Define authority before a dispute requires it

Agree who carries final responsibility when discussion does not produce agreement. The chief executive officer, or CEO, needs a clear mandate. The title does not automatically belong to the person who first described the idea. Choose according to responsibility, judgment, and the ability to lead the work.

The role includes difficult conversations and decisions that receive little praise. A strong specialist may prefer another responsibility. Prestige provides a poor basis for assigning the job. Discuss the actual work before deciding who will do it.

Define the areas that other founders own and the issues that need a wider decision. Clear authority should let people act within their responsibility. It should also let them challenge weak reasoning.

Let roles change when the company needs different capabilities. Another person may eventually do your original technical or commercial work better. Your ownership gives you a reason to welcome that improvement. Protecting a title can reduce the value that the title was meant to help create.