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Startup CEOs: you are overestimating your tech talent

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Re: Startup CEOs: you are overestimating your tech talent

#21

Post by Sakes »

joeemison wrote: post #6
Sakes wrote: post #2

I don't know. If you have a team that is able to consistently ship products that work and are well received by your existing client base, you probably do have some badass tech guys. You don't necessarily have to claim that you are better than all other startups, you just have to claim to have a tech team that is magnitudes better than average teams at other companies. It is crazy to me how many failed projects are fl…

I don't think that the mediocrity of other tech organizations implies that functioning ones are "badass". It's a sad state of the world that "actually shipping products that work" qualifies for awesome/genius.

Writing software is hard. To quote Douglas Crockford "Writing software is the hardest thing you can do."

So if as a team you are able to, manage client expectations, deliver on schedule, build a project that works to specifications, has good UI/UX, has a low user learning curve, meets performance requirements (obamacare site), is well received by users, I'd say your team is pretty great.

Re: Startup CEOs: you are overestimating your tech talent

#22

Post by balls187 »

It's not necessarily the CEO's fault here. If investors, and press would stop asking questions like "Why is your team better than everyone else" the CEO's wouldn't have to make up ridiculous statements.

When dealing with externals, winning isn't important. It's the appearance that you're winning, and having the CEO brag about tech talent is just part of the game.

Just like when CEO's brag about having former MSFT, GOOG, FB, engineers on staff, or having someone who went to MIT, Caltech, and yada yada yada.

In the end, what really matters is building a great product that helps your customers scratch an itch.

Re: Startup CEOs: you are overestimating your tech talent

#23

Post by skrebbel »

theboss wrote: post #17

My question is this: Startups I see here are usually looking for the same kinds of people to help build their products (Rails, iOS, UI/UX, etc.). They look to really only hire people who are really good at things like this to build their product. Are these people the best people to have around later? Once your company has bigger problems than just getting something out the door are these people a hinderance? I don't…

I've wondered about exactly the same. Are generalists appreciated at all in the startup world?

Re: Startup CEOs: you are overestimating your tech talent

#24

Post by Sakes »

georgemcbay wrote: post #4
Sakes wrote: post #2

I don't know. If you have a team that is able to consistently ship products that work and are well received by your existing client base, you probably do have some badass tech guys. You don't necessarily have to claim that you are better than all other startups, you just have to claim to have a tech team that is magnitudes better than average teams at other companies. It is crazy to me how many failed projects are fl…

In my experience tech and market success aren't nearly as related as your post suggests. As a 40 year old developer I've worked at a good number of companies (including startups and established ones) over the years including some that were, on average, technically very weak and yet very financially successful and some that were technically extremely strong and failed miserably. All the tech talent in the world won't…

I'm 100 percent on board with your last sentence. But I didn't mean to imply that all you need is a good tech team to be successful. I was simply making an argument that maybe the OP is undervaluing his own / his tech team's technical abilities because he is comparing himself to an elite subset of devs/engineers.

Maybe these CEOs bragging about their rockstars is not so unreasonable when compared against the nation as a whole.

Re: Startup CEOs: you are overestimating your tech talent

#26

Post by invalidOrTaken »

skrebbel wrote: post #23
theboss wrote: post #17

My question is this: Startups I see here are usually looking for the same kinds of people to help build their products (Rails, iOS, UI/UX, etc.). They look to really only hire people who are really good at things like this to build their product. Are these people the best people to have around later? Once your company has bigger problems than just getting something out the door are these people a hinderance? I don't…

I've wondered about exactly the same. Are generalists appreciated at all in the startup world?

You have to be careful with the word "generalist." It specifies a (lack of) specialization, not an absolute level of competence.

People who are equally mediocre at everything are worthless. People who are savvy and hustle at everything are worth their weight in gold. But it's hard to sell that.

Re: Startup CEOs: you are overestimating your tech talent

#27

Post by joeemison »

asdasf wrote: post #19

>usually the CEO is personally self-effacing and does not have that kind of personal arrogance. I haven't seen that. Usually I see the whole "my tech team are all the best awesomest rock ninjas" tripe from the CEO, and entirely because it is an extension of their personal arrogance and massive ego. You talk to the CEO and they have the best tech team in the world solving impossible problems nobody else can do, and yo…

In my experience, those who have made it to Series A have had enough humbling experiences to have learned how to hide obvious arrogance. I would agree with your assessment of brand-new CEOs, though.

Re: Startup CEOs: you are overestimating your tech talent

#28

Post by thecage411 »

Sakes wrote: post #21
joeemison wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think that the mediocrity of other tech organizations implies that functioning ones are "badass". It's a sad state of the world that "actually shipping products that work" qualifies for awesome/genius.

Writing software is hard. To quote Douglas Crockford "Writing software is the hardest thing you can do." So if as a team you are able to, manage client expectations, deliver on schedule, build a project that works to specifications, has good UI/UX, has a low user learning curve, meets performance requirements (obamacare site), is well received by users, I'd say your team is pretty great.

I know a lot more people who write software well than can guard Lebron James well.

Re: Startup CEOs: you are overestimating your tech talent

#30

Post by nostrademons »

hangonhn wrote: post #11
Sakes wrote: post #2

I don't know. If you have a team that is able to consistently ship products that work and are well received by your existing client base, you probably do have some badass tech guys. You don't necessarily have to claim that you are better than all other startups, you just have to claim to have a tech team that is magnitudes better than average teams at other companies. It is crazy to me how many failed projects are fl…

"I don't know. If you have a team that is able to consistently ship products that work and are well received by your existing client base, you probably do have some badass tech guys." From my experience, a good manager can ship with bad enginners but good engineers cannot ship with a bad manager. This is from the perspective from an engineer. We engineers need to stop kidding ourselves. We are good at certain problem…

Good engineers can ship with a bad manager, but it basically requires one of the engineers "managing up" and taking on the role of manager without pissing off his actual manager. That's a delicate balance to strike, but there are some folks (usually experienced engineers who have been around the block a few times, or folks who have previously held manager/executive positions but "downshifted" because they really like to code) that can pull it off.
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