Hi y'all, I'm interested to know how most of you guys who have gone to start their own tech startups (or are about to), go about in finding a business partner. Sure you can partner with friends, family members etc. But what if you are looking for an individual with a specific skill set? Assuming you are a technical person, and need a co-founder who will handle the business end of things like sales, talking to investors ... you know ... the things we tech would rather not deal with. Are there resources like websites, forums where one can get connected with here in Kenya? What qualities will you be looking for apart from complimentary skillsets? Any other thoughts on these? Regards, Jack
Good question. I have at some point had to grapple with this question. My train of thoughts is to approach this partnership as you would a marriage. You want someone you can work with and one who can add value to your life. Evaluate what value they will bring into your business (and on their side they will do the same, as well as what they can get out of it), and most importantly, someone who would have the same passion for the same things that you do. They have to clearly see your vision and be ready to sail with you, for the long term. Just my thoughts. Evans On Fri, Feb 8, 2013 at 12:20 PM, Jack Amayo <jackamayo@mail.com> wrote:
Hi y'all,
I'm interested to know how most of you guys who have gone to start their own tech startups (or are about to), go about in finding a business partner. Sure you can partner with friends, family members etc. But what if you are looking for an individual with a specific skill set?
Assuming you are a technical person, and need a co-founder who will handle the business end of things like sales, talking to investors ... you know ... the things we tech would rather not deal with.
Are there resources like websites, forums where one can get connected with here in Kenya? What qualities will you be looking for apart from complimentary skillsets?
Any other thoughts on these?
Regards, Jack
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The barebones: *1. Common vision :* Do you share the same vision, or are you at least able to bridge that delta in the individual visions? *2. Value proposition :* What do they bring to the table? Capital? Hard Skills? People Skills? Business Connections? *3. Mutual Trust :* When the situation calls, is either of you comfortable with letting the other chap run entity entirely on their own for a while? A while back, Idd Salim blogged some thoughts in relation to this, albeit from the Techie's standpoint: http://bit.ly/12y8GQT Tony.
Great stuff. One thing not mentioned: have an exit plan. This gives everyone some level of comfort of knowing how things can end if they need to. On Fri, Feb 8, 2013 at 12:47 PM, Tony Likhanga <tlikhanga@gmail.com> wrote:
The barebones:
*1. Common vision :* Do you share the same vision, or are you at least able to bridge that delta in the individual visions? *2. Value proposition :* What do they bring to the table? Capital? Hard Skills? People Skills? Business Connections? *3. Mutual Trust :* When the situation calls, is either of you comfortable with letting the other chap run entity entirely on their own for a while?
A while back, Idd Salim blogged some thoughts in relation to this, albeit from the Techie's standpoint: http://bit.ly/12y8GQT
Tony.
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-- *---------------------------------------------------- Kind Regards, Evans Ikua,* lanetconsulting.com, lpi-eastafrica.org, ict-innovation.fossfa.net, Skype: @ikuae Cell: +254-722-955831
There is some very interesting reading from Rob http://www.softwarebyrob.com/2010/08/05/why-startup-founders-should-stop-rea... Regards, George On Fri, Feb 8, 2013 at 12:20 PM, Jack Amayo <jackamayo@mail.com> wrote:
Hi y'all,
I'm interested to know how most of you guys who have gone to start their own tech startups (or are about to), go about in finding a business partner. Sure you can partner with friends, family members etc. But what if you are looking for an individual with a specific skill set?
Assuming you are a technical person, and need a co-founder who will handle the business end of things like sales, talking to investors ... you know ... the things we tech would rather not deal with.
Are there resources like websites, forums where one can get connected with here in Kenya? What qualities will you be looking for apart from complimentary skillsets?
Any other thoughts on these?
Regards, Jack
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In addition to the excellent advise thus far, I would add 1. Breakdown and document a detailed Job Description for Each Founder. This is a must for start-up accounting. 2. Define early goals and scope of start-up. You don't want to end up doing everything under the sun. 3. Breakdown ownership (shares) e.t.c with pre-defined allocations for employees and investors. 4. Encapsulate this in a Memorandum of Understanding Agreement. 5. Take care of basics, accounting, taxes - Business 101. Off course the details may change as the start-up evolves but its always great to have a fall back document as It creates peace of mind. Best of luck, John On Fri, Feb 8, 2013 at 4:52 PM, george <theonlydamnedavailablename@gmail.com
wrote:
There is some very interesting reading from Rob http://www.softwarebyrob.com/2010/08/05/why-startup-founders-should-stop-rea...
Regards, George
On Fri, Feb 8, 2013 at 12:20 PM, Jack Amayo <jackamayo@mail.com> wrote:
Hi y'all,
I'm interested to know how most of you guys who have gone to start their own tech startups (or are about to), go about in finding a business partner. Sure you can partner with friends, family members etc. But what if you are looking for an individual with a specific skill set?
Assuming you are a technical person, and need a co-founder who will handle the business end of things like sales, talking to investors ... you know ... the things we tech would rather not deal with.
Are there resources like websites, forums where one can get connected with here in Kenya? What qualities will you be looking for apart from complimentary skillsets?
Any other thoughts on these?
Regards, Jack
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Skunkworks Rules http://my.co.ke/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=94 ------------ Other services @ http://my.co.ke
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Hi, Though mainly focused on start-ups seeking seed capital in Africa, the resources listed here (http://www.savannah.vc/resources/) might be of help. Regards, Joseph. On Fri, Feb 8, 2013 at 12:20 PM, Jack Amayo <jackamayo@mail.com> wrote:
Hi y'all,
I'm interested to know how most of you guys who have gone to start their own tech startups (or are about to), go about in finding a business partner. Sure you can partner with friends, family members etc. But what if you are looking for an individual with a specific skill set?
Assuming you are a technical person, and need a co-founder who will handle the business end of things like sales, talking to investors ... you know ... the things we tech would rather not deal with.
Are there resources like websites, forums where one can get connected with here in Kenya? What qualities will you be looking for apart from complimentary skillsets?
Any other thoughts on these?
Regards, Jack
_______________________________________________ skunkworks mailing list skunkworks@lists.my.co.ke ------------ List info, subscribe/unsubscribe http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks ------------
Skunkworks Rules http://my.co.ke/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=94 ------------ Other services @ http://my.co.ke
participants (6)
-
Evans Ikua -
george -
Jack Amayo -
John Karanja -
Joseph Tintale -
Tony Likhanga