While number of startups is growing everyday in Bangladesh, number of failed startups is rising as well. And one of the reasons of startup failure is founder mismatch. Having right co-founder is extremely important for any startup to succeed. Founder Institute Bangladesh organized an event recently named: ‘Startup Co-Founder 101: How to find the right partner’ at the city’s Brac University. Among the panelists and speakers, Zaki Omar of Grameenphone, Fahim Mashroor of Bdjobs, Sabbir Mahbub of Devnet, Barrister Hamidul Misbah of IP Plus Law Firm, Anita Ghazi Rahman of Legal Circle, and Alyssa Ransbury of Bikroy.com were present at the event and spoke on topics ranging from what to look for in a co-founder, how to effectively pitch your idea for potential co-founder, to how to construct a simple co-founder pitch.
Here is a short recap of advice- 03 Bangladeshi entrepreneurs offered at the event for aspiring entrepreneurs on finding right co-founder.
You should look for a person who adds value to your company. Choose a person you can trust as a co-founder. A perfect partner doesn't exist; you have to make someone fit for you and your idea.
Be open, ask questions, and be clear about your ideas and requirements when you are choosing a co-founder for your start-up.
Be transparent and as explicit as possible with everything. Make the deal clearer to both parties. Write down your every single discussion, negotiation from the day one when you are building a new company with someone else.
Trust is very important when you find a co-founder for your new venture. As a new entrepreneur, someone has to be always ready to fail, and of course for a good reason but if you don’t have mutual respect and trust things become stingy.
You have to be transparent in all aspects of running your business. Your financial transaction must be transparent and well tracked because often co-founders split up only because of this issue.
When finding co-founder, try to find one of these three types of people: a Tech guy, Business Development guy and of course a Finance Geek.
Chemistry between co-founders is very important in building a successful business. Starting a company is harder than what one can imagine. There will be hard times. There will be challenges. If relation between co-founders is not good enough it becomes difficult to carry on.
