Frederic Laloux's "Reinventing Organizations" explores the evolution of organizational structures and proposes a new model for conscious businesses. The book delves into the principles of self-management, purpose-driven work, and evolutionary consciousness. Laloux presents case studies of organizations that have successfully implemented these principles, demonstrating their effectiveness in fostering innovation, engagement, and sustainability. The book challenges traditional hierarchical structures and advocates for a more human-centered approach to management. It's a thought-provoking read for anyone interested in organizational development and creating more fulfilling workplaces.
High Growth Handbook is a comprehensive playbook for growing startups into global brands. Written by Elad Gil, who has extensive experience working with high-growth tech companies, the book provides crystal-clear guidance on navigating the complex challenges faced by leaders and operators in high-growth startups. It covers essential topics including the role of the CEO, managing a board, recruiting and overseeing an executive team, mergers and acquisitions, initial public offerings, and late-stage funding. The book is informed by interviews with dynamic leaders in Silicon Valley, such as Reid Hoffman, Marc Andreessen, and Aaron Levie.
Scaling People is a detailed roadmap for company builders to put the right operating systems and structures in place to scale their companies sustainably. The book provides tactical guidance on crafting foundational documents, strategic and financial planning, hiring and team development, and feedback and performance mechanisms. It includes dozens of pages of worksheets, templates, exercises, and example documents to help create scalable operating systems and lightweight processes. Drawing on nearly two decades of experience as a Google and Stripe executive, Claire Hughes Johnson offers actionable insights and a human-centric approach to developing talent and building a sustainable, scalable company.
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Claire Hughes Johnson is the former COO at Stripe, which she helped scale from a small startup to the legendary company it is today. She also spent close to 10 years at Google, where she filled several executive roles, including VP of Global Online Sales and Director of Sales and Ops for Gmail, YouTube, Google Apps, and AdWords. Claire shares invaluable insights from her upcoming book, Scaling People, on how to successfully build and scale organizations. We talk about the importance of building self-awareness, and Claire gives tons of tactical advice on how to say things that are hard to say, as well as how to improve your internal communications, and so much more.
Find the full transcript at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/lessons-from-scaling-stripe-tactics
Where to find Claire Hughes Johnson:
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/chughesjohnson
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/claire-hughes-johnson-7058/
Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
Referenced:
• Scaling People: Tactics for Management and Company Building: https://www.amazon.com/Scaling-People-Tactics-Management-Building/dp/1953953212
• John Collison on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnbcollison/
• Patrick Collison on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickcollison/
• Discord: https://discord.com/
• Toast: https://pos.toasttab.com/
• High Growth Handbook: Scaling Startups from 10 to 10,000 People: https://www.amazon.com/High-Growth-Handbook-Elad-Gil/dp/1732265100
• Myers-Briggs personality types: https://www.myersbriggs.org/my-mbti-personality-type/mbti-basics/
• Enneagram types: https://www.enneagraminstitute.com/type-descriptions
• Disc assessment: https://www.discprofile.com/what-is-disc
• Conscious Business: How to Build Value through Values: https://www.amazon.com/Conscious-Business-Build-through-Values/dp/1622032020/
• Reid Hoffman on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reidhoffman/
• Eeke de Milliano on Lenny’s Podcast: https://www.lennyspodcast.com/how-to-foster-innovation-and-big-thinking-eeke-de-milliano-retool-stripe/
• Running an effective meeting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIiaFW874q8
• Gokul’s S.P.A.D.E. framework: https://coda.io/@gokulrajaram/gokuls-spade-toolkit
In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Claire’s background
(04:47) How writing Scaling People helped Claire crystallize learnings
(07:58) How she got started writing her book
(11:11) Advice that changed the way she operates
(15:18) The lack of job titles at Stripe
(19:01) Scaling your organizational structure
(23:46) What founders need to think about in the early days
(26:38) Personal operating principles
(29:04) How to crystallize your own values to gain self-awareness
(34:29) Advice for saying uncomfortable things
(37:12) Being an explorer, not a lecturer
(43:57) Come back to the operating system
(47:17) Organizational structure using Claire’s house metaphor
(50:50) Why some chaos is normal
(52:45) Founding documents you need
(58:30) The components of a company’s operating system
(1:01:31) Finding the right cadence
(1:04:48) COOs and which types of businesses need them
(1:11:30) Advice on scaling quickly
(1:13:56) The importance of internal communications
(1:16:03) Running effective meetings
(1:17:17) Advice for aligning and making decisions as a manager
Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.
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