When you think of ‘superstars in the AI era that everyone is passionate about’, there is a company that promptly comes too mind.Nvidia, the absolute leader in AI semiconductorsno see.The second largest company in the world by market capitalization, stock price increase of 719% over the past two years, and quarterly sales growth of 491% show the company’s status. How does Nvidia work? For 31 years from 1993 to now How is Jensen Huang leading this company? Several books have already been published in this regard in Korea. The Moast Trustworthy Book was published in the united States on December 10th. Written by Tae Kim, senior writer for barron’s, an American economic media outlet. ‘The Nvidia Way: Jensen Huang and the Making of a Tech Giant’no see. With the cooperation of NVIDIA, he interviewed the company’s co-founder and a number of current and former employees and related people. Including Jensen Huang, of course.
Although this book is organized in chronological order, I have selected and organized several crucial keywords. How NVIDIA Ruled the AI World – The Jensen Huang WayTake a look into.
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Email instead of report
Whether in Korea or the United States, large corporations tend to follow the conventional pyramid organizational structure. There are very few executives who can report directly to the CEO at the top. Reports are always carefully coordinated. It’s so well polished Hiding the company’s real problems and obstacles Let’s do it.
So Jensen Huang receives employees’ e-mails rather than official reports. All employees report to their immediate teams and executives once every 1-2 weeks. ‘Top 5’ emailsLet me send it. You shoudl describe ‘the top five things you are working on’ and ‘what you have observed in the market recently.’ Of course, the recipient includes Jensen Huang. This has been going on since the early days of Nvidia,even before Jensen Huang wore a black leather jacket as his uniform.
![Why is Nvidia so strong… About the ‘Jensen Huang method’[딥다이브]](https://dimg.donga.com/wps/NEWS/IMAGE/2024/12/13/130634477.1.jpg "Why is Nvidia so strong… About the ‘Jensen Huang method’[딥다이브]")
So, NVIDIA has over 60 e-staff members. Meeting regularly with the CEO There are over 60 direct reports. I mean.This is in contrast to the typical large American company where the CEO has less than 10 direct reports.
In this company One-on-one meetings are rare. Reporting and feedback are done in large meetings with more than 60 people. It is obvious and information is shared quickly. Former NVIDIA manager Andy Keane says: “We can all hear what Jensen Huang is saying to the executives. It synchronizes everyone.”
Because information is shared immediately and everyone knows what is importent, cooperation is much easier.“The biggest difference at NVIDIA compared to other companies is that you only have to ask someone once and it’s done right away,” said former marketing executive Oliver Baltuch. “You don’t have to ask twice.”
Whiteboard instead of PowerPoint
Whiteboards are a must-see item in NVIDIA’s offices and dozens of conference rooms. Even when he goes on business trips, Jensen Huang takes a whiteboard with him. He says he only uses Taiwanese marker pens that are 12 mm wide and have a flat tip.
Whiteboard replaces PowerPoint in many cases at NVIDIA. Every quarter, Jensen Huang holds a meeting with hundreds of leaders. Every general manager should use a white
Stand in front of a blank white board without a fancy PowerPoint presentation I do it.
So what is the difference from presenting using PowerPoint? You won’t be able to hide behind pretty graphics and vague text. You have to demonstrate your thought process in real time, relying only on a marker pen. It clearly reveals whether you understand the content well and whether there are any gaps in the logic. It’s impossible to fill in the information roughly. Above all, Jensen Huang will be shooting from the front row. Sometimes, I jump out and draw diagrams on the whiteboard myself.
Tae Kim, the author of this book, says, “At NVIDIA, the whiteboard is more than a means of communication.” It shows the belief that no matter how great an idea is, it will eventually be erased and a new idea will take its place. Whether it’s mistakes or successes, let’s not look back on the past and focus on the empty blackboard of future and possibility. This is NVIDIA culture.
Mission is the boss
The great disadvantage of bureaucracy is that it not only slows down decision-making, but also allows internal politics to run rampant. There is competition between executives,and each division puts their life and death into making their own executives win. Even when other business divisions are not doing well, thay actually benefit.
This kind of internal politics is one of the things Jensen Huang hates. “If there is a leader who takes away opportunities from others instead of fighting for their success,I will just call them out. “If you do it once or twice, no one will ever do it again.”
So NVIDIA does not have a long-term strategic plan that dictates the path of each business unit. “There is no five-year plan. Because the world is alive and breathing.We just keep planning.”
For employees ‘mission is the boss’He emphasizes this. The goal is to realize the mission, not to work based on the organization or executives. At NVIDIA, whenever a new project is started, a person in charge (Pilot in Command) is appointed and the person reports directly to the CEO. It prevents business leaders from hiding behind executive or team names.
