Whatever the facts behind the firing of Sam Altman, the key take-away for all founders should be the reality that this is not unusual. Founders are unique people; they are single-minded, with the passion and drive to bring their dream into reality. However, once they have done that, then the qualities that made them great founders often get in the way of them being great leaders for a company that is growing. They will often be distracted with the next new shiny thing, and cease to focus on, what to them, seems the boring slog of building a company.
 
In each phase of a company’s development, different talents are needed, and the talents of the founder are often at odds with what is needed to drive consistent growth. Some founders, to their credit, understand this and find the ability to adapt their style as they go, but most find that hard to do. The best thing in everybody’s long-term interests, including those of the founder, is for the founder to leave, or perhaps stay in an advisory role, and to put the management in the hands of those with a talent for growth.

There is always shock when boards act in this way, and the board gets much of the blame for not recognising the genius of the founder. In general, what the board has done is recognised that the talents of the founder are not suited to what is needed for the future and quite rightly have moved the company on. What the founder needs to do for their own sanity and happiness is to find somewhere else to exercise their founding skills.