My co-founder is currently sitting in our Head of Product seat, but our investment bankers say our product strategy is too dependent on his personal expertise, which is hurting our exit valuation. How do we structure this seat to make it buyer-friendly?

Question

Tyler Smith · Accepted Answer

Buyers are looking for a business that operates like a machine, not a business that relies on the unique genius of a single co-founder. If your product strategy is trapped inside your co-founder's head, your business has a major key-man risk that will drag down your valuation.

To make this seat buyer-friendly, you must redefine its roles on the Accountability Chart. The Head of Product seat must not be about doing all the product development. Instead, the roles must focus on building a repeatable product management process, documenting the product roadmap, and training a team to execute that roadmap.

Your co-founder must evaluate if they actually have the GWC™ for this modernized, systemized seat. If they want to continue doing the hands-on design work, they may need to step out of the leadership seat and move into a specialist role, while you hire a dedicated Head of Product who excels at building systems.

Use the Trust Creation Process from the Trusted Advisor Fieldbook to navigate this conversation. This is not a demotion; it is a strategic repositioning to maximize the value of the company you both built. By documenting your product development systems, you protect your exit valuation and ensure the company can thrive without your daily involvement.