Five priorities for startup CEOs as the business grows
I first wrote about this subject after hearing Russell Buckley speak at a conference in 2016. His talk prompted me to think about where a startup CEO should put their attention. Returning to the article now, I would frame the priorities differently. The five below reflect my own perspective, informed by building businesses and working with founders. A CEO can be involved in almost everything, particularly early on. But involvement is not the same as making a useful contributi
Play to your strengths: where founders should focus their time
When you start a business, you can find yourself doing almost everything. Researching, selling, delivering, organising and dealing with whatever needs attention next. In my first business, much of that responsibility initially sat with me. In my second, it was shared. Being involved in everything gives you a close understanding of the business. But as it grows, the same pattern can leave important work waiting and other people depending on you for decisions they could make th
How to decide on which business to start
People sometimes ask me what sort of business they should start. How to get it going is usually the next question. There is no single answer I can give them. The decision depends on their experience, circumstances and what they want from running a business, alongside whether there are customers willing to pay. My own route was not a case of dreaming up an entirely original idea. Neither of the two technology businesses I co-founded began with an idea that was mine. In the fir