Business & Money

I loved this shot from the earth official Instagram page.

It reminded me a bit of what I do when we hire new salespeople. Shortly after they’re hired, I’ll pass them a deal that is 60% of the way closed. I’ve already identified the customer need, ensured that budget is available, and have all of the right people involved in the conversation. All that’s left do is execute the final 40% and get ink on paper.

After each meeting, we’ll debrief on what went well, what could have been improved, and other ways we might have handled particular things.

The new seller writes the follow-up email, but we sit down and review together before sending to the prospect.

It’s not quite as dramatic as what the Cheetah does with her cub, but I think it’s a similar idea.

There’s much to be learned from mother nature.

Human Progress

Something interesting is happening. Employees at Google, Amazon, IBM, and Microsoft have launched a petition to discourage their companies from bidding on Pentagon contracts.

“We are tech industry employees concerned about the lack of accountability, accuracy, and safety in the use of artificial intelligence (AI) technology in offensive capabilities of the U.S. Military. Many of us signing this petition are faced with ethical decisions in the design and development of technology on a daily basis. We cannot ignore the moral responsibility of our work. We believe that tech companies should not be in the business of war, and that we as tech workers must adopt binding ethical standards for the use of AI that will let us build the world we believe in.”

Now don’t get me wrong. I’m all for employee activism and for taking ethical/moral stands. But I think it’s important to point a couple things out.

First off, tech is pervasive. It’s not simply an industry, but rather it is quickly becoming the underpinning of every industry. The large tech companies technically sophisticated, flush with cash, and vacuums for the world’s best talent. To think that those resources and capabilities should not be extended to government an defense seems a bit naive.

And combine that with the fact that technological supremacy is a two horse race, with China closing fast. The Chinese government not only has the full support of its leading technology companies, you might even say it controls them. So withholding our best tech from Washington in a country founded on human rights and civil liberties seems to fly in the face of the moral argument being made in the first place. How much will morals and ethics be worth when China leads the world militarily, technologically, and economically?

Perhaps we’ll find out.

Philosophy

Anjunadeep is a deep house record label and one of my favorites. There were in NYC this past weekend for a show at the Brooklyn Mirage. The excitement and anticipation that I had been building up over the last few months were palpable. And yet, my expectations were blown away by the reality of the night.

A good friend who is far more eloquent than I am put it this way…

“I think I had a top 3 NYC evening last night. Something special happened at the show.

The eve started off amazing, exactly how you would think. Sun setting. City skyline. Lot’s of beautiful women. It was a hot night, but there was a cool breeze and the music was perfect.

Then as the crowd started to heat up, right around it’s most momentous point at 1 AM, a rainstorm came in. Slowly at first. But it came and it came in strong. They didn’t shut down. Instead they curated the music to the intensity of the rain. Everyone soaking wet, finally cooled from the water and dancing their lives away in the storm for maybe 30 minutes or so. Soaked to the core. It was wild!”

Definitely one for the ages and it won’t soon be forgotten.

My Latest Discovery

I started at Datorama 3.5 years ago when we were 40 people. We’re now closing on 350. Perhaps one day I’ll be saying the same about my own company.

In any case, I’ve been making my way through the “blitzscaling” series on YouTube to see what I can learn. If you’re interested in what’s involved with rapidly scaling technology companies, it seems like a pretty good resource.