4 ms·

It's hard to define a concrete point where you aren't being pompous by calling yourself a CEO, but having more employees (or at least contractors) than yourself

by drp 17y ago

It's hard to define a concrete point where you aren't being pompous by calling yourself a CEO, but having more employees (or at least contractors) than yourself is probably a good start. I find it a little depressing when I'm reviewing the resume of someone applying for an engineering position and I see their first job experience listed as CEO or CTO of X, especially if the date range is before graduating from high school. "Founder" seems like a much more legitimate, scalable and reasonable option.

Alex3917 17y ago
I think it's safe to call yourself a CEO when you're in charge of managing the engine of revenue; that is, a system whereby you can have your executive team hire someone, give them an instruction set to execute daily, and have money flowing back into the company. If this isn't happening then it's probably better to call yourself a founder, director, chief instigator, etc. Although it really depends on the culture of the people you're selling to and/or trying to raise investment from.
zaidf 17y ago
Great point. I've "Founder" for a couple of ventures from college/hs on my resume.
arihelgason 17y ago
Yes. It also makes more sense to start off with Founder, because it can be hard to predict what role you'll end up in (with growth, raising capital, etc.)
brk 17y ago
IMO (an I've been on both sides of this, having started a small company in my 20's, and now as a hiring manager at a startup), "owner" is even more appropriate. Even "Founder", to me, seems to imply a certain amount of effort was involved above and beyond the base paperwork. If your company exists more on paper than in practice, skip the titles and just list yourself as Owner or "Self-Employed". Many many many many people of all ages have managed to generate some cash flow from their determination and inventiveness. It's no great accomplishment, in the relative scheme of things, to have managed to generate a couple hundred thousand dollars in above the line revenue. A Founder or CEO type title is, again IMO, appropriate when you have created something that has started to take on some life of its own, and might have a slim chance of continuance in your absence or departure. Or, when you have managed to convince some non-relative to give you a 7 figure investment. I just dug out some old business cards from my little venture in the 90's. I just listed the company name, what we did, my name and contact info. The legal paperwork listed me as President or CEO, IIRC, but in the day-to-day operations I was just the guy that ran the joint. The company managed to do a few $MM in revenue, net me a bit o' cash and employ a couple of people besides myself.
eleitl 17y ago
If it's a one-pop shop 'Owner' is perfectly ok, too.

by drp 17y ago

Alex3917 17y ago

I think it's safe to call yourself a CEO when you're in charge of managing the engine of revenue; that is, a system whereby you can have your executive team hire someone, give them an instruction set to execute daily, and have money flowing back into the company. If this isn't happening then it's probably better to call yourself a founder, director, chief instigator, etc. Although it really depends on the culture of the people you're selling to and/or trying to raise investment from.

zaidf 17y ago

Great point. I've "Founder" for a couple of ventures from college/hs on my resume.

arihelgason 17y ago

Yes. It also makes more sense to start off with Founder, because it can be hard to predict what role you'll end up in (with growth, raising capital, etc.)

brk 17y ago

IMO (an I've been on both sides of this, having started a small company in my 20's, and now as a hiring manager at a startup), "owner" is even more appropriate. Even "Founder", to me, seems to imply a certain amount of effort was involved above and beyond the base paperwork. If your company exists more on paper than in practice, skip the titles and just list yourself as Owner or "Self-Employed". Many many many many people of all ages have managed to generate some cash flow from their determination and inventiveness. It's no great accomplishment, in the relative scheme of things, to have managed to generate a couple hundred thousand dollars in above the line revenue. A Founder or CEO type title is, again IMO, appropriate when you have created something that has started to take on some life of its own, and might have a slim chance of continuance in your absence or departure. Or, when you have managed to convince some non-relative to give you a 7 figure investment. I just dug out some old business cards from my little venture in the 90's. I just listed the company name, what we did, my name and contact info. The legal paperwork listed me as President or CEO, IIRC, but in the day-to-day operations I was just the guy that ran the joint. The company managed to do a few $MM in revenue, net me a bit o' cash and employ a couple of people besides myself.

eleitl 17y ago

If it's a one-pop shop 'Owner' is perfectly ok, too.