#101 CEO Google Cloud, Thomas Kurian: Competitor-Aware and Customer-Obsessed
Grit29 Aug 2022

#101 CEO Google Cloud, Thomas Kurian: Competitor-Aware and Customer-Obsessed

“When I grew up in Bangalore, I’d never seen a computer,” says Thomas Kurian. The former president of Oracle, now the CEO of Google Cloud, remembers learning how to write while sitting outside his childhood home, and doing homework by candlelight during power blackouts. He credits his “trailblazer” mother, who instilled curiosity and discipline in all her children, with helping them understand the value of education beyond doing well on the next test. Something must have stuck, because Thomas is not the only Kurian in a major leadership position in Silicon Valley; his twin brother, George, is the CEO of NetApp.

In this episode, Thomas and Joubin discuss how he accidentally got into computer programming, giving children the freedom to be curious, how to order a sandwich, leading 60 software acquisitions, knowing your own value-add, innovation through experimentation, investing in the future, and being competitor-aware and customer-obsessed.

In this episode, we cover:

  • Thomas’ childhood in India (03:45)
  • His twin brother George — the CEO of NetApp — and their trailblazing mother (07:40)
  • Nostalgia for simpler times without responsibilities (14:03)
  • Working up the ranks at Oracle, from product manager to president (21:40)
  • The Google Cloud opportunity (30:12)
  • How to succeed inside a huge organization (32:38)
  • The big difference between Oracle and Google Cloud in 2019 (39:35)
  • The “mother of God” opportunity of the cloud (42:35)
  • The advice Thomas gives to other CEOs (48:25)

Links:

Avsnitt(282)

SVP Sales Modern Health, Hannah Willson: Overcoming the Stigma of Mental Health in Sales

SVP Sales Modern Health, Hannah Willson: Overcoming the Stigma of Mental Health in Sales

In this episode of Go to Market Grit, Modern Health VP of Sales Hannah Willson explains how Modern Health is working to normalize and de-stigmatize cognitive wellbeing health in the workplace.  Accord...

21 Sep 202039min

Chief Sales Officer at Brex, Sam Blond: Recruiting Talent

Chief Sales Officer at Brex, Sam Blond: Recruiting Talent

If there’s one person who knows a thing or two about sales growth, it’s Brex Chief Sales Officer Sam Blond, who has been a part of some legendary sales runs during his career. Sam joined Zenefits in 2...

8 Sep 202051min

CRO Cockroach Labs, Jeff Miller: Building an Effective Open Source Go to Market Strategy

CRO Cockroach Labs, Jeff Miller: Building an Effective Open Source Go to Market Strategy

In a study from Red Hat, 95 percent of respondents said open source was strategically important to their organization, while 77 percent agreed that open source will continue to grow. Yet, that doesn’t...

24 Aug 202035min

VP Sales at Mixpanel, Meka Asonye: Exploring Analytics, High Velocity Sales, and Stigmas

VP Sales at Mixpanel, Meka Asonye: Exploring Analytics, High Velocity Sales, and Stigmas

Topics:Is there a stigma around intelligence in sales?How to enable high velocity salesMany organizations today are struggling to strike a balance between being data-driven and gut-driven. For pointer...

10 Aug 202053min

CRO CircleCI, Jane Kim: Leading with Vulnerability and Making Mistakes

CRO CircleCI, Jane Kim: Leading with Vulnerability and Making Mistakes

In this episode of Go to Market Grit, CircleCI CRO Jane Kim shares valuable insight about her experiences growing a global organization, and trying to build an effective team and strategy. Joubin and ...

27 Juli 202046min

CRO TripActions, Carlos Delatorre: The Science of Sales

CRO TripActions, Carlos Delatorre: The Science of Sales

In this episode of Go to Market Grit, TripActions CRO and Silicon Valley sales legend Carlos Delatorre opens up about what it takes to build powerful and effective sales teams and strategies. Joubin a...

13 Juli 202054min

CRO Obsidian Security, Bob Kruse: Building a Winning Sales Culture

CRO Obsidian Security, Bob Kruse: Building a Winning Sales Culture

In this episode of Go to Market Grit, Obsidian Security CRO and sales veteran Bob Kruse shares his thoughts on culture, and how it impacts sales teams. Bob and Joubin discuss why having a strong cultu...

29 Juni 202046min

VP of Sales at Palo Alto Networks, Jeff StClair : Discovering, Recruiting, and Coaching Sales Talent

VP of Sales at Palo Alto Networks, Jeff StClair : Discovering, Recruiting, and Coaching Sales Talent

In this episode, Jeff StClair, currently VP of Sales at Palo Alto Networks and most recently VP Sales at Evident.io shares his thoughts on how startups can more effectively discover, attract, and reta...

22 Juni 202033min

Populärt inom Business & ekonomi

framgangspodden
badfluence
varvet
rss-jossan-nina
rss-borsens-finest
rss-svart-marknad
avanzapodden
uppgang-och-fall
fill-or-kill
rss-inga-dumma-fragor-om-pengar
rss-dagen-med-di
lastbilspodden
borsmorgon
bathina-en-podcast
svd-tech-brief
affarsvarlden
bilar-med-sladd
rss-den-nya-ekonomin
tabberaset
rss-veckans-trade