The 6 Must-Have Skills for a Startup CEO

Chief Executive Officer?  Chief Visionary?  Chief Cheerleader?  Chief Salesman?  Chief Funding Officer?  Chief Communications Officer?  Chief Team Builder?  Chief Lightbulb Changer?  Chief Coffee Maker?  Yup, all of these titles apply to the role of a startup CEO.  It is perhaps one of the hardest jobs to do in the business world, given the wide range of skills required to excel.  This is one of the reasons only 10% of startups actually succeed, as it takes a really special person that has the right combination of skills and startup DNA.  In many ways, a much harder job than a CEO of a Fortune 500 company, minus the big salary!!

When it comes down to the core skills required, a startup CEO needs: (1) a clear vision of where the ship is sailing; (2) a finger on the pulse of the industry and competitive trends, to navigate the ship over time; (3) solid team management skills to keep all employees sailing in the same direction; (4) impeccable sales and motivational skills, while maintaining credibility with clients, investors and employees; (5) to keep the business on plan and budget; and (6) keep the company liquid.  I’ll tackle each of these points below.

Read the read of this post in Forbes, which I guest authored this week.

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