Brian Chesky

Or maybe they joined a third of the way up the mountain, but they weren't there at the very beginning. You see, a founder brings three things that a professional manager doesn't have. The first thing a founder has is they're the biological parent. So you can love something, but when you're the biological parent of something, like it came from you, it is you, there is a deep passion in love.

Or maybe they joined a third of the way up the mountain, but they weren't there at the very beginning. You see, a founder brings three things that a professional manager doesn't have. The first thing a founder has is they're the biological parent. So you can love something, but when you're the biological parent of something, like it came from you, it is you, there is a deep passion in love.

The second thing a founder has is they have the permission, right? Like I can't tell another child what to do, but if they were my child, I probably could. I have the permission. And so you have a permission. I could rename the, I could rebrand the company and a professional manager would probably come and say, I can't do that, but I know how we named it. I know how we branded it.

The second thing a founder has is they have the permission, right? Like I can't tell another child what to do, but if they were my child, I probably could. I have the permission. And so you have a permission. I could rename the, I could rebrand the company and a professional manager would probably come and say, I can't do that, but I know how we named it. I know how we branded it.

So you know what you can change. The third thing that a founder brings is you built it so you know how to rebuild it. You know the freezing temperature of a company. You know what temperature it melts. You know what this looked like before it was tooled, where it came from, the alloys, where they were sourced from. You're not just managing it, you're building it.

So you know what you can change. The third thing that a founder brings is you built it so you know how to rebuild it. You know the freezing temperature of a company. You know what temperature it melts. You know what this looked like before it was tooled, where it came from, the alloys, where they were sourced from. You're not just managing it, you're building it.

The problem is professional managers typically don't have any of those three, at least not in the abundance of founders. But the problem with founders, there's two problems. The first is most of them cannot scale to run a giant company. And even if they do, the last problem is they don't live forever. And companies, great companies, usually want to live longer than humans do.

The problem is professional managers typically don't have any of those three, at least not in the abundance of founders. But the problem with founders, there's two problems. The first is most of them cannot scale to run a giant company. And even if they do, the last problem is they don't live forever. And companies, great companies, usually want to live longer than humans do.

And so therefore, you end up with the inevitable challenge that Disney and Steve Jobs had, which is succession planning. Actually, both of them died prematurely. And maybe Steve prepared more than Walt did. And that's the last step of the journey. But I think there's something really special about founders and founder-led companies.

And so therefore, you end up with the inevitable challenge that Disney and Steve Jobs had, which is succession planning. Actually, both of them died prematurely. And maybe Steve prepared more than Walt did. And that's the last step of the journey. But I think there's something really special about founders and founder-led companies.

And I think that if you want the world to change, we need more entrepreneurs. We need more founders. If you want to empower more women, you should make more women entrepreneurs. If you want to lift up more economies around the world, you should lift up entrepreneurs in those economies. It's one of the greatest ways to create wealth, to change the world, and to just change the trajectory of society.

And I think that if you want the world to change, we need more entrepreneurs. We need more founders. If you want to empower more women, you should make more women entrepreneurs. If you want to lift up more economies around the world, you should lift up entrepreneurs in those economies. It's one of the greatest ways to create wealth, to change the world, and to just change the trajectory of society.

It's funny you ask this question because last week I sent an email to the entire company, to all 6,000 people. And my email was about culture and why it's important and what it is. Can I read you a portion of it?

It's funny you ask this question because last week I sent an email to the entire company, to all 6,000 people. And my email was about culture and why it's important and what it is. Can I read you a portion of it?

For the context of the email is I hired a head of people and culture, like a different name for HR. Joni and I have always believed that you must design the culture you want. Otherwise, it will be designed for you, and you might not like what emerges. The people and the culture they create at the heart of Airbnb. Simply put, culture is what creates the foundation for all future innovation.

For the context of the email is I hired a head of people and culture, like a different name for HR. Joni and I have always believed that you must design the culture you want. Otherwise, it will be designed for you, and you might not like what emerges. The people and the culture they create at the heart of Airbnb. Simply put, culture is what creates the foundation for all future innovation.

In the long run, the culture... is the most important thing you will ever design because it's the engine that designs everything else. All good designs start with a vision. And I want working at Airbnb to feel like working at the world's largest startup. I believe we can grow into one of the largest companies in the world without feeling large. A company that's still run like a startup.

In the long run, the culture... is the most important thing you will ever design because it's the engine that designs everything else. All good designs start with a vision. And I want working at Airbnb to feel like working at the world's largest startup. I believe we can grow into one of the largest companies in the world without feeling large. A company that's still run like a startup.

With the best people in every discipline collaborating at high speeds with intense focus, all while maintaining minimal bureaucracy and communication layers. And to make this happen, we're going to reimagine HR function. Because too many companies have lost sight of what HR was originally designed to do, reducing it to merely an administrative function.

With the best people in every discipline collaborating at high speeds with intense focus, all while maintaining minimal bureaucracy and communication layers. And to make this happen, we're going to reimagine HR function. Because too many companies have lost sight of what HR was originally designed to do, reducing it to merely an administrative function.