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- ♞ Common Problems: Team Slide
Today, we continue the 10-issue series in which I discuss the most common problems that I see on each slide in founders’ pitch decks. Today’s issue will look at the team slide.
What is the most common problem with the team slide?
The team slide is a very tricky one for a few reasons:
Placement - This slide can be your third slide or your third-to-last slide. Your cover slide and perspective framer are the only slides guaranteed to come before it. The only slides guaranteed to come after are your closing slide and the ask. Otherwise, it can fit in anywhere based on the narrative that you are using. I’ve even seen founders successfully “decentralize” their team slide by having each team member tied to another slide where their skills are best used. So your CTO to your solution slide, CEO to the business model slide, etc.
Highlights - There is so much that you can say about each person that it is often difficult for founders to summarize it down to just a few words per person.
Stage - Depending on the stage of your company, pre-seed to Series A+, the importance and emphasis of your team slide changes. Keeping up with these changes is challenging for many startups.
Hiring - Many founders don’t know how to properly address hiring and shortfalls on their team.
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What are the most common mistakes I see on the team slide?
Highlights - Many founders chose the wrong things to highlight in their background. Nobody cares about your Arts degree. You should include (i) previous business experience, (ii) relevant degrees (medicine for biotech, engineering, comp sci, business, economics, etc.), (iii) any evidence of returning capital to investors.
Team Dynamics - Founder breakups are the top cause of startup failure. You can help elevate those concerns by discussing your team dynamics during the team slide; how did you meet? have you worked together before? how long have you known each other? etc.
Skill Gaps - If you have an obvious skill gap, don’t try to hide it. Instead, proactively acknowledge it and plan to hire for it. If it’s a key gap that requires a “founder” to fill, then set aside equity for someone to come aboard in that role.
When building your deck, make sure to avoid these common problems!
Does your deck feature any of these common problems? |
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