Great piece by Reid Hoffman on the Founder CEO role. He basically agrees with the more modern (last 10+ years) assertion that it is better for the company to stay with the Founder CEO, as opposed to bringing in a "professional" CEO. But he is really making the case that the issue is less about bringing in a new CEO to replace a founder, and more about the mindset of the newly hired CEO, should a company go that route, and his/her ability to forge a genuine bond with the founder(s).
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Founder is a state of mind!
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So as it turns out, Ben was right. You always do want a Founder-CEO. But that person doesn’t always have to be the Founding CEO. Being there at the start isn’t the only path to being a founder. “Founder” is a state of mind, not a job description, and if done right, even CEOs who join after day 1 can become Founders.
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