Masters of Scale

In the midst of conflict and turmoil, Hello Heart CEO Maayan Cohen leads her team with compassion, resilience, and a commitment to justice. In this special episode of Masters of Scale Rapid Response, Cohen describes navigating the unprecedented challenges of running a business in Israel while the country is at war, all while prioritizing the safety and well-being of her employees and their familie...

In part two of our 3-part series on AI + You, we offer an actionable playbook on how AI can help us scale ourselves personally. Personal scale is all about broadening your skill set and strengthening your human relationships. To guide you, host Reid Hoffman speaks to Stanford HAI’s Fei-Fei Li, Inflection’s Mustafa Suleyman, tech-centric artist Holly Herndon and more AI pioneers. You’ll discover ho...

Can you reinvigorate a beloved but troubled brand by applying lessons from a different industry? Under Armour CEO Stephanie Linnartz firmly believes so — and earlier this year made the leap from Marriott to become the first woman to helm a major sports apparel brand. She joins Rapid Response host Bob Safian to talk about how her 25 years with Marriott is giving her unexpected insight as she works...

AI can be overwhelming. In this 3-part series, we offer business leaders an actionable playbook to best implement AI. Part one: To unleash AI’s true power of scale, you must dive headfirst into ongoing experimentation. To guide you, host Reid Hoffman speaks to Stanford HAI’s Fei-Fei Li, Inflection’s Mustafa Suleyman, Adept’s David Luan, and more AI pioneers. Their experiences with AI provide a per...

With companies wrestling with the question of returning to the office or to continue working from home, there are so many questions around the future of work. How do you maximize your team’s creative output and entice them to want to come back to the office, while navigating the opportunities and challenges of working with AI? WPP CEO Mark Read believes that working together in an office is better...

Under a harsh spotlight, how do you remain composed while fighting for your mission? Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt joins Rapid Response host Bob Safian to take us inside the story of his public row with Elon Musk. Jonathan also explains how business leaders must ignite hope in the face of hate to help build a brighter future. Plus, he shares lessons about the seasonality of busine...

The buzz about AI focuses on how we can bolster our skills, knowledge and efficiency. But what role can AI play in enriching our lives as social beings with feelings, relationships and dreams?  In this special interview, Mustafa Suleyman and Reid Hoffman — co-founders of Inflection AI, and two of the leading AI minds today — sit down to discuss the human-centered ideals at the core of Mustafa...

The boldest of entrepreneurs take on the impossible. Recorded live at the Masters of Scale Summit, four scale leaders in Bjarke Ingels, Aurora James, Kathryn Finney, and Scott Harrison offer their strategies and ideas around taking on society’s most complex and tough challenges. In this episode, you’ll hear how each entrepreneur embraces a unique challenge from addressing systemic racism, designin...

For some entrepreneurs, risk is just part of the game. But for the reluctant entrepreneur, whose endeavors come as a response to a need they've identified, risk can feel more like a necessary evil. That’s why you need to learn to harness risk. Stacey Abrams, an entrepreneur and scale leader both in and outside of politics, is a perfect example of how harnessing risk can be key to yo...

Simplicity is notoriously difficult, but it’s key to iterating successfully — and staying relevant. Featuring cameos from entrepreneur superstar Daymond John, and Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom, this episode shares lessons from the timeless clothing brand, and its namesake creator, Eileen Fisher. During her 40 years at the helm, the company has scaled from a small shop on Madison Avenue, to on...

Amidst the fast pace of entrepreneurial life, how can we make our networking more impactful? The acclaimed film and television producer Brian Grazer argues that curiosity is the elixir for deeper human connection and cultivating a healthy network that serves as an ever-flowing well of inspiration.  Brian joins Reid to share the unique practice that brings his healthy network to life. You’ll a...

How do you evolve your greatest obstacle into your greatest superpower? Shellye Archambeau, Ellevest’s Sallie Krawcheck, and Calendly’s Tope Awotona discuss the hidden advantages of strategizing like an entrepreneurial outsider. Recorded live at the Masters of Scale Summit in San Francisco, they sit down with host Bob Safian to share lessons about questioning the status quo, maintaining confidence...

How do you stay true to your vision for your company amid constant, unpredictable change? And how do you stay true to a singular vision, while also letting it evolve? These are questions every leader needs to consider as they rally people, resources and opportunities to make their vision a reality. Celebrated filmmaker Ron Howard has a remarkable ability to maintain his vision of creating captivat...

