Technical knowledge and soft skills in software startups within the Colombian entrepreneurial ecosystem

TL;DR

This study investigates the valued technical knowledge and soft skills of team members in Colombian software startups, highlighting how these needs evolve with startup growth and their importance for success.

Contribution

It provides empirical insights into the specific technical and soft skills prioritized by Colombian software startup teams and how these evolve over time.

Findings

Requirements engineering, testing, and project management are highly valued technical skills.

Communication, leadership, and teamwork are the most important soft skills.

Knowledge and skill needs change as startups grow.

Abstract

The technical knowledge and soft skills of entrepreneurial team members significantly impact the early stages of software startups. It is widely recognized that the success or failure of a startup is determined by the quality of the individuals who constitute the founding team. This article presents the findings of a study conducted within the Colombian entrepreneurial ecosystem, focusing on which technical knowledge and soft skills are the most valued by founding teams of software startups, and how the needs for knowledge and skills evolve as the startup grows. A survey of software startup representatives revealed that the most valued knowledge includes requirements engineering, software testing, project planning and management, agile methodologies, marketing, business model definition, and budgeting. The most valued soft skills are typically communication, leadership, and teamwork. The outcomes of this work are relevant to software entrepreneurs, incubators, and researchers.