The Founder's Journey Through the Lens of the Stages of Development

Building a company isn’t just about the founder’s vision — it’s about scaling that vision as the company matures. This is where the dynamic between Founder Mode and Leader Mode comes into play. Founders are responsible for driving the company forward, but as our companies grow, the need for specialized leaders — people who can build the systems and processes that enable sustainable growth — becomes critical.

In Part 7 of the Founder Mode Series, we explored the secret ingredients founders use to build damn good, if not great, companies. We dug into the key elements that define the founder’s journey, from finding a problem worth committing to for decades to the grit and resolve required to keep pushing forward when times are tough. We highlighted the deep emotional investment we have in our companies and why, at times, we operate in Founder Mode — a holistic, instinctual state that helps us create something both compelling and enduring.

In this part of the series, we’ll explore the five Stages of Development a company moves through, from survival to stewardship, and how our role should evolve to balance the strategic push of Founder Mode with the operational stability of Manager Mode. We’ll discuss how great founders recognize the importance of bringing in leaders and managers who share our visions and why focusing on the interplay between these modes as companies scale is essential.

Stage 1: Survive

The Stages of Development is one of our foundational frameworks for measuring a company’s progress as it grows, and in Stage 1, the idea of a company is fighting for its life. Everything rests on the founder’s shoulders, and we’re operating in full Warrior Mode. (In case you missed it, I discussed the 13 essential modes for founders in an earlier article in this series.) There’s no room for long-term planning or delegation — this is about survival. Magician Mode is also key here since we invent solutions on the fly with limited resources.

Key Modes:

• Magician Mode: We’re constantly innovating, pulling solutions out of thin air to keep the company moving forward.
• Warrior Mode: Survival is a daily battle, and we’re doing whatever it takes to overcome obstacles and keep the idea of the company alive.

Why It Matters

At this stage, those around us might see us as reactive and unpredictable. But in reality, we’re doing whatever’s necessary to ensure our vision for the company doesn’t die. This is Founder Mode at its most intense — seemingly chaotic, but often the only way to endure.

Where Founder Mode Tends to Manifest Most

During this stage, the founder is likely to be pulled into every crisis. The messiest areas tend to be product development and finding product-market fit — in other words, figuring out what the market is going to value while keeping the business afloat financially. There’s constant tension between innovating on the fly and making quick operational decisions, and we’re at the center of it all, reacting to problems as they arise. This is where Founder Mode gets messy, with us involved in nearly every aspect of the business, often juggling too many things at once.

Stage 2: Sustain

In Stage 2, the company has found some stability, but it’s fragile. The founder is still driving most of the action, but the first steps toward building a structure are being taken. Magician Mode remains important, but Leader Mode starts to emerge as we begin to organize a small team.

Key Modes:

• Magician Mode: We’re still innovating, but now it’s more about refining early successes and creating a sustainable foundation.
• Leader Mode: We begin organizing the team and defining roles, accountabilities, and responsibilities.
• Manager Mode: Whether we like it or not, we are now needing to operate in Manager Mode until we begin to appoint dedicated managers, typically specialists who can handle key operational tasks. These managers should not only be competent but also buy into our vision and be able to handle our intensity while in Founder Mode.

Why It Matters

At this stage, people may see us alternating between creative energy and attempts at organization. We’re balancing the need for innovation with the challenge of creating stability. Being in Founder Mode at this point is about maintaining control of the vision while starting to delegate to others.

Where Founder Mode Tends to Manifest Most

The founder is most likely to be drawn into operational bottlenecks where early processes break down, roles aren’t clearly defined, and the business hasn’t yet fully stabilized. When things get messy, we jump back into Magician Mode, coming up with quick fixes, or step into Leader Mode to reorganize the team. The tension between keeping innovation alive while trying to impose structure is where things are most likely to pull us back in.

Stage 3: Scale

In Stage 3, the company is poised for growth, and the founder’s role becomes more complex. The company can no longer rely solely on our ingenuity — it needs to scale people, processes, and systems. Both Leader Mode and Manager Mode take precedence here as we focus on building a Senior Leadership Team that can execute the vision.

Key Modes:

• Leader Mode: Scaling requires leadership. We’re focused on building a team and establishing scalable processes while being less involved in daily operations.
• Visionary Mode: We start looking ahead, focusing on long-term growth and ensuring the company’s trajectory aligns with the broader vision.
• Manager Mode: More managers are brought in to oversee operations, helping the company to scale without losing its core identity. These managers should understand and support our vision while also managing the day-to-day.

Why It Matters

As the founder steps back from daily involvement, the company relies more on managers who can execute our vision. While Founder Mode becomes more strategic, it still surfaces during critical decisions. Running around in Manager Mode becomes essential for scaling the company effectively.

Where Founder Mode Tends to Manifest Most

In Stage 3, the founder is likely to be pulled back in during moments where scaling has gotten messy — when systems break down or when new hires struggle to execute our vision. This is where we’re drawn into Leader, Visionary, and Manager Modes, trying to ensure growth doesn’t derail the company's vision. The friction between our vision and the operational challenges of scaling tends to trigger more than our fair share of Founder Mode in these moments.

