IT execs offer students leadership, job-hunting tips

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By Nancy Weil

(IDG) -- Contrary to what might have been expected given the economic doldrums the world has been in, about 500 business students from around the globe heard encouraging news during the Harvard Business School Cyberposium over the weekend: There are good jobs to be had, particularly for those who want to work for startups, the economy is improving and a sense of optimism pervades the attitudes of at least those IT executives who spoke at the annual event.

In fact, business students in programs now have an advantage over those who left school a few years ago during the heady days of dot-com craziness.

"I pity, I pity the people who left Harvard Business School two or three years ago because they learned really bad habits in the marketplace," said 3Com Corp. Chief Executive Officer Bruce Claflin during a question-and-answer session after his keynote talk Saturday. Those who graduated a few years back might have learned to manipulate the market to achieve fleeting success with faulty business plans, and also might have learned the unsavory lesson that getting ahead means getting close to analysts and others who can place companies in a favorable light.

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The feel-good message was everywhere, with executives predicting that the recession is coming to a close and that although the recent past will not be repeated, that's just as well.

"The simple truth is that it will get better, but it won't go back to being what we thought was normal before," said Esther Dyson, chairman of EDventure Holdings Inc. "That was nutty."

Dyson was one of several executives who told attendees that they should feel free to contact her if they are interested in jobs with startups. An active investor, she is involved with a number of startups that are hiring. The pay is relatively low and the hours are long, but the rewards are plentiful because small companies offer creative freedom and fun environments, she said.

Despite the recession, the Sept. 11 attacks on the U.S. and the ongoing aftermath of those acts and the spectacular collapse of Enron Corp., this is not the time to hold back or to cower in panic, executives said.

"I think it's a time to be bold," said entrepreneur Sharon Whiteley, who late last year was tapped as president and chief operating officer of ThirdAge Inc., a San Francisco-based company that offers an online community and services for what are called "first wave" baby boomers or those who are the earliest to hit 50.

She and other speakers repeatedly emphasized that it's important to have enthusiasm and passion for work. "If you don't have passion for what you're doing, it's not worth it, none of it," she said.

It's also important to take risks and to know that taking them means you will sometimes fail, the executives said.

"Fail often," was a bit of advice offered by Matthew Szulik, chief executive officer (CEO) of Red Hat Inc. during the same panel discussion Whiteley participated in.

Also part of that panel was Frank Moss, chairman of Bowstreet Software Inc. and former head of Tivoli Systems Inc., who appreciates chutzpah in prospective employees. Moss related an anecdote that he received an e-mail once from someone saying he had read about Moss' plans for Bowstreet in Network World magazine and liked his ideas, but had a few to add. Moss turned the e-mail over to his co-founder and suggested that any decent ideas should be stolen.

The person sent a second e-mail noting that Moss hadn't responded to the first e-mail, but giving a few more ideas about the plans for Bowstreet and how to offer Web services software. Again, Moss passed the e-mail along suggesting that the good ideas should be taken. A third e-mail arrived acknowledging that the first two had been ignored, but laying out an entire plan for doing what Bowstreet planned and wrapping up with the threat that if the e-mail was not answered the writer would start his own company and run Bowstreet out of business. Moss contacted the writer, met for lunch and wound up hiring that person as Bowstreet's chief technology officer.

But it's also important that those in charge of hiring and managing people are able to fire employees who aren't working out, Moss said, adding that it has always been his experience that he wishes he had taken that action sooner rather than later.

Szulik advised following your instincts, including when it comes to hiring. He once hired a top executive even though his instincts told him that the person wouldn't be a good fit for Red Hat, the open-source Linux operating system developer based in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. Soon after he hired the executive, he got a call from an employee handling a purchase order from the new executive. The purchase order was for US$600,000 worth of Microsoft Corp.'s Windows NT operating system.

That incident smacks against another key that executives repeatedly pointed to when it comes to leadership, particularly when the economy is down.

"The only hope (for success) is to get people to believe in what you're doing," Moss said.

Inspiring faith and trust requires moral conviction and establishing unwavering values, various executives said.

When the share price of Red Hat soared to $300 and the company had an unrealistic multibillion dollar valuation that Szulik knew could not possibly be sustained because its lone product was software that sold for $29.95, he might have been tempted to ditch a lot of his shares and make a fortune. Whatever effect on his personal portfolio, Szulik knew that was not the way to inspire confidence or to keep morale up.

The choice wound up being simple for him.

"As CEO, I had to get out in front and lead my people," Szulik said, and that meant holding on to his shares even as the price fell back to earth. "I put the onus back on the CEO," he said.