What is founderitis and how can it cause the collapse of a startup?

TV show boss, Logan Roy of Succession, is seen as the embodiment of founderitis. Taken to the extreme, the character portrayed by actor Brian Cox, demonstrates traits of egotism, narcissism, dominance and authority.

There’s pushback from founders who are taking umbrage about the term laying blame squarely on founders as the single cause of problems. Unfortunately, there’s no easy cure for founderitis and it’s hard to get a creator to step back from something that came from their vision and determination. 

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Thankfully, there is hope.

There is research on how to remedy these situations, with the current consensus being to let the founder know their achievement is respected while being honest about their behaviour and making a concerted effort to build a better…