Startup CEO Succession – Détails, épisodes et analyse

(This episode mentions suicide.)

Evgeny Shadchnev speaks with Adam Fudakowski, founding CEO of Switchee. Adam recounts the journey of founding Switchee in 2015, the tragic loss of his co-founder Ian, and the decision to hire an external CEO, Tom Robins, in 2020.

Adam elaborates on the emotional challenges of the CEO transition, and the deep impact on the company's growth. He shares insights on the importance of self-awareness, effective communication, and the sabbatical that paved the way for a successful leadership handover.

00:00 Introduction

02:20 Founding story of Switchee

03:57 Death of Adam's co-founder Ian

10:34 Search for the new CEO

15:17 CEO Transition process

18:39 Building a relationship between the founder and the CEO

20:18 Impact on the senior team

22:32 Impact on the business

23:39 Founder and CEO skill sets

26:46 Conversation with the board

29:15 Not stepping on each other's toes

32:00 Three month sabbatical

34:53 Advice for founders

38:33 Advice for investors

39:57 Advice for incoming CEOs

41:15 Adam's role after stepping down

44:47 Summary

You can watch the episode on YouTube. Find out more about Evgeny's work on Substack.Startup CEO Succession: a Founder's Guide to Leadership Transition is available on Amazon US, Amazon UK and others.

Rory Stirling, a partner at Connect Ventures, joins Evgeny Shadchnev to discuss the complexities of CEO transitions in startups.

The conversation delves into why founder-CEO discussions around stepping down are challenging, the importance of building trust between founders and investors, and what considerations both parties should have when navigating these delicate transitions.

Rory shares valuable insights from his 15-year career, including the importance of recognizing when a founder is no longer the right CEO and the processes involved in finding a new leader. The discussion highlights the significant role of founders, the critical aspect of handling CEO succession maturely, and the long-term commitment and timeframe required for such transitions.

00:00 Introduction

01:01 About Rory

01:56 Why founders and VCs find it hard to talk about CEO change

05:43 How to talk to a VC about stepping down

07:25 Discussing CEO succession during fundraising

15:20 How CEO role changes as the startup grows

16:31 Importance of founders for company success

22:56 Investors' reaction to CEO change

32:50 Right and wrong reasons to step down

38:33 Founder guilt about stepping down

42:21 What happens after the decision is taken

48:05 Transition timelines

50:52 Parting advice to founders and investors

54:10 The opportunity costs of not stepping down

You can watch the episode on YouTube.

Follow the podcast and connect with Evgeny's work on Substack.

Welcome to the Startup CEO Succession, where we dive deep into the pivotal journey of founder CEOs navigating the critical decision: should you continue leading your business or bring in a new leader?

I'm your host, Evgeny Shadchnev, and in each episode, we will examine the challenges, strategies, and success stories of leadership transitions in the startup world.

Whether you're a founder considering your next move, a professional CEO ready to take over, or an investor navigating the process, join us as we uncover insights that will help you steer your company towards a successful future!

Find out more about my work at substack.evgeny.coach.

This podcast is available on YouTube.

Startup CEO Succession: a Founder's Guide to Leadership Transition is out now: https://www.evgeny.coach/book

Avin Rabheru, the founder and CEO of Housekeep, talks to Evgeny Shadchnev about navigating a CEO succession. They discuss the challenges founders face in transitioning to professional leadership. Avin shares insights into the inflexion points in a company's growth, when founders might consider stepping down, and emphasises the importance of continuous learning for founders.

00:00 Introduction

03:31 Most Founders Think They're Great

07:30 Two out of Three Times Founders Are Pushed Out

09:47 Inflection Points in Business Growth

19:04 Could Someone Run Housekeep Better?

21:51 Balancing Leadership and Personal Life

25:16 Roles of Founder and CEO at Housekeep

29:48 What Founders Bring To The Table

32:51 Why Most Founding Teams Get Replaced

36:08 Identifying Strong Founders

42:37 "I Encourage All Founders To Just Keep Going"

50:42 A Fundamental Betrayal

53:16 Final Reflections

Learn more about Evgeny's work as a CEO coach: https://www.evgeny.coach

Startup CEO Succession: a Founder's Guide to Leadership Transition is available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CW1HLZTR 

Graham Hobson, founder of Photobox, Europe’s largest personalisation company, and Evgeny Shadchnev explore Graham's decision to hand over leadership to an external CEO as Photobox began to scale. Graham discusses the challenges and benefits of this transition, sharing his experiences with burnout and recovery. Additionally, they delve into Graham's advocacy work with Patriotic Millionaires UK, focusing on wealth taxation and social responsibility.

00:00 Introduction

01:59 Should We Tax Wealthy People More?

12:53 The Early Days of Photobox

18:18 A Merger with a Competitor

22:11 The Toughest Boss I Ever Had

29:13 Being Part of an Executive Team

30:00 Challenges That Shape Us

35:04 When To Go Fast and When To Go Slow

37:33 Advice To Own Son

41:36 Advice To Other Founder CEOs

46:26 Fresh Eyes Exercise for Leaders

51:02 Final Thoughts

Learn more about Evgeny's work as a CEO coach: https://www.evgeny.coach

Startup CEO Succession: a Founder's Guide to Leadership Transition is available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CW1HLZTR 

Jonathan Lerner of Smedvig Ventures discusses the critical journey from founder to CEO: the challenges of this transition, the importance of early and open conversations about CEO succession, and how speaking more openly about CEO succession can help founders be happier and help investors enjoy higher returns.

