4 ms·

What makes him so special is that he was the one "Adult in the Room" who was welcomed in. He understood that technology is a Long Game, not a Short Game, and e

• curun1r 10y ago
  It's interesting you say that (Adult in the Room), since my interactions with him were kind of the opposite. I don't mean that he was childish, but that saying evokes a feeling of tempering one's impulses in a way that he didn't seem interested in doing. I met him at one company mixer and he was regaling us with many stories from Intuit's past. Someone asked him if he'd like another beer (he'd had a few already) and his response was, "I can't drink from an empty bottle." I also saw him do tequila shots with the head of our business unit on stage at a fireside chat they had. I don't mean to paint him as a lush, because that didn't seem like the case, but more to point out how genuine he was. With him, there was no concession to propriety. He did and said whatever he felt like doing or saying. I can see why the companies he lead and advised tended to have great culture because I think the first step is for the leaders to be as warm/friendly and genuine as possible and Bill had those qualities in spades.
  • mathattack 10y ago
    Thank you for sharing. This explains why he was so welcomed. By "Adult in the Room" I mean being the person to instill perspective and a longer time horizon in executives.