Theme: Brian Chesky spoke about the mistaken conventional wisdom on running larger companies.
Context: As Airbnb grew, Chesky received advice to "hire good people and give them room" which led to poor results.
Solution: Chesky learned from Steve Jobs, improving Airbnb’s performance.
Observation: Many founders shared similar experiences of advice leading to damage instead of growth.
Founder Mode vs Manager Mode
Mystery: Why is wrong advice given? It suits professional managers, not founders.
Difference: Founders have unique capabilities, natural to them but unavailable to managers.
Assumption: Traditional belief is startups must switch to manager mode for scaling.
Lack of Resources
Gap: No books or business schools teach founder mode.
Current Knowledge: Gleaned from experiments by individual founders.
Future Hope: Founder mode to become as well understood as manager mode.
Manager Mode Characteristics
Modular Design Comparison: Treat org chart subtrees as black boxes.
Approach: Direct reports are instructed but details are out of CEO’s hands.
Micromanaging: Avoid getting involved in report details, as it’s seen as negative.
Challenges in Transition
Professional Fakers: A risk with hiring and leaving them unchecked.
Gaslighting: Founders feel undermined by advice and employees.
Exception: Founders may need to trust their instincts over advice in rare cases.
Founder Mode Characteristics
CEO Engagement: Breaks principle of CEO only interacting with direct reports.
Skip-Level Meetings: Expected to become the norm.
Example: Steve Jobs’ retreats for key Apple personnel illustrate founder engagement.
Delegation in Founder Mode
Balance Needed: Cannot run large companies exactly like small startups.
Delegation: Necessary to some degree; autonomy boundaries vary.
Complexity: Founder mode is more complex but more effective.
Predictions for Founder Mode
Current Experimentation: Some founders already practice aspects of founder mode.
Potential Misuse: Risk of founders using it as an excuse to avoid necessary delegation.
Manager Imitation: Managers might mimic founder mode, with variable success.
Conclusion
Opportunity: Despite little knowledge, founders have succeeded against conventional advice.
Vision: Better guidance could enhance founder achievements, emulating successful founders like Steve Jobs.
Acknowledgements
Thanks to Brian Chesky, Patrick Collison, Ron Conway, Jessica Livingston, Elon Musk, Ryan Petersen, Harj Taggar, and Garry Tan for their contributions.