Founder Weekly (Issue 645 July 17 2024)

Founder Weekly - Issue 645

July 17, 2024

Founder Weekly

Welcome to issue 645 of Founder Weekly. Let's get straight to the links this week.

General

Launching a company is often pictured as a big splashy event with lots of media attention and hype. This can be scary! It also often results in founders delaying their launches, which then stalls the crucial lessons they could be learning. In this video, YC Partners discuss this common hesitation and why it can be harmful to the journey and growth of a startup.

How founders overcome the silent shackles digging at them.

DoorDash VP Jessica Lachs has grown the company’s analytics team from a band of scrappy generalists to a highly specialized 300-person org. Here, she spells out how founders can lay the groundwork for an analytics function at their startup and pick the right first hires for the team.

The article tests AI's ability to perform product management tasks compared to humans, using blind evaluations. Results show AI outperforming humans in two out of three tasks (product strategy and defining KPIs), suggesting AI is closer to replacing some PM functions than many might think, though human skills still remain valuable in certain areas.

Eric Glyman (CEO, Ramp) shared his operating playbook for leading one of the fastest-growing startups on his second appearance on the podcast. We also explored the unique ways Ramp leverages AI internally, strategies for startups to build moats in AI, and the concept of self-driving money. We concluded with one of the most profound and thoughtful discussions about hiring, motivations, and success I've ever had on the podcast. It was truly enjoyable to sit down with a seasoned portfolio founder.

Marketing, Sales and PR

Dozens of founders have used this technique to transform the cash-flow of their businesses. Now it’s your turn. 

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll dive deep into why TikTok is worth your time—and how to use TikTok for business to supercharge your ROI: understanding TikTok’s culture, what TikTok can do for your business, developing a TikTok marketing strategy, creating engaging content, measuring success: TikTok analytics.

Money and Finance

The 7 Levers of the P&L.

This talk highlights the resilience of public markets and the growing opportunities presented by AI.

In the last year, I've observed a "last $250K effect" where companies with limited financial runway exhibit a pronounced change in behavior and execution. As they approach their final $250K, teams become highly focused on essential tasks, prioritize key data metrics, and ruthlessly cut non-critical projects, mirroring the urgency and clarity seen in top-performing companies long before reaching a critical financial state.

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