The Pros and Cons of the Co-CEO Model

When it comes to the co-CEO model, another person remembers the Netflix encounter and mentions Oracle. And some men and women mention Salesforce — a business that carried out the two CEO model, cancelled it and returned to it once more. Proponents of the dual strategy say that two heads are far better than one. Opponents feel the co-CEO product is doomed and that it can be a temporary remedy suitable for startups only.

In excess of the 12 months with the dual model, we have obtained a 155% growth in GGR. In this retrospective, I will share my knowledge as a co-CEO and spotlight the strengths and weaknesses of this management strategy.

Why did we change to the co-CEO design? In 2020, we envisioned expansion and built options to scale the enterprise. In 2021, the variety of employees experienced grown by 30%, and the complexity and abilities of the technological solutions made use of in the merchandise have developed also. For instance, we completed the advancement of the Parimatch system, which can process a lot more than 20,000 transactions per second — this is four periods much more than our outdated system could.

Linked: These Co-Founders Insisted on Currently being Co-CEOs Despite It Costing Them Funding

The worldwide ideas expected a aim on strategic difficulties even though keeping the rate of expansion without compromising operational operate quality. So, the plan arrived up to assemble the Supervisory Board. The Supervisory Board aimed to stability the shareholders’ targets, let the C-amount to target on organization advancement methods and launch administration methods from every day functions. It was largely simply because the competence of staff members and the created-in procedures manufactured it feasible to close problems without having the CEO’s participation.

The moment, our former CEO, and now a member of the Supervisory Board, Sergey Portnov, said: “Any task wants an impulse. Pushing an notion is like rolling a rock up a mountain — it calls for continuous effort and hard work. As shortly as you are distracted by operational function, the stone rolls back again. The whole task turns into Sisyphean labour — which it should not be.“

When Portnov remaining the publish of CEO and turned the Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Roman Syrotian and I shared his obligations. At that time, we experienced labored in the corporation for additional than five yrs and knew our spots effectively. Getting co-CEOs, we retained our places: I became accountable for finance, authorized, interaction and admin operating things to do, and Syrotian targeted on IT merchandise and advertising working things to do.

Here are the execs of multiple CEOs:

Two heads are much better than a person

Syrotian and I have distinct existence paths, encounters, education and learning, strengths and weaknesses. But we complemented every other, saved our parts of concentrate and did not spray ourselves on each cog in the firm’s mechanism.

Even though I was negotiating with associates in Limassol for investments in the IT sector of Cyprus, Syrotian in Kyiv led the growth of the Parimatch brand product or service line and the progress of a new system.

In earning hard selections, we started to review deeply right before determining or raising an difficulty for thought to the Supervisory Board. It was less complicated for us to prepare a brainstorm, where by you can usually inquire another person for an impression. We inspired each individual other through demanding choices or discouraged dubious undertakings. It is doable that somewhere we misplaced velocity but got additional reasonable answers in return. And this is critical, mainly because the dangers improve with the small business.

Similar: I’m U.S.-based, But My Co-CEO Is in Europe. This is How We Make It Work.

Times come to be for a longer period

We all know the emotion of a lack of several hours in a day. In fact, on one particular of these late-night function evenings, you believed it would be fantastic to clone yourself and do two times as much.

The co-CEO design does not deliver these kinds of an chance, but the quantity of doing work hours for final decision-building improves. In addition, in contrast to a clone, with right distribution of accountability parts, you will get a greater final result, simply because absolutely everyone is accountable for their competence areas.

We’ve even received an within joke: “Now we can hold parallel meetings in different areas of the world, and every of them with Parimatch Tech CEO.” And this is legitimate, mainly because we make two times as numerous remaining selections.

Deep dive into particular spots

No spraying. You immerse your self in your spots of obligation and create in them. Then, you share the information acquired through the sieve of your business enterprise in basic meetings —n o unneeded principle, only the necessary awareness here and now. Because Syrotian and I have retained our areas of accountability, which do not specifically intersect, we experienced no controversial points of impact.

