Tom Gardner, Co-founder and CEO of Motley Fool, discusses making investing fun, having a renowned company culture, investment strategies for profitable companies like Shopify, strengthening sibling bonds through collaboration, using cloud-based tools effectively, innovative compensation and culture building, and expanding services and mission of Motley Fool.
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Quick takeaways
Motley Fool promotes transparency in compensation through innovative initiatives like 'Ask for a Raise Day'.
Prioritizing personal joy at work enhances long-term success and engagement for employees.
Flexible work cultures at Motley Fool foster trust, productivity, and a healthy work-life balance.
Deep dives
Founding Motley Fool: A Story of Brotherly Collaboration and Unintended Creation of a Company
In 1993, Tom and his brother David unintentionally started Motley Fool after sharing their love for investing online and being discovered by America Online. Initially not intending to start a company, their passion for investing and online presence led to Motley Fool's inception in 1994.
Transparent Compensation and Encouraging Financial Openness
Motley Fool's innovative approach includes an 'Ask for a Raise Day', where employees are incentivized with $200 for requesting a raise, fostering transparency and trust in the compensation system. This initiative aimed to promote fairness and understanding among employees, inspired by Whole Foods' transparent compensation model.
Seeking Personal Joy in Work
Reflecting on Toby Lutke's insight on prioritizing personal joy at work, Tom emphasizes the importance of finding fulfillment in daily tasks, even if they may not be the most efficient use of time. Aligning personal happiness with work contributes to long-term company success and employee engagement.
Embracing Freedom and Autonomy at Work
Motley Fool advocates for a flexible work culture, allowing employees to take sick leave as needed and manage their vacation time independently. This trust-based approach encourages productivity and job satisfaction, fostering a healthy work-life balance.
Learning from Mistakes: Communication for Organizational Alignment
Pioneering strategic change at Motley Fool, Tom highlights the necessity of improved communication and alignment within the organization. While his forward-thinking nature propels innovation, structured systems and clarity in communication are essential for successful implementation of strategic initiatives.
Tom Gardner doesn’t think finance has to be boring. He has built a company around making investing accessible, even fun, while creating a company culture that is famous in all industries.
Tom is the co-founder and CEO of the Motley Fool, which started as a simple online investing guide he started with his brother David in 1993, and has grown into a business that reaches 30 million viewers each month and has hundreds of employees. While they have a strong track record for their financial advice, Tom and David have become even better known for Motley Fool’s flexible, innovative, fun company culture.
In this classic episode, Tom joined host Robert Glazer on the Elevate Podcast to talk about running a business with his brother, making finance and investing accessible to all, and creating a renowned company culture.