Why Start-Up Founders Should Look for a Generalist Advisor, Not a Specialist

As a start-up founder, it's important to have an advisor with a diverse skill set and industry expertise. Learn why a generalist advisor may be a better fit for your business than a specialist.

FounderFriend Logo & StartUp Consultant James Sinclair running a Design Thinking Workshop.

In today’s start-up landscape, everything must be cohesive and aligned in order to achieve success. There are no silos in a start-up, and the CEO is often responsible for doing the majority of the heavy lifting. Everything is hyper-connected, and it’s crucial to understand how different areas of the business impact one another.

One of the key benefits of a generalist advisor is their ability to see the big picture and understand how different areas of the business are interconnected. They can help the CEO and other members of the team understand how product development impacts marketing and sales, how implementation and usability impacts customer happiness, and how customer happiness impacts everything else. This holistic view can be invaluable in a start-up, as it allows the team to make strategic decisions that take into account the long-term impact of those decisions.

For instance, a generalist advisor can help the team understand the importance of product-led growth and how it relates to customer happiness. Product-led growth is a strategy where the product itself is the primary driver of growth, and customer happiness is a key metric for measuring success. A generalist advisor can help the team understand how product development, marketing, and customer support all play a role in driving product-led growth, and how it ultimately impacts the overall success of the business.

In addition, a generalist advisor can also help the CEO and the team understand the importance of all the other parts of the business and how they interrelate. They can provide insight into how marketing and sales impact product development and vice versa, how usability impacts customer happiness, and how customer happiness impacts everything else. This understanding can help the team make strategic decisions that take into account the overall impact of their actions on the business.

In summary, a generalist advisor can provide start-up founders with a holistic view of their business and help them understand how different areas of the business are interconnected. This understanding can help the team make strategic decisions that take into account the long-term impact of their actions and ultimately help to accelerate scale and achieve success.

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