"How to find your perfect co-founder" presented by Alexander Barge at Startup Camp Berlin 14.03.2015

How to ﬁnd your perfect co-founder Alexander Barge at Startup Camp 2015
How to ﬁnd your perfect co-founder
From realizing the importance of your team to assessing your future co-founders
Presented by Alexander Barge
March 14th, 2015 at Startup Camp Berlin

2
Introduction

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Finding your perfect co-founder
1 Realize the importance of execution and your team
Ace pitching and selling your idea and concept
Sharpen the proﬁle you are trying to ﬁll
Know the right places to go to and spread widely
Assess your possible co-founder with an open-mind
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3
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„Everyone who’s ever taken a shower has an idea.
It’s the person who gets out of the shower,
dries oﬀ and does something about it
who makes a diﬀerence.“
Realize the importance of execution and your team
Nolan Bushnell

5
Execution is the main driver for success
Idea Team Execution Performance
Don’t overestimate the value of your idea. Execution is what matters. Focus on building a great team, since they set the tone and mainly influence success.
Your idea is (just) the starting
point. It will evolve and
maybe even pivot.
Your team is the force
executing. Mediocre people
don’t build great products.
Your execution is the main
source of value creation and
drives the performance.

„Don’t worry about people stealing your ideas.
If your ideas are any good, you’ll have to ram them
down people’s throats.“
Howard H. Aiken

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The goal is to get people to believe in you
1 Prepare yourself, not just your idea
3 Specify why your counterpart should get involved
2 Take care of due diligence upfront
Pitching is about convincing someone to „invest“ in your idea, vision and ultimatly in you. Be prepared. Give your counterpart reason to care.

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This is not the way to do it

“You can’t ﬁnd what you want,
if you don’t know what you are looking for.”
Matthew E. Fryer

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Bottom up approach
Who are you?
What are your personal strengths and weaknesses? What are the skills you possess?
What experience do you have? How is your network in the desired field?
What are your core values? What is your vision?
Which skills are missing for great execution?
What skills are needed for a first prototype? What would a complementary partner look
like?
Build your team of 2-4 people with complementary skills and backgrounds, but with the same values and the same vision to assure culture fit.

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Using the BMC to identify gaps

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Top down approach
What do the teams of winners in your desired field look like?
What is the average size of the “perfect” team? Which backgrounds do the co-founders
bring to the table? How can those structures be applied to your case?
Learn from winners and best practices. Adapt this knowledge to your individual case.

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Now pitch your idea, yourself and the position
Title with clear description of position
Short executive summary
Background and motivation
Job description
Desired qualifications
Your offer and benefits
Next steps and contact information

“Until you spread your wings,
you'll have no idea how far you can ﬂy.”
Unknown

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Spread the word
Online platforms
Specialized online platforms are a great
starting point. They offer the desired
audience and tools to pick and choose.
Events
From specialized founder dating events,
to large conferences – there endless
possibilities to meet your co-founder
Network
From your inner circle, to old work
colleagues – leverage your network by
spreading the word.

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Online platforms (1/x)

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Events (1/x)

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Events (2/x)

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Events (3/x)

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Network (1/x)

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Network (2/x)

„You don‘t really know someone
until you get ridiculously drunk with them.“

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Getting to know each other
Get personal
Meet in person and get to know your future co-founder besides talking business.
Build up trust
Share your thoughts and insights. Trust your partner.
Get personal. Build trust. Align values and vision. Offer a clear understanding of what‘s on the table.
Align values and vision
What skills are needed for a first prototype? What would a complementary partner
Discuss the deal
What skills are needed for a first prototype? What would a complementary partner

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Summary
1 Realize the importance of execution and your team
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3
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5

Contact:
Thanks for
your participation
Facebook/abarge@barlexanderwww.mitgründer.com alexander.barge@gmail.com

"How to find your perfect co-founder" presented by Alexander Barge at Startup Camp Berlin 14.03.2015

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