Founder Advice from The Eagles — Part Two

By Yousuf Khan, Partner at Ridge Ventures

The greatest band in the history of the universe just announced their final tour. So of course I got tickets and look forward to hearing them take it to the limit one more time.

And, as luck would have it, the announcement coincides with another helping of Eagles-inspired founder advice.

In Part One, I shared tips ranging from team building and product development to stress management and leaning on the fundamentals. In Part Two, I dispense five more pointers that hopefully leave you with a peaceful, easy feeling considering the very unpredictable environment we are experiencing.

Generative AI is “The New Kid in Town”

Kinda goes without saying, right?

I won’t blabber on about the myriad of gen AI applications — mind-boggling as they may be — but studying how the likes of an OpenAI came together offers great insights for founders. At a high level, it’s not a bad idea to follow the OpenAI blueprint: combining great engineering, effective use of computational power, the ability of algorithms to organize data, and a great user experience.

Another lesson from the gen AI takeover is that people have short memories and gratification is more important than ever. We’re living in an experience economy. Whatever the AI product that is being sold, each of these companies need to allocate more money to customer experience. When there are lower barriers of entry to an industry, customer retention with the product will win. Full stop.

In terms of sustainability, enterprise solutions that will make it will combine gen AI with a clear workflow and solving a business problem. This may be a vertical problem or horizontal problem, but it must be very clear what the company is solving — and customer satisfaction must be sky-high.

“I Can’t Tell You Why” (Yes you can!)

It’s easy to praise employees when the good times are rolling, but the mark of any great founder is delivering constructive criticism that’s clear, motivational, and actionable.

Many times, the key ingredient missing from these conversations is the all-important why. Advising Steve or Stacy the salesperson to switch up their sales pitch or manage their time better will be far more effective if context is provided. Communicating the how ensures an actionable blueprint is in place, but the why fosters understanding and the inspiration to actually perform the desired behavior.

Show them the birdseye view. How does the employee’s performance affect their team and the company as a whole? Bring concrete examples to the conversation so the person sees why specific behaviors are detrimental and how they can change for the better. Remember that giving feedback is a skill in itself. Develop this as a founder and keep the feedback loop very short. Why? Because in challenging times, the team that is able to better align on goals is going to win.

“Love Will Keep Us Alive”

Can love save a company? Perhaps a bit idealistic. But love can’t hurt, and certainly can help a great deal. (Eric Yuan always worked towards having customers love Zoom. That worked out quite well.)

Being passionate about the product you’re building, and the team you’re building it with, is obviously a must — and one of the few things you can control in a down market. If a founder doesn’t love their product, how do they expect a potential customer to?

Speaking of customers, you’ll want to show them all the appreciation you can muster. Well, maybe not all. Too many wine-and-cheese gift baskets, or showing up at their office unannounced with a mariachi band, may be overdoing it.

Instead, be highly responsive (real-time responsive). Promote your customer’s brand across your social media channels. Provide a personalized experience that proves you know about their business, needs, and product configuration. A little love could make all the difference.

No time for “Wasted Time”

Things move a mile a minute. Google calendars are crammed. Most of us are lucky to check 30% of the boxes on our daily to-do lists, making prioritization the biggest priority of all.

Focus on tasks that move the needle: elicit feedback from a prospective customer; polish your fundraising deck; get the ball rolling on an A+ engineering candidate. Anything else is either superfluous or not as urgent. Take customer QVRs, for example. Only do these when the customer wants to. Otherwise just conduct an Annual Business Review or Business Review, upon request.

Limited bandwidth and a competitive landscape also call for faster decision-making. Define the problem at hand. Consider the available data and the potential outcomes. Tap your network for advice. Regardless, you’ll have more time to make a decision or course-correct if you effectively prioritize your objectives.

Shopify took the time management piece a bit far. I am still of two minds about this, but I do think every founder should take a data-driven approach to operational efficiency.

If possible, avoid “The Last Resort”

Layoffs. Termination. Furlough.

Outside of Mr. Burns, I don’t know of any founders who enjoy saying, much less thinking about, these words. Unfortunately, in the case of letting someone go, that’s sometimes unavoidable. But it is absolutely a last resort and should be treated as such.

If an employee is underperforming, take a step back before hitting the eject button. Hiring is expensive, you may not find a better candidate right away, and your team could be understaffed for a long time, especially for more niche positions.

Revisit why you or another manager hired this person once upon a time. What attributes landed them the job? Can these skills be rectified? It’s possible they are fatigued or stressed out and need to reset. If so, give them another opportunity and see if they can — you guessed it — “Take it to the Limit One More Time.”