Who Is Your Customer?

When you first started your company, you had a great idea in mind and a target customer whose problem your idea would solve. It was that simple. Finding customers for your product or service (and keeping them!) was not easy, but it was simple.

Then you got noticed by investors. They decided to join in for the ride: they give you money, you grow the business, they profit too — everybody's happy.

But once you started growing the business, your role shifted. You're not working on your idea (i.e., product or service) anymore. You are constantly at meetings with more investors, partners, clients. And in between, whatever little time you have left is filled up with constant firefighting.

Suddenly, everyone wants something from you: those are a lot of people, mind you, and they become more and more every day. And everything everyone wants requires money. So you need more investors to give you more money. And so, the vicious circle closes. Welcome to endless growth!

Now, if we take a step away from all this noise and look from the side, one question is pressing: Who is your (the CEO’s) customer? Who are you doing what you're doing for? Who benefits first and foremost, and who is the first to get impacted?

You might think you're doing it for the business — but that's not a living thing. Or you might think you're working for the investors now — after all, they pay you the big money. Or you might think you're still developing the product/service for your business customers — they pay you money too.

Here's my answer: You work for your employees now. Why? Because they are the first in your value stream. They get immediately affected by your decisions and actions. They are also the ones who work on your product/service, not you. And they are the ones who serve your business customers, not you. As a result of your employees’ activities, your business is either successful or not. And only if your business is successful, your investors can take their cut.

Your investors are actually the last in the value chain, not the first — even if most of the time it looks otherwise. They want their ROI, and that's why they want you to succeed. They get into the minute details of how you run your business only when they're concerned that you might not succeed. Otherwise, they really have no interest in spending more of their time in the trenches. They've been there, and they've got the battle scars to prove it.

Two things to take away:

1. If you're still trying to work on your product/service or directly serve your business customers, stop! That's not your job anymore. And if you spend your time doing what's not your job, then there's no one to actually do your job.
2. Keep doing what needs to be done outside your business (networking, promoting, getting more investment, etc.). But inside your business, there's only one thing you need to do, and that is: take care of your employees!

(…and of your investors, might I add 😉)