Significantly less dependent on one individual

Let’s facial area it — absolutely everyone goes as a result of rough instances. And when you run a small business, organization metrics depend on your issue and relationships with colleagues. In these difficult moments, your own difficulties can slow down crucial selections, further influencing the enterprise.

When there are two of you, then the dangers turn out to be much less. In unexpected situations, you can deal with each and every other or have a rest and spend time with your family members without the need of a long term perform method. There will generally be an informed man or woman with experience and authority at the helm.

This is primarily genuine for generating refined conclusions involved with personnel and reward techniques. We paid out specific interest to these difficulties and attempted to access a total mutual comprehending, which impacted the purity of the decisions produced. As a consequence, with the twin tactic, selections are not produced dependent on the subjective view of only one particular particular person.

Now, listed here are the negatives of the co-CEO design:

Relations with shareholders become more challenging

There are fears that the co-CEO model will blur the line of responsibility, building hazards of failure to realize the business targets. But for the presentation of reporting to shareholders, it is needless to have a single human being from whom the outcome is necessary. You can also discuss results, risks and techniques with the dual-CEO product. If shareholders need to have just just one representative, distribute this role involving you and your spouse, and perform on it.

Syrotian and I were blessed with this. The peculiarity of Parimatch Tech lies in the fact that shareholders are concerned in the strategic responsibilities of the firm nearly each day. Thus, we can say that the transition to the co-CEO model did not introduce any alterations but served as an impetus for the plan’s implementation. We began to talk with shareholders even a lot more and synchronize as 1 staff.

Linked: Why Co-CEOs Are a Lousy Thought for Early-Stage Startups, Pretty much Constantly

Likelihood of confusion about roles and obligations

It’s essential to supply a very clear construction to workers to avoid long run misunderstandings. Even with the crystal clear instructions, it will take time to get made use of to the fact that one more person is dependable for a certain improvement region. It could be a mess initially, but it will most likely move afterwards.

Absence of pace

There are occasions when you need to make selections on the location, and just about every minute counts. In these kinds of scenarios, with the twin-CEO design, you could absence choice-creating speed. It would require further time to approve it with your companion for every single critical determination. If you have reverse feelings about the topic, incorporate the time for a compromise. All these moves from time to time direct to missed chances.

Co-CEO is a non permanent design

In truth, the co-CEO design is utilized as a short-term resolution for small business restructuring or when firms go by way of stages of M&A and transformations. In these kinds of circumstances, the design operates right until these issues are solved, and two CEOs act simultaneously — or the co-CEO design can function geographically to deliver a bodily presence in distinctive parts of the environment.

But what in this entire world lasts forever? The co-CEO design is matter to the exact pitfalls as the 1-CEO design. With the comfort and ease relations among CEOs, the proficient setting of expectations along with the distribution of responsibility and authority zones, the co-CEO model will exhibit its usefulness in the upcoming.

Nowadays, the co-CEO model is getting more prevalent — from time to time it is termed a partnership, and from time to time one particular of the co-CEOs can be Chairman and so on. This solution is common in LLCs, law companies, accounting corporations, VCs and early-phase technology and study organizations.

If you are thinking about switching to the co-CEO model, right here are some notes from my practical experience:

• It is important to comply with the common and unified small business values — if there are any controversial details in the eyesight, they should be solved right away. Otherwise, it will lead to a split in the business.

• It is essential to explore and understand that one particular of the leaders will not test to “hog the addresses.” If there is a prospect that it will materialize, it will occur. But even in this kind of a condition, there is a way out. You can adhere to the Salesforce route — they have CEO #1 and #2.

• Fail to remember about the many-CEO model if your firm or manufacturer is developed on the founder’s personality.

And finally, the co-CEO design could be a short term remedy. You can normally switch back again to lone chief if it fits improved for your company. In the Parimatch Tech situation, the war compelled us to change back to the a single-CEO design, because we have been in need to have to speed up the operational and determination-making processes and turn out to be much more adaptable. Now Syrotian is concentrating on the company system as a Supervisory board member. As for me, the new war actuality and franchise withdrawal from Russia forced business diversification and structural changes, so I will experience these worries together with my workforce as the CEO.