- ByStartupStory | March 13, 2024
Chip-making giant Nvidia’s CEO Jensen Huang emphasizes creating a conducive environment for employees, drawing from his diverse life experiences. Speaking at Stanford Graduate School of Business, he stressed the importance of a culture where no task is considered beneath anyone. “To me, no task is beneath me. Because remember I used to wash dishes, and I mean I used to clean toilets. I cleaned a lot of toilets,” Huang shared, reflecting on his past roles.
Huang sees his role as guiding employees through problem-solving processes, emphasizing the value of reasoning and learning from each other. “I show people how to reason through things all the time – strategy things, how to forecast something, how to break a problem down,” he stated, highlighting his approach to leadership. He also mentioned his willingness to learn from his colleagues: “If you send me something you want me to help review it, I’ll do my best and I’ll show you how I would do it.”
However, Huang admitted that this approach can be exhausting, requiring immense emotional and intellectual energy. “You have to at least get to their plane. You have to get into their head space and that’s really hard,” he confessed, acknowledging the challenges of his role.
Critiquing traditional company cultures, Huang believes in transparent leadership with direct reports to the CEO. He opposes the notion of power based on secretive information possession: “I don’t believe in a culture, an environment where the information that you possess is the reason why you have power.”
Huang’s main mission at Nvidia is to empower employees to excel. “My main mission was to create conditions favourable for them to do their best work,” he affirmed, highlighting the significance of enabling employees to contribute meaningfully to the company’s success.
Founded in 1993, Nvidia leads the AI revolution with its GPUs, driving advanced AI applications. With a market cap surpassing $2 trillion, the company remains at the forefront of technological innovation.