Eric Schmidt, Angela Ahrendts, and Dara Khosrowshahi — three legendary culture-setters — sit down with host Bob Safian to discuss how they’ve built and rebuilt great cultures at Apple, Uber, Google and more. Recorded live at the Masters of Scale Summit in San Francisco, the conversation delivers surprising stories, and counterintuitive lessons on authenticity, making mistakes, and how to build a u...

How do you nurture human talent in today’s AI-obsessed, pressure-cooker business climate? Arianna Huffington, founder of Thrive and Huffington Post, and Padmasree Warrior, founder of Fable and former chief strategy officer at Cisco, offer actionable advice on avoiding burnout—for yourself and your teams. Arianna and Padma explain how productivity and positive business outcomes are directly linked...

Too often, companies only focus on the type of scale that’s visible: massive campuses, thousands of workers, offices around the globe. But as Land O’Lakes proves, there are less conspicuous ways to scale – ways that supply your business with structural integrity. This is something CEO Beth Ford knows well. She’s strategically scaled Land O’Lakes – often beneath the surface of what the average cons...

Need to Know: AI’s risks and opportunities; why Reid launched his own AI chatbot; and what Elon Musk and Sam Altman aren’t telling you. Reid Hoffman joins Bob Safian to explore how leaders everywhere should prepare for the AI revolution. Plus, Reid shares the inspiration and strategy behind co-founding his company, Inflection AI. If you’re unsure how to begin a period of experimentation and AI rol...

Rapid Response with Bob Safian: How do you re-skill a 65,000-strong workforce to prepare for the AI revolution? PwC recently invested $1 billion into AI, hoping to unleash never-before-seen potential for employees and clients. US chief Tim Ryan explains why and how the money will be spent, plus shares what he’s advising fellow CEOs about which industries are most poised for change from AI and how...

Your company's culture is the bedrock of everything you do. So you can't afford to just let your culture emerge — you need to build it with the deliberate approach of a product designer. Then you need to bring that culture to life by winning buy-in from your team. This is exactly what Dharmesh Shah did at HubSpot — as laid out in the famed HubSpot Culture Code. This living document continues to in...

Human beings are social creatures, with a critical need to connect with others. This drive gives shape and meaning to our personal and professional lives. For entrepreneurs and business leaders, the path to success relies on strong, human-centered networks. In this special episode, we revisit the Masters of Scale Summit to hear from leaders, including our very own Reid Hoffman, who share inside st...

Navigate today’s uncertain climate with a steadfast resolve. Recorded live at the Masters of Scale Summit in San Francisco, former Merck CEO Ken Frazier and Upwork CEO Hayden Brown talk with host Bob Safian about how leaders should trust their values when faced with social, political, and economic challenges. Brown shares how leading through the chaos of the pandemic brought new opportunities to i...

In part 2 of this episode with veteran founders and investors Mitch Kapor & Dr. Freada Kapor Klein, we get into the data of building human-centered cultures. In part one, we heard how Mitch and Freada went all-in on investing their values, committing 100% of new investments in “gap-closing” companies that aim to improve society, even as they aim for scale and liquidity as well. Now, Mitch and...

Rapid Response with Bob Safian: Should you begin incorporating AI now or wait to see how it shakes-out for early adopters? AI pioneer Rana el Kaliouby urges business leaders to embrace their exploration mindset in order to accelerate faster. El Kaliouby takes us inside her own AI shop, Smart Eye, where she serves as deputy CEO, to share their process for adapting to the latest technology. An...

Can you build with conscience and still succeed? Mitch Kapor & Dr. Freada Kapor Klein certainly think so. As tech industry veteran founders and investors, Mitch and Freada have long embraced non-traditional metrics that put humans at the center. Mitch co-founded Lotus, the 1980s software giant, and hired Freada to help make the company “the most progressive employer in the U.S.” And years late...

How do you balance saving capital versus taking advantage of current opportunities? How do investors and founders evaluate risk differently? And how do you embrace disruptive new technology without sending the message that you’re replacing humans with robots? Reid Hoffman and Bob Safian answer these questions and more, all posed in a special live Strategy Session by entrepreneurs across many indus...