“It's a really big transition from founder to CEO. We need to talk about it more as an industry.  It is not a failure to not make it; it is merely, I guess, a statement of what you are great at and what you're not great at.

Once we get to that point, we'll have far happier founders and investors;  we'll have more successful businesses as well, so that the returns will ultimately be better.”

This podcast is hosted by Evgeny Shadchnev, an ex-CEO, author and founder coach specialising in CEO succession. Find out more about his work at evgeny.coach.

Startup CEO Succession: a Founder's Guide to Leadership Transition is out now. Get your copy on Amazon.

00:00 Introduction

01:35 What got you here won't get you there

03:23 CEO transition from VC's point of view  

10:11 When to start delegating

15:52 Backing founders, not evaluating CEOs

18:10 When is a startup ready for a new CEO?

21:11 Founders starting a succession conversation

27:25 Investors starting a succession conversation

29:49 Legal aspects of asking a CEO to leave

32:30 Wisdom of discussing it early

36:32 Transitioning to a non-CEO role

40:59 Rebalancing the cap table

43:09 Aligning a fundraise with a CEO succession

48:54 Internal vs external candidates

50:59 "It always happens too late"

52:31 Raising it at the board level

53:51 Balancing different responsibilities

56:18 The cost of not being close to the business

59:06 What helps founders grow into CEOs

01:02:18 Shifting the conversation as a community

01:04:17 The importance of building trust

01:06:38 Summary of the conversation

Tom Robins shares the story of taking over from Adam Fudakowski, A founder of Switchee, as the CEO.

We discuss the process of getting the first job as CEO, the differences between a founder's skill set and an operator's skill set, the dynamics of the relationship between a new CEO and the previous CEO if they stay on the team, and the board's role in the process.

00:00 Introduction

01:32 Joining Switchee

05:15 Founders vs CEOs

12:36 Landing the first CEO job

20:09 Taking an interim title

22:37 A 3-month sabbatical for the CEO

29:12 Earning the team's trust

32:45 Renegotiating the relationship with the founder

39:07 Building bridges with the board

42:43 Reshaping the senior team

44:38 Advice for aspiring CEOs

47:24 What founder CEOs get wrong

53:08 Episode summary

Evgeny Shadchnev is a founder coach who works with entrepreneurs and CEOs to ensure smooth CEO successions. Find out more about his work at www.evgeny.coach.

Startup CEO Succession: a Founder's Guide to Leadership Transition is out now. Find it on Amazon in hardcover, paperback and Kindle formats.

Evgeny Shadchnev discusses the transition of leadership at Makers, a tech talent and training platform, with Claudia Harris, who succeeded him as CEO. They reflect on their journey, starting from Claudia's initial role as chair of the board through the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the critical steps in the handover process. Claudia shares insights into managing the transition and the importance of doing work you love.

00:00 Introduction

01:47 What is Makers?

03:58 From Chairman to CEO of Makers

06:36 The Initial Conversations About Succession

11:13 The Decision to Change the CEO

18:35 Navigating the Pandemic

22:59 The Handover Process

31:12 First Crisis as the New CEO

35:11 Biggest Lessons

39:25 Final Reflections

Learn more about Evgeny's work as a CEO coach: https://www.evgeny.coach

Startup CEO Succession: a Founder's Guide to Leadership Transition is available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CW1HLZTR 

Henrik Hagemann, founder and former CEO of Puraffinity, joins Evgeny Shadchnev to explore Henrik's journey from founding the company to realising the need for a new CEO to take the business to the next level. Henrik discusses the challenges of making the decision together with the board, the rigorous executive search process, and how to handle the emotional and practical aspects of stepping down. They also delve into the importance of maintaining multiple personal identities outside the CEO role, the future vision for Puraffinity and Henrik’s new role.

00:00 Introduction

01:42 About Puraffinity

04:53 Henrik's Role as Founding CEO

08:57 The Decision to Step Down as CEO

23:30 The Search for a New CEO

35:57 Inclusive Hiring and Psychometrics Tools

39:36 Zeroing in on the Successful Candidate

42:16 Handover and Onboarding

46:29 Transitioning from CEO to New Role

51:29 Transition Lessons and Next Steps

56:56 Advice to Other Founders

01:01:30 Final Thoughts

Learn more about Evgeny's work as a CEO coach: https://www.evgeny.coach

Startup CEO Succession: a Founder's Guide to Leadership Transition is available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CW1HLZTR 

Alicia Navarro, founder and ex-CEO of Skimlinks, takes us through her journey from founding Skimlinks and building it into a leading content monetisation platform to making the tough decision to step down as CEO after 11 years and promote one of her senior leaders to the CEO position. Two years later, the new CEO successfully exited the company. Alicia and I discuss the difference between founder-CEO and scale-up CEO in the context of preparing to sell a VC-backed business.

00:00 Introduction

01:38 Founding Skimlinks

05:53 Deciding to Step Down as CEO

10:22 The Transition Process and Board Dynamics

15:02 Physical and Emotional Toll of Leadership

17:12 0-to-1 Founders and 1-to-N Founders

22:08 Post-CEO Work as President

23:45 Power Handover

29:02 Team Reactions and Culture Shift

30:48 Post-Transition Success

33:20 Reflecting on Leadership and Lessons Learned

37:35 Board's Role in the Transition

39:05 Life After the Exit

41:22 Advice for Founders and Future CEOs

49:46 The Importance of Succession Planning

51:32 Final Reflections

Learn more about Evgeny's work as a CEO coach: https://www.evgeny.coach

Startup CEO Succession: a Founder's Guide to Leadership Transition is available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CW1HLZTR