The Power of Professionalism

Investors excited about funding high-potential startups are also eager to mitigate their risk by ensuring that the startup founders and leaders are experts in their domain with the professional expertise to build a high-growth company. That often unspoken reality puts a premium on startup leaders’ reputations for professionalism.

Professionals have specialized knowledge and skills in a particular field, combined with high expectations for accountability, ethical standards, adaptability, and commitment. Often quietly mentioned as “adult supervision,” investors are on the lookout for startup teams that combine:

• Deep customer needs expertise – Does the team know enough about its customers, their problems, and their industry-specific context?
  
  
• Technical expertise – Most high-potential startups are bringing some sort of technical innovation to bear on solving their future customers’ unmet needs. The nature of that technical expertise can range from scientific or medical knowledge to engineering skills to software development prowess.
  
  
• Business leadership – What makes a startup high potential is the possibility of building a fast-growing, large-scale business. A vast array of experience, skills, and knowledge are relevant, ranging from recruiting and managing people, funding growth, positioning and selling novel products, navigating regulatory requirements, managing legal and financial operations, and doing all the balancing between the different business-building aspects.

A strong founding team often has skills in all these areas, and the area that tends to draw the most investor attention is the role of the overall business leader (a.k.a. CEO) who will guide and integrate all the moving parts. Evaluating the capability to manage these many dynamic components professionally is a challenge. To find someone they trust to lead the business, investors will look for educational markers like a master’s in business administration, progressive previous experience managing business functions, and the ability to explain their business plans and respond credibly to investor questions. They will also look at the startup’s track record of progress and accomplishment under that CEO’s leadership and check references to get perspectives on past performance reputation.

Inspiring the confidence of investors, team members, prospects, and partners is a challenge – and it often comes down to the professionalism that the CEO can demonstrate. Professionalism is not just the job that you do but the way that you do the job. Some of the building blocks of a strong professional business reputation for a startup CEO are:

• The ability to skillfully and conversationally demonstrate mastery of essential business skills such as financial, accounting, and fundraising literacy; an understanding of core business functions like marketing, sales, operations, finance, human resources, P&L management, and so on; plus industry-specific knowledge. This is the deep well of competence that enables a startup CEO to make wise decisions because they have the knowledge and skills to get the job done.
  
  
• Strong, confident leadership experience, including the ability to articulately cast a vision, make sophisticated prioritization decisions, and align teams to accomplish ambitious goals. Look outward and lead.
  
  
• Superb emotional intelligence, communication skills, and nuanced problem-solving insight enable being the company’s public face, finding common ground that forms the foundation of win-win partnerships, and building all manner of potent relationships.
  
  
• Continually operating at a very high standard, visibly and behind the scenes. Authentically own the whole organization’s performance. Be responsible, accountable, and decisive. 
  
  
• Handle disappointing outcomes well. Even if something doesn’t go the way you hoped, handle it professionally. For example, be honest and direct. Respect and uplift others. Say thank you.
  
  
• Consistently demonstrated trustworthiness enables a business leader to persuade people to follow their lead. Listening, responsiveness, telling the truth, and doing the right thing even when it is hard are all hallmarks of trustworthiness. Be worthy, and when others learn they can rely on you, trust abounds and enables excellence.
  
  
• Respect and honor those who took a chance on you/your company, whether they are team members, suppliers, pilot and early adopter customers, or investors.

Just because someone decides to found a startup or manages to leverage their large corporate experience into getting their first startup CEO job does not mean they have the professionalism to succeed. Unfortunately, those lacking the requisite professionalism often do not realize the gap. Too frequently, I have heard the conversations where those they need to succeed are wondering aloud and sharing examples of a lack of integrity, a failure to understand what is important, a fear of confronting and dealing with a problem ethically, overselling, and overall just not having the serious gravitas that it takes. If results are not coming as expected despite lots of persistence and effort, consider seeking out someone with experience in the space who has had a chance to observe you – and ask for and listen to their feedback. You might discover some critical growth areas that, if resolved, can unlock your success. 

Professionalism is that robust quality that helps startup leaders impress and inspire others, accomplish incredibly innovative things that make an impact, and know a deep sense of satisfaction and self-worth. The positive long-term consequences of your professionalism show up when investors choose to back your next opportunity, team members give their all, customers both buy and recommend, and trust abounds. You will know you have accomplished it when your reputation precedes you and people choose to align with you. Never forget that you – and your reputation – spans companies.