🎙️ How Many Co-Founders is Too Many? + 🚩 Red Flags in Choosing a Co-Founder
New Podcast Episode! ✨ Meet the 4-person founding team who raised $47M + 📝 Quiz: Which mistake are YOU most at-risk of when choosing a co-founder?
At a tech event in NYC this week, I was asked two big, scary (but not uncommon) questions: (1) “How many co-founders is too many?” and (2) “I’m looking for a co-founder, what do I need to watch out for?” Today, we’re answering both.
How many co-founders is too many? Listen to the latest How I Met My Co-Founder episode with Tonic.ai, a rare four co-founder team who raised over $47M in capital. Learn what worked for them!
What mistakes should I look out for when choosing a co-founder? Finding the right co-founder can make or break your startup. To help, we pulled together two resources: an outline of the 6 Biggest Mistakes in Finding a Co-Founder AND a free QUIZ: What’s Your Biggest Risk in Choosing a Co-Founder? (and how to mitigate it).
Keep scrolling for more in depth answers!
Ian Coe, Karl Hanson, Andrew Colombi & Adam Kamor came together in 2018 to co-found Tonic.ai.
A recent analysis from TechCrunch revealed that only 7% of companies who raised $10M+ had four or more co-founders:
Tonic’s four person founding team smashed these odds, raising over $47M from leading investors like Insight Partners, GGV Capital, and Bloomberg Beta.
In our conversation, we cover:
Requirement of Trust & Commitment
Honest Discussion on Titles and Roles
Fundraising & Investor Relations with a Large, Remote Founding Team
Infusing Humor and Levity across Team
Shared Decision Making Process
Advice for New Founding Teams
Some takeaways:
Don’t get stuck on titles - they’re merely a way of communicating to the external world in the early stages. Instead, be willing to flex and take on whatever the company needs.
Align on priorities (the “why”), debate methodology (the “how”): “What are the values we are going to lean back on when we disagree on something?” The team has a shared #1 priority of delivering products to customers. They may go back back and forth on the “how”, but know they’re all working towards the same goal.
The hardest decisions are the ones that impact both the business and technical functions. Ian’s advice: Go into these conversations with as data much as possible. Get the facts and agree on them (e.g., doing X will take a year of engineering work) beforehand.
Keep your ego out of it as much as possible. “When making decisions in an organization, make sure you understand who is the winner of whatever argument you're making. Maybe engineering or marketing wins this one. But if the only winner is your ego, that’s going to be a bad decision.”
A large founding team can be hard, and RELIES on trust. Ian credits the success of their team to the long-term nature of their relationships, with nearly a decade of work or personal relationship with each member of the team. All that to say, know who you are partnering with! (Resource: 6 Biggest Mistakes When Choosing a Co-Founder and Quiz)
Listen now on Spotify / Apple / YouTube / Google / Pod Website.
🚩 6 Biggest Mistakes Choosing a Co-Founder + 📝 Quiz: Which Mistake Might You Make?
If you’ve ever thought: “all successful startups have co-founders”, “I’ll know when it’s the right person”, “I need a co-founder with [deep industry expertise], [an expansive network]”, or “I need a co-founder NOW!” The this article is for you.