SoCal CTO

SEPTEMBER 27, 2011

I was asked by a reader how much equity he should give out to early employees and to service providers in a very early stage startup. Founders vs. Early Employees To help with this discussion, let me start with a definition of "early employee." I'll get to service providers in a later post.

Early Stage 391

Early Stage Equity CTO Hire Sweat Equity 391

SoCal CTO

DECEMBER 10, 2012

And it made me come to a new realization: Every early-stage web/mobile/online startup should have at least one technical advisor, probably two. Most early-stage, in-house teams needs to be hands on developers, not strategic. They will have the title Lead or Manager. Strategic Technical Advisor.

Technical Review 332

Technical Review CTO Hire Fractional CTO Software Review 332

SoCal CTO

MAY 27, 2010

And I always recommend it to people involved in early stage startups. I received a follow-up question from an early-stage startup about the Founder Developer Gap that I’ve described before and that was part of the interview with Frank. Sometimes this is fatal for early stage companies. What Should You Do?

CTO Hire 170

CTO Hire Developer Founder Startup 170

SoCal CTO

JANUARY 26, 2010

I’ve been having discussions with several people recently about the role of the CTO (Chief Technology Officer) in very early stage companies. However, I’ve now begun questioning how and what an early-stage / startup CTO should be. That’s why Roger Smith puts the focus of the CTO on programming for the earliest stage.

CTO 225

CTO Fractional CTO CTO Hire Technical Review 225

SoCal CTO

FEBRUARY 17, 2007

Since then it has become much harder to find people and while we are talking about hiring relatively small numbers of people, the typical sources of candidates dont seem to be working. Early Stage Marketing and Branding – Farida Fotouh. Product Manager Entrepreneur Mark Geller SEO for Startups Startup Version 1.0

Los Angeles 150

Los Angeles Technical Cofounder Southern California CTO Hire 150

SoCal CTO

JULY 23, 2012

I also recognize that while I am the first technologist on the team, I will not by any means be the last and I'm hoping that subsequent hires will be people I consider brighter and more talented than myself. I've previously addressed the role of a CTO in early-stages in my post Startup CTO or Developer. Who will do that?

CTO Hire 231

CTO Hire Technical Review Developer Software Review 231