Every Start-Up has a TISM

It's often said that most start-ups go through several pivots before they get to some form of market success. That pivot might be the product, its target audience, or the delivery (such as turning the product into a service). Such outward-facing effects change the way the company is seen by potential investors as well as customers, shaping the chance of success.

It is also almost always the case that there are internal pivots that shape what the company is, & what it looks like to itself (& to its board), & how it does business. Although multiple pivots can happen, there is usually only one that stands out in the history of the company - & I would like to christen it the "'This is Serious!' Moment" (TISM) in honour of a now-forgotten indie band of twenty years ago that had nothing to do with the rest of this article. This is separate from, but often related to the "Holy Cow!" moment (HCM) when things suddenly pivot for the better after a lot of hard work.

At some point, founders will gather in the garage or around the little table in the kitchenette of the office & know that, very soon, they won't be allowed to make world-shattering decisions by scrawling on the back of a bad printout, because everything they do is now more important. Often, this internal realisation is accompanied with a flurry of very corporate activity like hiring a CFO to actually be responsible for finances, or a project manager to guide releases - a layer of governance that doesn't sit well with a seat-of-the-pants operation, but is essential when things start to become serious.

Sometimes, you can miss the "This is serious!" moment because it happens immediately after the "Holy Cow! Someone gave us money!" moment (HCM), & that heady experience of losing your doubts over success - if only for a day or two - makes you miss the fact that, not only have you asked "What next?", but you always knew the answer - things get more serious.

Some companies seem to never grow up, never have a TISM - but it's always an internal moment, & almost always before the company goes public. You'll find that moment buried in the middle of biographies & exposés. It doesn't have much significance in itself, because every company does it, but no company that succeeds didn't do it. Google's TISM was probably hiring Omid Kordestani for sales. In the case of Microsoft, it was probably the move to Washington after successfully divorcing from MITS (eerie coincidence of letters).

Strive for the HCM, plan for the TISM. Don't get left wondering "What next?"