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Snowflake and the BHAGHow CEO Frank Slootman uses a big hairy audacious goal and a high-intensity culture to drive Snowflake towards success.
a thread inspired by this week's episode with @altcap and @Rich_Barton
What is Snowflake?
Founded in 2012, they're a cloud-based data warehouse used to load, analyze, and report on massive data volumes.
Snowflake charges companies on a pay-as-you-use model which helps users save money without sacrificing performance http://www.snowflake.com
Founded in 2012, they're a cloud-based data warehouse used to load, analyze, and report on massive data volumes.
Snowflake charges companies on a pay-as-you-use model which helps users save money without sacrificing performance http://www.snowflake.com
Prior to Snowflake, CEO Frank Slootman was best known for running Data Domain
In 2003 they had ~20 employees, no customers, no revenues, and a few million left in the bank
By 2009 they had broken more than $1B in sales, 1000+ employees, and 6000+ enterprise customers
In 2003 they had ~20 employees, no customers, no revenues, and a few million left in the bank
By 2009 they had broken more than $1B in sales, 1000+ employees, and 6000+ enterprise customers
Snowflake’s customer count has grown from 80 in June 2015 to more than 1000 in Jan 2018.
This year, Snowflake went public with a market valuation of $70.4 billion, making it the largest software IPO ever
This year, Snowflake went public with a market valuation of $70.4 billion, making it the largest software IPO ever
What is Snowflakes BHAG?
Snowflake wants to be the principal data architecture solution for every company on the planet.
If data is the new oil then Snowflake knows how powerful it will be to sit at the center of the rush managing the pipes.
Snowflake wants to be the principal data architecture solution for every company on the planet.
If data is the new oil then Snowflake knows how powerful it will be to sit at the center of the rush managing the pipes.
How does Snowflake get there? It all starts with a great product.
Steve Jobs said “it’s either ‘insanely great’, or it’s ‘total shit’. There is no middle ground”
Snowflakes moat is to have a 10x better product in terms of usability, scalability, availability, and security
Steve Jobs said “it’s either ‘insanely great’, or it’s ‘total shit’. There is no middle ground”
Snowflakes moat is to have a 10x better product in terms of usability, scalability, availability, and security
Snowflake has a full-on performance culture with the CEO setting the tone.
They want to exploit every single opportunity to step up the pace, expect a higher quality outcome, and narrow the plane of attack.
Everybody wants results, but not everybody wants to do what that takes
They want to exploit every single opportunity to step up the pace, expect a higher quality outcome, and narrow the plane of attack.
Everybody wants results, but not everybody wants to do what that takes
CEO Frank Slootman runs a lean business. Why?
Because he knows that markets are cyclical and discipline during the easy times means being able to press your advantage during the tough times.
It's like the professional athlete who doesn't get lazy just because they're winning
Because he knows that markets are cyclical and discipline during the easy times means being able to press your advantage during the tough times.
It's like the professional athlete who doesn't get lazy just because they're winning
Sometimes as an entrepreneur, you have to over-index on courage.
You have to think about the world that you wish to exist, not the one that does exist.
If you set audacious goals and with the right amount of courage, you may just find your company rising to meet the challenge
You have to think about the world that you wish to exist, not the one that does exist.
If you set audacious goals and with the right amount of courage, you may just find your company rising to meet the challenge
For more about BHAG’s, how the Wizard of Oz relates to business success, and lessons learned from Snowflake’s CEO, be sure to check out this week’s Invest like the Best episode with @altcap and @Rich_Barton.
https://investorfieldguide.com/brad-gerstner-and-rich-barton-power-to-the-people-invest-like-the-best-ep-197/
https://investorfieldguide.com/brad-gerstner-and-rich-barton-power-to-the-people-invest-like-the-best-ep-197/
For further reading on Frank Slootman and Snowflake:
Frank's Book: https://www.amazon.com/TAPE-SUCKS-Inside-Domain-Silicon/dp/0615484069/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=
Frank's Blog post on Snowflake's culture: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/amp-up-frank-slootman/
Frank's Book: https://www.amazon.com/TAPE-SUCKS-Inside-Domain-Silicon/dp/0615484069/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=
Frank's Blog post on Snowflake's culture: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/amp-up-frank-slootman/
