Founder Team Intake

How important is capital-light execution? Do you strongly prefer ideas that don't require significant upfront capital?

Software-only businesses typically scale faster with lower operational complexity. Physical products offer tangibility but require inventory, shipping, and logistics.

Inventory ties up capital, requires warehousing, and adds operational complexity. How much does this concern you?

Employees increase burn rate, add management overhead, and reduce flexibility. How important is it to minimize headcount?

Fast MVPs enable rapid market feedback and capital efficiency. Slower builds allow for more polish but delay learning.

Some ideas have obvious go-to-market paths (SEO, existing audience, partnerships). Others require discovery. How much certainty do you need upfront?

Recurring revenue (subscriptions, contracts) provides predictability and higher valuations. One-time sales require constant customer acquisition.

B2B typically offers higher contract values and lower support burden. B2C offers larger markets but more competitive, lower-margin dynamics.

Short sales cycles (self-serve, SMB) enable fast iteration. Long cycles (enterprise) mean slower learning but larger deals.

High-margin businesses are more forgiving of customer acquisition mistakes and reach profitability faster.

Healthcare, finance, and education offer large markets but require compliance expertise, licenses, and slower iteration cycles.

Platforms provide distribution but take a cut, impose rules, and can change terms or block you. How much does this risk concern you?

Bootstrapping preserves control and forces discipline. VC enables faster growth but requires hitting aggressive milestones and eventual exit.

Customer support adds staffing costs, slows iteration, and can become a major operational drag. Self-serve products minimize this.

Complex technical challenges can create moats but extend development time and require specialized expertise. Simple solutions ship faster.

Strong moats (network effects, data, switching costs) protect against competition but may require longer build times or specific architectures.

Repeatable playbooks (SEO, paid ads with proven CAC) reduce risk. Experimental approaches may unlock advantages but carry execution risk.

Fast feedback (daily/weekly usage, quick buying decisions) enables rapid iteration. Slow feedback increases the cost of being wrong.

Some ideas have clear playbooks and proven models. Others require inventing new approaches. How comfortable are you with uncertainty?

You'll work on this for 2-5+ years. How important is it that the day-to-day work is energizing rather than draining?

This shapes everything from capital strategy to team building to acceptable burn rate.

Staffing philosophy impacts burn rate, flexibility, and founder workload.

Product type determines operational complexity, margins, and scalability.

Revenue model impacts cash flow predictability, sales motion, and valuation multiples.

Distribution risk is a top reason startups fail. How much uncertainty can you stomach?

Sales motion determines team composition, burn rate, and time to revenue.

Capital strategy impacts ownership, pressure, and strategic flexibility.

Regulated markets (healthcare, finance, legal) offer protection from competitors but slow iteration.

Time-to-revenue impacts cash needs, risk tolerance, and iteration speed.

Motivation type influences persistence during hard times and strategic direction.

Customer segment determines sales complexity, deal size, support needs, and competitive dynamics.

Support burden impacts staffing, margins, and founder time allocation.

Competition strategy shapes positioning, marketing spend, and product development priorities.

Different moats require different build strategies and timelines.

Operational complexity impacts scalability, capital needs, and founder time.

GTM style impacts cash needs, skill requirements, and time-to-scale.

Acquisition philosophy impacts risk profile and capital requirements.

Exit preference shapes growth rate expectations, capital strategy, and decision-making.

Decision-making style impacts speed, culture, and how disagreements are resolved.

Collaboration model impacts accountability, speed, and working relationships.