The Startups Most Likely to Succeed Have Technical Founders Who Quickly Hire Businesspeople

Companies that are equipped with both business and technical skills are disproportionately more likely to introduce new-to-the-market innovations than firms that have only one. However, not all firms that are equipped with both types of skills are able to profit from them. Firms profit disproportionately from a mix of business and technical skills when the founder has technical knowledge and employs additional business experts. By contrast, we find no evidence of complementarity either when business and technical skills are balanced within a founding team or when a founder with business skills hires employees with technical skills.