Similarly, everyone involved with the company is part of the extended team. You should approach adding an advisor, a BOD member, or an investor with the same rigor that you do other members of your core executive staff. Ask questions and check references to make sure the person is going to bring real expertise to the dis- cussion, relationships and perspective that are additive, and a style that is a strong fit with the team. Of course economics are always a part of these decisions as well, but focus on the person first and then making sure it’s a “fair” deal. You aren’t going to build a dominant company by selecting second tier executives and advisors in order Anne Berkowitch to save money on their compensation packages, or by selecting second tier investors CEO, Select Minds for a little less dilution. “Team building is a critical part of For young and/or first time CEO’s, one of the most powerful things you can do to add our company, as well as our prod- experience to the management team is to mix in experienced external hires with young uct. Culture is central to recruiting and aggressive startup operators. The extreme examples of this are 20-something - particularly in driving referrals founders like Mark Zuckerberg at Facebook and Aaron Levie at Box who have both - and can even be powerful when looking to rehire past employees done a fantastic job of hiring extremely experienced executives while still preserving from your alumni network.” the energy and culture of a hot startup. Team is the single most important factor in determining whether or not we want to invest in a company, because our history shows that it’s the single most important determinant of company success. Bessemer Venture Partners 23