I LOVE the idea of the T-shaped person -- that's a fantastic concept, and seems like a great target for my own skill development. Plus, it makes me an even bigger Valve fan than I am already. :)
There are certainly many, many skills that go into building and running a tech startup, but I think the technical skill continuum looks (broadly) like this:
systems > back end > front end > design
The best teams I've been on have included members from each discipline with overlap into their neighboring areas. When transitioning from phase to phase (or, in the sort of rapid development that we're seeing more often today, where several tasks are occurring in parallel) it's super important to not have any gaps between segments.
There are certainly many, many skills that go into building and running a tech startup, but I think the technical skill continuum looks (broadly) like this:
systems > back end > front end > design
The best teams I've been on have included members from each discipline with overlap into their neighboring areas. When transitioning from phase to phase (or, in the sort of rapid development that we're seeing more often today, where several tasks are occurring in parallel) it's super important to not have any gaps between segments.