30: The New York Times’ David Yee: From Startup Founder to Large Media Company VP of Engineering
When you think ‘pinnacle of journalism’, you think New York Times.
He’s been a startup Founder and large enterprise leader, embarking on a notable transition between the two and embracing the modernized culture of a centuries-old organization.
We catch up with David as he talks about the tension between the leader you want to be vs the company’s style, what it means to do the right thing, and how you stick the landing between startup and super-sized business.
This Episode Covers:
- How David carved his path to the NYT through several influential roles
- The gray area between the leader you want to be and the leader your company needs
- Transitioning between startups and larger corporations
- Why ‘why’ is the most important word for budding leaders
Episode Highlights:
“I went from this person who was just hacking things together to somebody who really had to think about how you can bring a team to a problem.” - 6:55 - David Yee
“It was a really enjoyable experience to try and figure out, what I often talked about was scaling up what was effectively a fairly small model of running a company to something that was a little bit more substantial” - 20:10 - David Yee
“The New York Times is to journalists what Google meant in the early-2000s. It’s the pinnacle.” - 27:40 - David Yee
“I was talking to my coach and what she told me then, I think about all the time. In what ways do you want to change the Times, in what ways do you want the Times to change you, and what lies in between?” - 39:30 - David Yee
“I'm not going to tell you how many ‘Why’s you need to ask right? But that ‘Why’ has to echo through time.” - 44:55 - David Yee
Links & References:
Constellary: https://www.constellaryhq.com/
Suzan Bond: https://www.linkedin.com/in/suzanbond/