A Rubric To Evaluate Non-Technical Co-Founders

👋 Hey I’m Abe (@abe_clark). I recently quit my job as Director of Engineering at LoanSnap to go build a startup. After killing my first startup experiment, I have interviewed over 70 non-technical people in search of my future co-founder. 

For non-technical founders, the first (and often more challenging) pitch is to onboard a technical co-founder. It’s no wonder VCs unilaterally say they invest in the people. The act of gathering more than one talented person to work on the same idea is non-trivial. 

I’ve recently filtered my co-founder funnel size from over 70 down to 3. Each time I pass on a potential non-technical co-founder, their question is always the same – “What are you looking for?”. 

When I started co-founder dating, I wasn’t even sure what my criteria would be. The more potential co-founders I chat with, the more clear my criteria have become.

First, the approach outlined here is designed to be as objective as possible. It’s vital to acknowledge that the best decisions are made by combining objective and subjective inputs. This objective approach isolates key factors and provides a framework for high-level appraisal. It will never be a substitute for subjective factors like your gut feeling, spiritual promptings, or whatever term you espouse. The outcome of this rubric is one of several data points you should consider in your decision.

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