for. His skills were better suited for a different job: he needs hands-on management; he works better with repetitive tasks that don't require big-picture thinking; he lacks assertiveness and confidence, which were critical for the management-level role he'd been hired to do. After I tried to clear everything in his way, it became clear the company couldn't survive if he remained on the team. I had to lay him off. -- 4. Do you just simply not like the way this cofounder works? In one of my startups, there was a cofounder who I didn't know all that well, but he had amazing industry contacts and domain knowledge. However, once we started working together it became clear that we had VERY different working styles. He drove me completely nuts with (what seemed to me to be) a very ADHD-style of planning, with projects starting and being dropped and then coming out of nowhere with a call at 21:00 to discuss something critical that would be forgotten tomorrow. I'm sure I drove him nuts, too. So eventually we ended up selling that company — it was that or shutter it — because we knew there wasn't a chance we'd be successful if we continued as we were. -- Working with other people is tricky in general. Our instinct is to assume that we're the best workers on the planet and everyone else is incompetent, an idiot, a slacker, or all of the above. Usually it's a combination of an organizational-level lack of clarity, poor communication, no processes, and (sometimes) plain ol' we-don't-see-eye-to-eye-on-things-ness. Hopefully that helps. Feel free to get in touch if you'd like to hear specifics on my situations, or if you'd like any help devising a strategy for resolving your cofounder trouble. Good luck!JL
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What are ways to find and engage B2B beta users for a brand new application?
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