Last week, Paul Graham published an interesting article about what he called “founder mode” vs. “manager mode”.
Manager mode, essentially, means: “Hire good people and give them room to do their jobs.” This advice is frequently given to founders who want to scale their startup.
Only that, according to Graham’s article in which he taps into the experience of many successful founders, it doesn’t work well for many founders. It led to bad decisions and unclear paths.
The conclusion Graham draws is that this advice is mostly given by people who haven’t founded their own company, CEOs who have been promoted to that role, rather than having built the company. But apparently what works for “managers” doesn’t work as well for founders.
Therefore, Graham suggests that founders should much rather apply “founder mode”, which means getting deeply involved in the actual work, attending meetings a CEO wouldn’t normally attend, and guiding even little decisions. And only much later, if at all, switch to manager mode.
I think Graham’s got a point.
But.
I also think he misses another crucial point.
Manager mode works. But at first only.
When a manager is promoted to succeed the CEO, it means they can build on a culture, values, and principles that are already established. The path is already laid out.
Trusting the team means, at least to some degree, trusting in that path.
For founders, though, that path doesn’t exist yet.
It needs to be created as you go.
Basically, each decision shapes the path. If you take manager mode too literally, it can easily mean that the path is in danger of becoming too fragmented or disoriented.
Founders almost certainly need to light the path. That’s why they need to get involved in the “actual” work and help shape how decisions are made in the business.
But.
I don’t think that changes for established businesses. When you’re a hired manager you might get away without lighting the path for a time. But sooner or later that will backfire.
As teams explore freedom in how they do their jobs, the path will likely broaden. The path is in danger of becoming too fragmented or disoriented.
However, that doesn’t mean that you would need to micromanage, which Graham suggests the alternative would be when you’re in manager mode. You can light the path and trust your team.
What you need is a culture of “getting it right” over “being right”.
Founders, just like managers, who insist that they are right and the team is wrong will fail in either mode.
You need both. The will to shape the path. And trust in the team.
You need the will to get it right.
You need to get clarity on how choices are made in your business.
And that clarity needs to be shared among the team.
PS: Incidentally, in my new book “The PATH to Strategic Impact” I explore how to do that.