In general, it’s a terrible idea. At least past $1m-$2m in ARR or so.
Co-founders are great. Two-in-a-box even can be good.
But:
- Who do I report to?
- Who do the investors invest in?
- What if one co-CEO is clearly better than the other? This is very common and creates huge issues.
- What if my co-CEO believes in me but the other co-CEO doesn’t seem to?
- Simply recruiting can be confusing. I report to Rebecca co-CEO, who owns sales. But Loren co-CEO also owns sales? Huh? You don’t want to join a confusing environment like this.
It can work. Don’t get me wrong.
But only do it if it’s really clearly what you gotta do.
Otherwise, it leads to too many questions. Way too many