Most software companies end up having at least one person who prototypes or produces proof of concepts. Some have entire teams that prototype (at the behest of

Most software companies end up having at least one person who prototypes or produces proof of concepts. Some have entire teams that prototype (at the behest of the technical pre-sales guys). The ability to rapidly prototype ideas is extremely valuable. For many early stage founders, a proof of concept is more valuable than a well engineered core product. The PoC gets them the funding, or the first customers. For most people who have an idea, the PoC should come first, as suggested by the OP. I will agree that there are very few people that can write a PoC with production worthy code. They are real superstars. Many engineers will knock together PoC before starting to write the main product. When I start out doing that, it's disposable. You throw it away. Thanks for this guys. I really need to do a PoC so I can recruit some buddies to my idea.