What I Wish I'd Known Before the IPO of My Company
15:40 - 16:00, 23rd of May (Wednesday) 2018/ INSPIRE STAGE
VCs don't often tell you this, but they often expect only 25% of the founders of startups that become public companies to stay as CEO by the time of the IPO. The remaining 75%? They 'can't scale', as the investors put it.
Based on the experience taking a company from startup to NASDAQ, investing in 45 startups, and sitting on 19 boards, investor and coach Tim Jackson disagrees. Being CEO is simply a different job when your company has 5 employees, then 50, then 500. The challenge of staying in place is to acquire the skills you need as your company grows to 10x and then 100x.
With the right commitment to acquiring new skills, 50% of the founders who until now would be 'moved aside' by their investors should be able to stay on and grow with their businesses. This presentation tells you how.