Was reading the Steve Jobs book recently and realized he probably wasn't the easiest to work with / definitely did not create a great culture around him, especially in the early Apple years.
Remembered the movie on blackberry that I saw couple weeks ago and how it was this crazy, hard-ass ceo took charge and actually turned the company around, otherwise Blackberry would be nowhere in our memories today.
Do you think this is what is actually needed to build successful companies early on - and employee wellbeing and culture are things to be solved for later in the journey of a company?
Until a startup becomes a stable company, founders should keep the company's needs before employees' as without the company - the employees won't be there in the first place.
Once a company is stable, then without the employees it won't remain stable. That's when you need to prioritise employees' needs.
Yeah but I guess it's always a thin line - at what point do you say the company is really stable and culture starts taking precedence? There's always a new battle being fought
As a founder, you can realise when your company becomes relatively stable. As I mentioned in the last point, if at that point the founder doesn't prioritise employees' needs, then the company won't remain stable.
I'm no founder but I think as an employee, I'd hope the company is relatively stable in roughly 2 years of it being founded.
Steve Jobs, Blackberry's CEO, all abrasive? Yes, but they were also visionaries. Employee wellbeing, culture, all secondary. Success first. But, is this the only way to win?
Yeah it seems that though being a visionary seems to give you a free pass for being erratic.
Maybe I have a selection bias, but it seems to me that it's more common to have "visionary" ceos building these great companies without second thought on employee welfare
I don’t think being an asshole is necessary to success
Absolutely not! A startup's success isn't about being a hard taskmaster. It's about vision, passion, and teamwork. Remember, even a lion needs its pride! So, what's your startup's vision?
I'm surprised to see on the comment section that people actually support this load of crap.
To any newbies or freshers entering tech this year, don't follow this advice. These CEOs exploit your time to gain revenue and when the time is...
I am starting up soon. I care about working on meaningful problems, with good people and building the right culture.
Have been hearing from a lot of folks about culture problems in startups. Seems more of a norm rather than an exceptio...
Rant alert :
Have some really sensible friends (thought so) and we banter about startup business follies. Now I don’t want to be friends with them.
What got to me recently was few of them proudly boycotting people from Byjus, Unacqde...
Many of them are egoistic, surrounded by yes men/women, want to be reminded of how great they are, being pursued at all times
Have you met ones who aren't like this? Or atleast less?
Something as a founder I have decided over the years. Everywhere around you, you hear stories of founders who worked 16-18 hours a day, made their team work as hard, were assholes, shouted at people, made people cry.
You start to thi...
Your true test will come when investor pressure arrives at your doorstep.