preIPO...)

mcbennett.wordpress.com

Interesting POV from Icahn and definitely in stark contrast to the "Founder-CEO" philosophy being embraced by the startup community.

I can only speak from my perspective as what the article would define as "pre-investment CEO", which I daresay, isn't demanding of the title "CEO" at all.

Too many young entrepreneurs get overly ambitious with the titles and noise, and forget that before all the levels of management and bureaucracy (Chesky's 3 Roles), a business needs first a product and to sell it. Execute as a builder or a seller first, then, MAYBE then, you'll get to worry about titles and management roles.

I'm not too worried about titles either, just what does the person who identifies in that role do? Pre-investment, they are a builder in many cases who makes code or makes a community or makes something. In each of the stages, it seems that the role changes radically.

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