Categories: Articles

An Insider's View Of Silicon Valley

What’s it like to be friends with Mark Zuckerberg? What’s it like to invest in Oculus Rift four months before Facebook acquired it?

Ben Horowitz has seen it all and he’s at the epicenter of some of Silicon Valley’s biggest deals. He is the cofounder and Partner of the venture capital firm, Andreessen Horowitz, and recently published a fascinating book called, The Hard Thing About Hard Things. Prior to his venture capital firm, he co-founded Loudcloud, which became Opsware that was ultimately acquired by HP. In this conversation with Charlie Rose, Horowitz gives his perspective on technology, what it takes to build a successful company, what common mistakes are made, what characteristics make a great leader and why none of us should underestimate the leadership of Mark Zuckerberg. Yes, tons of wisdom and insights to ponder.

It’s fascinating… and you can watch it right here:

Mitch Joel

Mitch Joel lives at the intersection of technology, business transformation and consumer culture. He is the Executive Director of Next Era Institute, a strategic intelligence platform helping leaders understand the forces reshaping business, technology, culture and society. The Institute identifies which shifts matter, explores their wider significance and translates them into strategic direction and momentum. Mitch is also a globally recognized keynote speaker. He has delivered thousands of presentations across both B2B and B2C industries to organizations including Google, Walmart, LEGO, Shopify, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble and Unilever. Strategy Magazine has called him “one of North America’s leading visionaries.” Mitch built his career by working directly inside the waves of change that reshaped modern business. He founded and built a digital marketing agency that worked with some of the world’s largest brands and was later acquired by WPP, where he served as President of a firm operating in 25 countries with almost 3,000 employees. Mitch is the bestselling author of Six Pixels of Separation and CTRL ALT Delete, and the host of Thinking With Mitch Joel, one of the longest-running business podcasts in the world. His writing and commentary appear in outlets including Harvard Business Review, Fast Company and Inc. Magazine. He is a member of Dr. Marshall Goldsmith’s 100 Coaches and was named to the Thinkers50 Radar. Mitch also hosts Groove – The No Treble Podcast, documenting the oral history of electric bass players. Mitch is also Co-Founder of ThinkersOne, a platform that enables companies to bring personalized thought leadership from world-class experts into meetings, events and off-sites in focused 15-minute bursts.