

Ask HN: How do you evaluate non-technical co-founders? - noduerme

Everyone always talks about how hard it is to find technical co-founders. We have the opposite problem. We have, basically, all go and no show. We have a very original product that's still in stealth mode and we're trying to raise investment to launch it -- without turning it on to too many people. We have some commitments from friends (about $60k of the $250k we're trying to raise), but our geekness is turning into a problem. It's easy enough to find big-talking evangelists, and it's easy enough to find techies who get what we're talking about; but it's really hard to find evangelists who can also get out there and talk nuts &#38; bolts, and give the right answers when investors get all Perry Mason on them.<p>There are tons of websites dedicated to finding technical co-founders, and basically none dedicated to the non-tech kind. And to some extent it's probably because there isn't a simple test you can administer to check whether someone would be good for the job. I mean, there are ways you can test someone's technical knowledge. But how to test whether a non-tech has the stamina to be a long-term team player, the playfulness to be a great evangelist, the cajones to be a good salesperson, and the drive to never become complacent or lazy? That they're smart enough to play the part, that they're competent to maintain good business sense and good social skills -- I mean, what's the test for that? A dinner and drinks doesn't seem enough to know it (let alone an email exchange or a 30-minute interview.) And moreover, a lot of times we think the ability to hype something is key, and therefore people who hype themselves well must be good at hyping something we're building. To a certain extent that's true, but it's missing a key component: Trust. Trust granted is inverse to a person's ability to hype themselves. Put another way, the best salesment are humble, and generate sympathy as well as respect and adulation. We've yet to see much humility, or even humanity, in the people applying for this role.<p>So how do you evaluate non-technical co-founders, if you're an all-tech startup? For the longest time we've maintained we don't need them at all, but it's becoming obvious that in some ways, we really do. But without hard and fast rules for evaluation, we're operating on gut instinct, which can only take us so far.
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HoyaSaxa
There are many answers to your question, but when it comes down to it, you are
probably looking for someone who can network. Now I don't mean go hire the
douche popular jock whose daddy has some fancy title at a 500 company. Instead
look for someone who has the ability to make great connections. I would
suggest going for someone who has (or is) graduating from a "top" school with
a strong alumni network...but I have a feeling you already knew that. It
sounds like you already know what you want/who has the best potential. Its
just a matter of finding them. I would suggest making the interviewing process
a little longer than usual.

PS It seems like I fit the mold quite well so here is my shameless
solicitation.

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noduerme
Maybe you do. Maybe this post was about finding shameless solicitors. Who are
you and how do we get in touch?

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HoyaSaxa
Shoot me an email to cwg23 at georgetown.edu

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abbasmehdi
I will say to you what I say to those looking for technical co-founders: Learn
to do it yourself first, until then, you trying to evaluate them is like a
deaf/blind person being a judge on American Idol.

Think about it, a deaf/blind dude reading up on how to evaluate good
music/dance. Or flip the problem, do you think a business guy, pure and pure,
can read some stuff and then be able to judge which one of the guys on your
team is the best hacker?

I know the skill set is different, but the concept is universal: you have to
know a craft in order to appreciate it in order to know/tell the difference.

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petervandijck
"Learn to do it yourself first" -> that's like saying learn to play
professional football first before evaluating NBA candidates. You just can't.

Instead, evaluate them on smart, getting stuff done and culture fit, and then
have a techie friend who is really good evaluate their tech skills.

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actionbrandon
haha, your geekiness is showing

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Uhhrrr
There are two tools that come to mind. One is behavioral interviewing (which
is also IMHO useful for interviewing technical candidates once you know they
can code their way out of a paper bag):

<http://www.udel.edu/CSC/pdfs/behav_interview.pdf>

The other is using your network and references to actually get informed
opinions about candidates' long-term attributes.

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flignats
Get a biz guy that has a track record. When looking for a programmer your
skills get tested with scenarios, code, and such. The biz guy should have a
record of raising investment, pitching, networking, ect. If you are targeting
a newer biz guy - find what you think is a right fit and then have him pitch
you your own idea. Is it a good pitch or not?

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phektus
Take them to some drinks, and be sure to drink more. If you felt good with
them during the ordeal, then that's a sure sign.

Never wear your geek hat doing these types of things, you'll be putting them
through the technical sieve and that, as I know you've already experienced,
don't work.

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cappaert
See: <http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2378703>
[http://blog.hirelite.com/how-to-evaluate-a-non-technical-
co-...](http://blog.hirelite.com/how-to-evaluate-a-non-technical-co-founder)

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noduerme
Okay, thanks for the links. However, I hate to say this: I code for a living,
and I can't parse a lot of this __*t. I read the hirelite blog post a few
months ago and found it amusing, but not very helpful. The blog's subheaders
are:

Traction (nonsense marketing term; immeasurable hyperbolic bullshit; what
you're in after a skiing accident) Domain experience (.com? .net? .social?)
Marketing ability (ability to talk BS -- covered) Fundraising ability (as
above) Product skill (uses the term metrics way too many times; "skill" with
our product doesn't require Skill writ large anyway; that's the point of our
product.) Respect for development (we hope so) Relevant connections or
following (Dad? Mom? Facebook? We have those).

This, in short, does not help because it reads like what a non-technical co-
founder needs to know to get a job with us, not what we need to find the right
NTCF.

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petervandijck
Talk to them to test their attitude, general smartness.

Then look at past performance in the areas that you expect them to work
(making deals, raising money, sales, ...).

So then the question is: what do you need them for, specifically?

