There are many posts that define the job of the startup CEO. They are ALL different.
- Y Combinator says the startup CEO's #1 job is to build a product, and their #2 job is to build a company.
- Hackernoon says the startup CEO's #1 job is to put others in a position to succeed beyond their wildest dreams (and therefore: Look at where they are spending their time - then fire themselves from that position.)
- Inc Magazine says the startup CEO's #1 job is to generate energy into their company.
While all of the above are fair and accurate, there is one more #1 job that is much more basic. The #1 job of the CEO is to make sure you don't run out of money.
Cash is oxygen to a startup. The CEO does this by managing revenue, expenses, and external financing (via equity, debt, grants/funded development deals or other sources of financing) to maintain consistent growth of the business.
This article builds on content developed by the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship for MIT's Orbit Knowledgebase and is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.