[waxman]

At a start-up there are at most only two roles:

Can you build it? Or can you sell it?

In tech start-ups, building it means coding, and that might be only role early on.

"Selling it" is broader than pure sales (E.g. Selling it to investors, to non-paying users, to bloggers, etc.), but you need a track record in selling (I.e. Not "analysis" or "marketing").

There's a reason why there is a programming bias: programming is 90% of the work at an early stage consumer web company. So get back to coding, or try something other than start-ups, because there is no job for an 'analyst' at a start-up (or a community manager, or a head of product, or a COO, or any other job that isn't building or selling).

[confusalyst]

Well, sales isn't a million miles away from some of my responsibilities now. Given that I couldn't build any of my ideas within even a half-decent time-frame I guess I'll need to co-found with a decent coder if I'm looking to start on my own.

For other stages I guess I'll need to expand on any sales-type work I do now while concentrating on my more general business skills.

[waxman]

Actually, to be blunt, if it's not sales it might as well be a million miles away.

Startups need people who build, who create, who do. Things like "strategy", setting up deals, introductions, "almost sales", etc. are, by themselves, worthless at a young company.

My advice to you would be this:

Learn to code, or, don't do a tech start-up.

I think it's a little bizarre that people without technical skills (or startup skills) feel compelled or even entitled to start a tech company. These are specific, hard skills (not unlike law or medicine), and if you don't have them you need to develop them or find another line of work.

You could still start a "technology-enabled" company, like HuffPo (a media company), or Gilte (a fashion retail company), but you should probably have specific domain expertise in the non-tech vertical that you want to work with.

If you want to "start the next Facebook", though, (I.e. build a scalable, virtual product) then I have news for you: if you can't code it, you can't do it.

[confusalyst]

"I think it's a little bizarre that people without technical skills (or startup skills) feel compelled or even entitled to start a tech company."

Don't worry, I have no such ideas of grandeur, only ambition. Although the lack of startup skills shouldn't be a barrier to starting a startup, right? After all, isn't that the best way to get the skills?

As for technical skills and tech startups: I agree, and this isn't strictly what I'm looking for, anyway. I have enough tech skills to hire a good programmer and to do every-day coding work after the initial core of a system is completed (by someone with better skills than me). Luckily, knowing this is an advantage: it puts me a step ahead of the people in my shoes who don't realise this.

That's great advice in terms of tech startups vs. tech-enabled startups. Thanks for that.

I'd be interested in your thoughts on roles such as 'advisor'? A friend of mine started a small tech company a few years ago and asked me for some advice. Having a good understanding in the theory (that's the CS degree doing its job) I could tell him what was needed and some possible issues... but I couldn't do it. That was enjoyable and worthwhile for all involved. I've no idea how to evolve that, though.