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The biggest risk with being an early stage CTO, is being discarded. It's VERY common for the CTO to actually just be a programmer building the product, who once
by ldjkfkdsjnv 2y ago
The biggest risk with being an early stage CTO, is being discarded. It's VERY common for the CTO to actually just be a programmer building the product, who once ships the MVP, has trouble holding his job.
- mooreds 2y agoI wrote a whole essay on this[0], but usually you need a founding engineer. They may or may not grow into a CTO, but a CTO of a 2 person startup needs decidedly different skills and motivations than the CTO of a 10 or 100 person company. 0: https://www.mooreds.com/wordpress/archives/2555 https://www.mooreds.com/wordpress/archives/2555
- ldjkfkdsjnv 2y agoRight but usually they tell the founding engineer that they are a CTO, give them equity, but low salary. In real venture backed businesses where the equity ends up having real value, the "CTO" is gone by ~18 months. This is the point where the product is in the market, and is getting some sales. I see it constantly by non technical CEOs in NYC
- mooreds 2y agoYup. You should walk in eyes wide open to see which role you are in. Clues you might be a real CTO: * you've been a CTO in the past * you meet with the board and investors * you are involved in strategic discussions * you have budget control > the "CTO" is gone by ~18 months. Well, I hope they exercised and got the equity they legally earned.
- codingdave 2y agoTrue, but you could also spin that as: "The biggest benefit with being an early stage CTO is that they don't need you for the long haul - vest early, take a small exit, and move on to the next gig." With a 6 month cliff, that sounds like a really nice way to minimize risk while giving something a shot.