How to Assess Founders During Due Diligence | Investor & VC Framework

What should you look for when assessing a founder before you invest?

In this explainer, we walk through how investors and VCs evaluate founders—covering experience, market fit, leadership traits, scenario testing, and tools you can use. Whether you’re a founder being assessed or an investor doing the assessment, this guide gives you practical frameworks and questions.

⏱ Timestamps:
0:00 – Intro: Founder Due Diligence
0:22 – Why evaluating the founder matters in due diligence?
1:10 – What founder background & experience signal strong potential?
2:33 – How to assess leadership, team-fit and decision-making skills?
3:30 – What frameworks or tools help standardize founder assessment?
3:48 – What scenario questions gauge resilience & problem-solving?
4:07 – 4 key red flags and risk management techniques
4:37 – How do you compile and summarise your founder assessment?
5:04 – Key takeaways: building confidence in your founder evaluation

💡 Read the full guide:
https://www.allied.vc/guides/how-to-assess-founders-during-due-diligence

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💼 Learn more at Allied Venture Partners: https://www.allied.vc
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Allied VC⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (https://www.allied.vc) is Western Canada’s largest angel syndicate, investing in early-stage technology startups across Canada and the USA.

Pitch us, Invest, Scout, and more: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://linktr.ee/alliedvc⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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