Creating a Startup Part 3: Three Crucial Aspects We Don’t Talk About Enough
Founding a startup is easy compared to what awaits you afterward. In the beginning, a company changes daily, bringing new challenges and opportunities; a new partner comes up with a project, employees come and go, and difficult decisions must be made.
So, how do you navigate your startup successfully?
In an interview, the thee co-founders – Remo Höppli, Philipp Lötscher, and Charles Chojnowski – talk about three aspects that aren’t being talked about enough and are vital for your startup’s success.
TLDR
This blog entry explores three crucial aspects of a startup: Projects, Identity and Employees. With the help of Remo, Philipp and Charles, this article makes touches upon interesting and helpful points:
- Take as many projects as you can work on in the beginning. However, also consider that some projects take longer than others. It is essential to assess each and every project you are working on.
- Some projects will fail, some will be successfull, and some will turn into something new.
- A corporate identity helps to find yourself and your niche. It also functions as a playground to generate new customers and partners.
- Consider specialists as well as inexperienced generalists as employees; a good mix of both can be advantageous.
- Be ready to constantly learn new things and stay flexible in your thinking.
- Be realistic
- You are never done
Projects: About Quality and Quantity
“What you do won’t affect people from the start. Start simple and go from there.”
As a company, you are usually selling a product or a service. A project is associated with something you provide, be it a customized service or product or something you sell to a customer, like a tee-shirt.
Depending on the popularity, a few or many can demand your product or service. Here, the quantity matters as much as the quality: Few big projects are as good as many smaller ones. However, it is crucial to consider that you have limited resources to work on everything. Taking on everything and having no employees to work on the projects will unquestionably delay them. Here, you might have to be realistic and make some decisions. As Remo Hoeppli, Co-founder of Earlybyte says: “If you have too many projects, you may need to cut or split it up.”
“Don’t expect to change the world from one day to another. Make one person happy and go from there”
New projects usually change the startup: You might earn enough money to hire new employees, or it creates another idea worth exploring. Charles Chojnowski explains: “An idea can turn out into something worth working on; it shapes the company.” So, even if the initial project is a failure, gained experience and realizations might point in a new direction through careful reflection.
Identity: About Finding Out Who You Are
“You from the startup, and the startup will form you.”
The more projects you take on, the more your startup evolves into the company you envision. You get a sense of who you are and where you want to go – as a person and as a company.
A clearly defined corporate identity helps in this process of finding yourself. Having values and visions written out can be advantageous, especially in the beginning. You influence how your customers/partners perceive you, whereby relatability and professionalism are important.
It sounds pretty simple, really: find out who your target audience is and what they like. However, your corporate identity should be alive and constantly changing. As a startup, you have to be ready to change and adapt. By slowly finding your niche, your identity may no longer coincide with your predefined one. If that’s the case, change inevitable, and sticking to something that does not fit anymore can be a considerable stumbling block.
Creating a sense of who you are as a company is vital: You can start to play around and explore different approaches, especially in the marketing department. Social Media, events, and goodies such as tee shirts and stickers can contribute to an attractive appearance and allow you to stand out from your competition. Additionally, having a public presence can generate new clients and partners and help with networking and finding new employees.
“Endless possibilities will show you what you want and what not.”
As Philipp Lötscher says correctly: “Creating a startup is a HUGE learning experience, also about yourself, who you are and where you want to go.” A startup is a challenge, a hard one. It involves failure as much as success — if not more. We as people grow from the experience, and an everchanging project such as a company provides exactly that. If you, as a person, are not ready to change yourself and reflect on your experience, your startup will suffer.
We all learn from each other, which is especially important in a startup. Listening to your employees offers you more perspectives; they are a part of the company’s identity.
Employees: About Specialists and Generalists
With more projects and financial stability, more employees will start working for your startup; you will grow. However, with the possiblity of new hires, the question of who you want to employ comes up. This question is especially fundamental with the recent rise of the generalist emplyee.
What is the difference between a generalists and a specialist, then?
The most significant difference lies in experience and the field an employee can work. While a specialist is well trained and experience in a particular area – take business development, for example – a generalist is not specialized, but can handle various tasks, often with little to no experience in the field they are working. However, they bring a wider variety of skills, making them as valuable as specialists.
Especially young startups might consider hiring both generalist and specialists, as they bring different added values to the table. While specialists provide helpful knowledge from the field they are trained in, generalists, having a broader skillset but less know-how, can be appointed where they are most needed. Therefore, finding a mix between specialists and generalists allow you as a company to be more flexible and grow simultaneously.
Tipps & Tricks
Be ready to constantly learn new things and stay flexible in your thinking
Things change quickly in a startup. It might not be in your favor if you are not prepared to go the extra mile, take risks, and change your perspective. This also includes help from outside, such as having advisors or counselors. Take the help you need, especially in the beginning, and be ready for the unexpected.
Be realistic
You and the startup both have limits. It is important to know where those limits are, especially regarding the amount of work. You cannot do everything with the number of people working for you. Being realistic also means making hard decisions to grow and achieve progress and success. This means that you might have to cut off some projects that promise profit in the future but generate financial loss at the moment.
You are never done
Even though you have a vision and know where you want to go, it is essential to understand that a startup is here to last. There should always be a next goal, a new vision, pointing towards where you want to go next. Your possibilities are endless, even if it sometimes doesn’t feel like it. Achieving your. goals usually means success, and growth and change are imminent. With change, new opportunities and possiblities will show up and you may be able to explore new ideas.
About the Author
I’m a marketing and communication manager at a startup and study german and english language and literature at the University of Bern. My blog consists of articles about the startup scene as well as poetry and the expression of my love for literature.
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