[wpietri]

Since I currently have a co-founder with design skills who champions user experience, I'm for that.

I'm also all for inspiring leaders. But in the startup context, I think the job of "designer" is as dangerous as its technical equivalent "architect". As Schell points out, design is a pervasive concern, just like software architecture is. A CTO who fancies himself chief architect is likely to drive off good talent, because talented people want to solve whole problems, not mechanically execute somebody else's vision.

I think the same applies for the visible sorts of design just as much as it does for the under-the-hood design: if everybody cares (which requires feeling empowered to make things happen) you'll get a better product.

[limedaring]

Exalting designers as founders does not mean the designers are sitting in a throne ordering their minions to do the coding. I'd argue that any startup that has a "designer founder" today, that designer is getting their hands dirty with working with the code — perhaps not to the level of a true developer, but actually ideating and executing their vision. Why not encourage this? Does every startup need to just be a business/dev pair with a designer employee, or is it okay to someone who feels they're a designer first in the founder position?

[wpietri]

My main issue here is with exalting "design" as if it were a separable activity from the rest of making something. Everybody at a startup should feel that they're a designer first. Because they are: each person's work should have a significant impact on the user experience.