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Unsolicited Startup Advice

zcancio
April 14, 2014

Unsolicited Startup Advice

A brain dump of things I've learned along my startup journey. Originally presented at RevTech Lab.

zcancio

April 14, 2014
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  1. FEATURE DEVELOPMENT 1. RULE OF THREE - UNLESS 3 CUSTOMERS

    REQUEST A FEATURE, DON’T DO IT, NO MATTER HOW LARGE THE CUSTOMER IS. 2. 80/20 RULE - AS SOON AS YOU’RE 80% DONE, SHIP IT. 3. IT TAKES TIME TO HONE YOUR CORE IDEA DOWN TO A SIMPLE IMPLEMENTATION. 4. DO THINGS MANUALLY FIRST UNTIL YOU KNOW WHAT NEEDS TO BE BUILT 5. GO THROUGH THE MANUAL PROCESS AT LEAST 3 TIMES. 6. FAIL FAST - “WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU CAN’T FAIL” - MARK Z. 7. YOU AREN’T YOUR CUSTOMER, CHEESY HUMOR GOES A LONG WAY.
  2. DESIGN 1.WHEN ARGUING UI/UX, USE EXAMPLES FROM LARGE WEBSITES EVEN

    IF YOU WANT TO BE A CONTRARIAN. 2.USE BOOTSTRAP 1.YOU CAN ITERATE FASTER 2. YOU CAN SET THE BAR ON DESIGN 3. GIVE YOUR BUSINESS PEOPLE READ ACCESS TO YOUR DATABASE 1. IF YOU USE MYSQL, USE SEQUEL PRO. 4. YOU CAN TRAIN ANYONE TO USE AN INTERNAL ADMIN TOOL. DON’T MAKE IT INTUITIVE 5. IT’S BETTER TO HAVE A DESIGNER WHO CAN DO HTML/CSS/JS (BASIC) THAN A GREAT PHOTOSHOPPER/VISUAL DESIGNER
  3. PRODUCT MANAGEMENT 1. 2 WEEK SPRINTS 2. SPRINT KICKOFF 3.

    SPRINT WRAPUP 4. GET AS MUCH DONE AS POSSIBLE BEFORE PUNTING 5. DAILY UPDATE MEETING 6. PLEASE DON’T STAND WE ALREADY HATE THIS MEETING. 7. SOMEONE’S GOTTA BE THAT GUY. 8. FORGET ASANA/JIRA/BASECAMP. GOOGLE DOCS FTW 9. PLANS ARE WORTHLESS, PLANNING IS EVERYTHING 10. PROJECTIONS ARE A NECESSARY TOOL, BUT DON’T GET MAD IF YOU MISS 11. BE WORRIED IF PROJECTIONS ARE CONSISTENTLY MORE THAN 25% OFF.
  4. PARTNERSHIPS 1. DON’T RELY ON ONE BIG PARTNERSHIP TO MAKE

    YOUR COMPANY 2. STARTUPS ARE GREAT TESTERS (IMMEDIATE FEEDBACK) 3. STARTUPS ARE THE WORSE CUSTOMERS (SORRY) 4. IF SAAS, FREEMIUM ALL THE WAY
  5. FUNDRAISING 1. ONLY THE CEO SHOULD BE FUNDRAISING 2. INVESTORS

    GIVE SOFT NO’S 3. PERSONAL APPROACH, I TRY TO “SCOUT” FOR PEOPLE OUR CEO SHOULD TALK TO. 4. KNOW YOUR NUMBERS/PITCH. YOU NEVER KNOW WHO MIGHT START ASKING QUESTIONS.
  6. HR

  7. HR 1. HIRE THROUGH AUDITIONS 2. ALGORITHM QUIZZES ONLY REVEAL

    ONE ASPECT OF PROGRAMMING 3.1-2 WEEK AUDITIONS ON A REAL PROJECT 4. BETTER TO NOT EXTEND OFFER AFTER AUDITION, THAN FIRE 5. FIRING SUCKS, COFOUNDERS SHOULD TAG TEAM THIS 6. YOUR STOCK OPTIONS ARE SEXY, DON’T DISCOUNT THEM WHEN NEGOTIATING COMPENSATION 7. KEEP THE PRODUCT TEAM IN ONE OFFICE, BRAINSTORMING DOESN’T WORK REMOTELY. 8. NO VACATION POLICY!
  8. INTERNAL COMMUNICATION 1. IF YOU’RE LUCKY, YOU’RE WRONG 50% OF

    THE TIME. ADMIT YOU’RE WRONG ASAP SO YOU CAN GET BACK TO BEING RIGHT. 2. OVERCOMMUNICATE BUT DON’T MICROMANAGE 3. EMBRACE THE GRAY 4. EVERYONE SHOULD GIVE UNSOLICITED STATUS UPDATES, EVEN UPDATES ABOUT SETBACKS. 5. YAMMER IS A GREAT WAY TO KEEP A PULSE ON YOUR COMPANY 1. MODERATE AGGRESSIVELY 2. ONLY POST THINGS EVERYONE SHOULD READ 3. ALERT INDIVIDUALS OF PROBLEMS, BUT RESOLVE OFFLINE 6. USE HIPCHAT/CAMPFIRE/SLACK FOR PRODUCT TEAM COMMUNICATION 7. USE EMAIL SPARINGLY IT’S ESSENTIALLY VOICEMAIL. 1. BCC EACH OTHER
  9. MARKETING 1. THE MEDIA IS BLACK AND WHITE. YOUR STARTUP

    IS GRAY. 2. PR FIRMS ARE A WASTE OF MONEY 3. THE ONLY MEDIA YOU SHOULD PAY FOR SHOULD BE FREE 4. ONLY DO ADVERTISING WHERE YOU CAN PAY ON CPAS
  10. MISCELLANEOUS 1. BE CHEAP 2. THREE SERVERS FOR REDUDANCY 3.

    WHAT HAPPEN’S WHEN YOU REMOVE WHO GETS CREDIT FOR WHAT.
  11. STARTUP LIFE COACHING 1. FIND A SUPPORT GROUP OF FELLOW

    FOUNDERS 2. FAMILY & FRIENDS WILL ALWAYS BE THERE 1. FIND PEOPLE WHO WILL LOVE YOU NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS 3. YOUR STARTUP’S SUCCESS DOESN’T DEFINE YOU, YOUR CHARACTER DOES 4. YOU’RE LUCKY TO BE WHERE YOU ARE 1. BUT DON’T FEEL GUILTY IF YOU F*$% THINGS UP 5. WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS? 1. THE MISSION DEFINES THE CULTURE AND LEADS EMPLOYEES 6. BE DRIVEN BUT MAINTAIN YOUR QUALITY OF LIFE 7. STARTUPS ARE A MARATHON, NOT A SPRINT