This is not a post about how to raise money and spend it in the pursuit of a brilliant if doomed vision, or the best strategy for transforming your startup into a publicly traded and owned gold mine. Herds of HiPPOs have already weighed in on that.
This post addresses the philosophical and visceral aspects of going public, from the employee's perspective. Why we are we doing this? How will it feel? What are we getting into here? Should I run like hell and never look back?
Be careful what you ask for. Process-wise, being a startup is fun, because there aren't many processes to follow (i.e, rules). And the few rules you are supposed to follow you can ignore because, in Startuptopia, the end usually justifies the means. And the means includes looking the other way. In startup mode, greasy dishes can pile up in the fetid sink. In public mode, mom and dad make you do your dishes.
There is no such thing as security, at least according to some who rely on that trope to avoid acknowledging and enforcing standard secure operations for Engineering, Finance, and IT. When the product that drives revenue and allows the company to survive needs to be accountable to shareholders and the marketplace, don't become butt-mad when there are suddenly security rules and regulatory obligations requiring your compliance.
Security is the product, and the process. If it isn't already, it will need to become so, because customers partners and investors expect it. For instance, Is static and dynamic code analysis something you pursue actively? Or just something you talk about passively? Bolting security on after will make product development harder than it needs to be, and will lead to less interesting work that what you signed up for.
Proof. As a public company, you'll need to prove that you do what you say, say what you mean, as in designing and maintaining security controls, and independent third party auditors testing their effectiveness. The prestige of a listing on a stock exchange brings the double edged sword of scrutiny from investors, regulatory laws, the street, the media, all expecting you to carry the burden of proof.
Slow down to go fast. No one sprints through a marathon. No matter how inspired and motivated you are at the outset, understand that it's a long race and that you are not invincible. Running too fast will inevitably, inexorably, take it's toll. You are human, not machine, so know your limits. Know the pace you can sustain to cross the finish line at your goal. Don't waste energy reserves on frivolous efforts and distractions. Run smart, within your limits, with focus and patience, and you'll find a comfortable pace that is fast over the length of the race.
Finish with dignity. In the final ten miles of a every marathon, the spurious and furious sprinters begin to visibly sag. Their faces contorted into masks of suffering and dread, they are not running so much as they are viscerally confronting their limitations while flopping their feet forward. Take it from a marathoner who has made the mistake (repeatedly!): When you run faster than can be sustained, the last six miles require more needless suffering than the first 20 combined. The misery increases exponentially with every ruthless step to the finish, and the tortoises glide by with their stride, emotions, and dignity intact.
Ready. Fire. Aim. Pressurized by continuous release and integration cycles and gaudy management expectations, you will be encouraged to practice the Ready Fire Aim approach of meeting your deadlines. We all understand the principle of "good enough." We're also cognizant that it requires more effort to reload and fire again than it does to aim well to begin with. Strike a balance somewhere in between.
Choose to work smarter, not harder. "We just have to work harder" is the mantra of those who have lost the ability to focus. Just work harder quickly reaches a point of diminishing return that results in employee absenteeism (interviewing elsewhere), an over-reliance on 10x superheros who don't collaborate well with others, and people working on the wrong thing, or creating work that needs to be undone, fixed. The work smarter, not harder cliche exists because it's true: Focus on the three high value things you can accomplish today, and let the rest remain.