Quora Answer: How Many Advisors Should a Startup Have?

The following is my answer to a Quora question: “How many advisors should a startup have? 

That is very difficult to answer because there are many factors and variables to consider.  A startup should have one principal advisor who mentors the management team, especially the presumptive chief executive.  But it also needs advisors who are experts in specific domains that startup is invested in, whether industry knowledge, or fundraising, or access to specific markets. 

The mistake that many startups make is that they try to hedge their bets and have a plethora of advisors, the bigger the names the better.  If the startup is committed to giving these advisors an equity stake, what have they done to earn it other than lend their name?  They must also consider if these advisors have the interests of the startup in mind, or are they, also, hedging their bets, and sit as advisors to competing startups in the same space?  Do they have a conflict of interest with the startup or other advisors? 

In summary, have as many advisors as you need, but be extremely discerning, and keep those numbers small.  There is no point in having an entire shadow board of advisors since it detracts from the team and what it intends to achieve.