[on Uber’s Early Organizational Structure] “Uber always thought about it as a twin-turbine plane: maybe for a short period of time, you could operate on one engine. But if you want to operate at full efficiency, you need both engines working in tandem and working effectively together.” Brian Tolkin, (@briantolkin)We’re super excited to be joined by Brian Tolkin, one of Uber’s first ~100 employees who built their “Product Ops” organization and then went on to lead Product Management for UberPOOL and all shared rides on the platform. We dive into the nitty gritty of how Uber built their “twin turbine” engine of decentralized real-world Ops and centralized Tech Product, and how the organization evolved as it scaled. We also cover Brian’s new role at OpenDoor and the tight ops + product coupling they’re building now in real estate.Sponsors:Koyfin: https://bit.ly/acquiredkoyfin Be sure to follow the Acquired Podcast:Acquired.fm@AcquiredFMLinks from the Show:Stanford Venture Capital ClubBen Evans: The End of the Beginning (video)Lyft IPO (Acquired)Pre-Meeting Narrative ExampleOpenDoor.com
No persons identified in this episode.
This episode hasn't been transcribed yet
Help us prioritize this episode for transcription by upvoting it.
Popular episodes get transcribed faster
Other recent transcribed episodes
Transcribed and ready to explore now
Before the Crisis: How You and Your Relatives Can Prepare for Financial Caregiving
06 Dec 2025
Motley Fool Money
OpenAI's Code Red, Sacks vs New York Times, New Poverty Line?
06 Dec 2025
All-In with Chamath, Jason, Sacks & Friedberg
OpenAI's Code Red, Sacks vs New York Times, New Poverty Line?
06 Dec 2025
All-In with Chamath, Jason, Sacks & Friedberg
Anthropic Finds AI Answers with Interviewer
05 Dec 2025
The Daily AI Show
#2423 - John Cena
05 Dec 2025
The Joe Rogan Experience
Warehouse to wellness: Bob Mauch on modern pharmaceutical distribution
05 Dec 2025
McKinsey on Healthcare