In reflecting on the 10+ startups where I’ve been a founder or Senior Exec. I tried to glean the lessons that would lead me to the ground rules around the future companies I would be involved in creating.
One thing stood out. The Lack of Transparency.
Was a time suck
Undermined leadership and trust
Slowed down decisions
Created drama
Led to confusion
Created resentment
Lost good people
Angered good investors
In a startup you need to be able to get to the truth as soon as possible so that you can pivot boldly. ANYTHING that gets in the way of that threatens the future success of the enterprise.
It would be immensely courageous to push the boundaries of transparency in future companies, I intend to do just that. My inspiration, Gitlab uses their own product to document every decision the company has made since inception. This repository is now 8600 pages long and completely public.
Gitlab, thank you for the inspiration, I accept your challenge.
#innovation #startups #leadership #venturecapital #linkedineditors #startup #entrepreneurship #venturecapitalist #integritymatters