Stage 4: Succeed

By Stage 4, the company has reached a level of success. The founder steps further back from day-to-day operations, focusing on long-term strategy and mentorship. The Senior Leadership Team consists of strong, expertise-based leaders who can recruit, hire, and onboard managers to oversee the day-to-day, but the founder still plays a crucial role in guiding the company’s vision.

Key Modes:

• Coach Mode: We shift into a mentoring role, helping develop the Senior Leadership Team and guiding them to become stronger leaders.
• Visionary Mode: We continue to drive the vision and explore new opportunities to sustain the company’s success.
• Leader Mode: Expertise-based leaders are now recruited to oversee the company’s operations, ensuring that the vision is executed effectively and maintaining the company’s growth.

Why It Matters

By this stage, our presence in Founder Mode becomes less frequent but remains important during pivotal moments. Leaders take on the majority of operational responsibilities, freeing us to focus on the company’s future.

Where Founder Mode Tends to Manifest Most

As the company succeeds, Founder Mode is most likely to emerge during moments of strategic decision-making — when big bets need to be made about the company’s future direction, new markets, or major hires. We’re drawn into Visionary Mode and Coach Mode, especially when guiding the Senior Leadership Team through important transitions. Messiness often occurs around maintaining alignment between the company’s growth and its core vision.

Stage 5: Steward

At Stage 5, the company is thriving and largely independent of our direct involvement. Our role is now about stewardship — ensuring the company’s culture and Core Values remain intact. Leader Mode is fully established, and the company runs smoothly without our constant oversight.

Key Modes:

• Steward Mode: Our main responsibility is guiding the company’s long-term legacy and staying aligned with our Core Values.
• Visionary Mode: We continue to think ahead, ensuring that the company’s future remains bright and aligned with its original vision.
• Leader Mode: Our direct reports now fully control daily operations, executing our vision while ensuring the company stays on track.

Why It Matters

Founder Mode at this stage is subtle but significant. We step in when necessary to guide the company’s long-term direction, while the leaders handle day-to-day operations and execution. The balance between Founder Mode and Leader Mode is key to maintaining long-term success.

Where Founder Mode Tends to Manifest Most

In Stage 5, Founder Mode is most likely to manifest during moments of major transition — acquisitions, leadership changes, or significant shifts in market conditions. We may be pulled into Steward Mode and Visionary Mode when the company faces decisions that could alter its future direction or culture. These are the messiest areas, where the company’s legacy is at stake and we need to make sure the company remains aligned with its vision and values.

The Evolution of Founder Mode, Leader Mode, and Manager Mode

Throughout the Stages of Development, Founder Mode evolves to meet the changing needs of the company, but it never truly disappears. In the early stages, it’s about survival and innovation, with the founder deeply involved in every decision. As the company matures, Leader Mode becomes increasingly important and Manager Mode becomes less necessary, allowing us to step back from day-to-day operations and focus on strategic growth.

Over time, we rely on specialized leaders and managers who not only excel at their roles but also align with our vision and are willing to tolerate the intense moments when we slip back into full-on Founder Mode. Our leaders and managers help ensure that our companies run smoothly, freeing us to focus on vision and stewardship.

Understanding when we need to enter into Founder Mode, Leader Mode, and Manager Mode is critical to appreciating the unique challenges founders face. As the company evolves, our role shifts from daily survival to long-term leadership, but Founder Mode remains essential at key moments — especially when our companies face critical decisions or transitions. Recognizing this dynamic helps us appreciate why we sometimes need to step back into Founder Mode to guide the company through its most pivotal challenges.

Up Next…

Even when Visionary and Legacy founders take a step back from our damn good, if not great, companies and entrust our legacies to new leaders and managers, our choices continue to enrich the organization for years or decades to come. In the next part, we’ll talk about what Manager Mode looks like and why founders eventually need to make this a less and less visited mode as we scale the unavoidable Stages of Development. 

If you want to stay tuned, I encourage you to sign up to receive email updates with each new part of the Founder Mode Series. I’d also love you to share this with others who are grappling with “Founder Mode,” whether they’re a founder or working with one. I want this series to spark discussions and debates — after all, that’s how we learn and grow. As someone who knows he’s “guilty” of Founder Mode, I’m genuinely excited to explore these ideas with any and everyone who's interested in this topic.

So… I’m adding this link to my Google Docs draft of this series. I’d love to get your feedback and read stories from those who have experienced the good, the bad, or the ugly of working with one or more founders in Founder Mode. Who knows — maybe this will turn into a book that includes lots of great stories about founders around the world.

Read the rest of the Founder Mode Series:

• Part 1: What Is Founder Mode, Really?
• Part 2: Tapping into the Founder's Mindset
• Part 3: Essential Modes for Founders
• Part 4: Understanding the Personalities of Visionary and Legacy Founders
• Part 5: Founders Within: The Founder's Mindset Inside Large Organizations
• Part 6: Mastering Founder Mode: The Core Operating System
• Part 7: 6 Ingredients Founders Use to Build Damn Good, If Not Great, Companies