The most valuable part of this article is in footnote #2:
"This could make sense if Mr. Business Guy had a MUCH better understanding of the market needs, the product capabilities, and the process required to build a product that evolved over time. Developing this skillset turns Mr. Business Guy into Mr. Product Guy, and makes him a much more attractive cofounder."
Oftentimes "technical co-founder" is a euphemism for an employee willing to work for deferred compensation. In my experience, it says that a "business guy" has an idea but no money, which causes me to doubt the "business" part, or at least infer that the "business" part is in selling the idea to people who will work for free.
Then again, I don't trust founders who won't invest their own money in their idea(s).
I couldn't agree more, it's not like that all the time, but far too often, the business co-founder isn't really bringing much to the table. Love the summary of your experience and conclusion :)
That said, I think we should be quick to realize that there are perfectly legitimate non-technical founders who add a ton of value. They just aren't guilty of the "looking for free labor" problem.
What should a technical person look for in a business guy? Connections? What else? I've worked with "idea guys" who don't seem to bring much to table and that has (probably unfairly) biased my perception on the value of an idea. I'd love to know what other skills to look at from the business side.
Both technical folks and business folks both have value that exist on a slider, and their value increases with experience. Judge anyone you want to work with on what you think they can do now, how much / how fast they can grow, and how in sync with you they are.
Keeping that in mind, look for tangible skills that could help push the company forward. Experience in Design, Product Management, Marketing/Sales, or some other useful skill is great. Experience with running companies, recruiting, fundraising are all positives. Some ability to generate PR (through fame or connections) is a positive. If those were successful ventures, even better.
What do you technical people think of business/idea guys that teach themselves how to code and begin working on their ideas themselves? Do you find it makes the business guy easier to work and communicate with?
"This could make sense if Mr. Business Guy had a MUCH better understanding of the market needs, the product capabilities, and the process required to build a product that evolved over time. Developing this skillset turns Mr. Business Guy into Mr. Product Guy, and makes him a much more attractive cofounder."