Scott Weiss
Scott Weiss
Scott Weiss is a venture capitalist at the Silicon Valley firm Andreessen Horowitz, joining in April 2011 as the firm’s fourth general partner. A native of Sarasota, Florida, he founded and was CEO of IronPort Systems, which Cisco acquired in 2007 for $830 million. Weiss has a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Florida and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionBusinessman
CountryUnited States of America
admitting company failure hard helps learning methodical open thinking
Nothing helps make a leader more approachable than admitting your struggles, screw-ups and behind-the-scenes thinking on hard calls. If the leader makes this a priority, the whole company will be more open and methodical learning from failure.
reminded stay sweating
I don't like sweating the details, and I'm pretty disorganized. To be a better leader, I need to stay on top of these shortcomings, and being reminded really helps.
cannot directly information levels passed people rely report skill solely virtually
As a decision maker, you rely on information being passed to you by the people who report to you. As the CEO, however, you cannot rely solely on this information. You also need to 'dip' down into your organization and learn directly from employees at all levels and virtually all skill sets.
brightest home
For me, the brightest years at IronPort were without a doubt the darkest years at home.
connect greet standing
As CEO, I had a standing 30-minute meeting every Monday to greet and connect with new hires.
ceo companies good mechanism
Most companies don't have a good mechanism to give the CEO real, honest feedback.
avoid companies learning smaller
Working at a big company sucks - avoid it. Smaller companies are 10 times better for learning.
carries experience lasting
The first day, week and month of an employee's experience carries a lasting impression.
almost believe case experience helps share stories studies substitute
While there's no substitute for real experience, I believe it helps to hear and share stories of resourcefulness in action - almost like case studies in school.
absolutely break clutter credible deals expert hard matter money subject top
It's really hard to break through the clutter and get the attention of the top investors, as they typically only look at deals that come in from a warm, credible referral. There's absolutely nothing more credible than getting an endorsement from a well-known subject matter expert who has already put their own money into your company.
authentic essential
An approachable and authentic CEO is essential to fostering a high-performance, open communications culture.
definitely noticed suggest
I wouldn't suggest that being resourceful has anything to do with doing something illegal or unethical, but I've definitely noticed a pattern of being 'creative.'
buy high meal priority stop team work
When a team has to work over a weekend, make a high priority of being there as well, even if it's just to stop by and buy them a meal to show your appreciation.
available best cultural definitely founders hard interview mediocre networks settle talent time trying ultimately waste work
I see many founders waste too much time trying to work their networks and/or ultimately settle for mediocre but available candidates. You will definitely have to interview hard for cultural fit, but the best talent isn't cheap.