Also, if you have difficulty accomplishing your mission, ask for help right away. For example, if a regional sales executive is unable to meet his quota, he should notify the company as early as possible. Then,the company
A culture where asking for help is not a weakness,but not asking for it is indeed a problemno see.“We work together.No one is defeated alone.”
In these companies, executives and directors must be prepared to suffer public censure. Jensen Huang is very stingy with praise. This is because it is believed that looking back on past achievements makes a company complacent. Rather, criticism is poured out mercilessly. I usually scold them publicly at large meetings. It must be quite humiliating for those who suffer.
Why are you humiliating me like this? Jensen Huang Because “feedback is learning”no see. “Why is he the only one learning? He created the situation because of his own mistakes and foolishness. We all have to learn from it.” That’s really cold.
He isn’t just harsh on his employees. One Nvidia executive remembers the first thing Jensen Huang said during a meeting reporting fantastic quarterly results. “I look in the mirror every morning and say this.“You suck.”
dedication and hard work. this is what NVIDIA requires of all employees. This is what Marketing Director Michael Hara said during new employee orientation. “We are very aggressive. We don’t waste time looking for excuses for why things don’t work out. come here If you think you can hide in the background, get paid, and go home at 5, you are mistaken.If you thought that way, quit today.”
Overtime and weekend work are part of everyday life. Even marketers who are not engineers often work more than 60 hours a week. As we spend so much time at work, it is indeed not uncommon for people to bring their children to work.
Of course, there are complaints about long working hours. Though, Jensen Huang told the employee who made the complaint: “Athletes training for the Olympics also complain about training early in the morning.” The pressure is that if you want to become the best, you have to focus on your work at the level of the national team.
It truly seems like a lot of employees will leave due to exhaustion, but the surprising thing is that this is not the case. NVIDIA’s turnover rate is very low, less than 3%. Why is that so?
This company has no praise, but rewards you with stock. If you receive an ‘excellent’ rating in the annual performance evaluation or are selected as a ‘special contributor,’ we give you several hundred shares of stock. Or, whenever you do something great, Jensen Huang may contact you right away and give you stock. Agile compensation based on thorough performanceThis comes true. In particular,as stock prices rose so quickly,excellent talent with stocks they were scheduled to receive stayed with the company for a long time.
Also, Nvidia Give engineers what they want mostThis is a company that does it. Working with outstanding colleagues in the industry to create great products that can change the world.No engineer wants to spend years developing useless technology that is likely to be obsolete. “(like internal politics) You can focus 100% on technology without worrying about anything else.”(Former GPU designer Li Yi Wei): This is an attractive situation in the gun technology industry. There are too many large companies that
And the important thing is that the person who works the longest and the most hours in the entire company is the CEO.
Even if Jensen Huang watches the movie, he doesn’t remember the content. The whole time I watch it,I just think about work. When he goes on vacation, his employees get scared. As you’re stuck in your hotel room working, you’re bombarded with a lot more e-mails than usual. He’s a huge workaholic and proud of it. “There might be people smarter than me. But no one will work harder than me.” The CEO’s attitude became contagious, and has now become Nvidia’s organizational culture itself.
explained in this book NVIDIA’s way is ultimately CEO Jensen Huang himself. It is Nvidia that turned Jensen Huang into a large company with 30,000 employees. NVIDIA is entirely dependent on Jensen Huang’s leadership. As author Tae Kim puts it, “That’s Nvidia’s only failure point.” If the 61-year-old CEO retires someday, will the Nvidia legend continue even after that? By.Deep Dive
NVIDIA is unique. As CEOs are unique.We conclude by introducing some additional remarks by Jensen Huang from the book.
“People with very high expectations have very low resilience. Unfortunately, resilience is critical to success. Greatness is not intelligence. Greatness comes from character.”
“We realized that it’s better to do a little well than to do too much, even if it looks nice.No one goes to the store to buy a swiss Army knife. “It’s a gift you get at christmas.”
“We don’t have an ROI timeline. There is no ROI timeline and no profitability goals. this is the only thing we optimize for. is it really that cool? “Will people like it?”
“In the beginning, it was a mess in many ways.It wasn’t a great company from day one. We’ve made our company great for 31 years. We survived on our own. We were our own worst enemies.”
How does NVIDIA’s emphasis on direct dialog enhance team collaboration?
Ice represents a unique company culture that prioritizes collaboration, direct communication, and a relentless drive towards excellence. As outlined in the provided text, NVIDIA fosters an habitat where asking questions and seeking help is encouraged, promoting a team-oriented mindset without the barriers typically associated with bureaucratic organizations.
Key Elements of NVIDIA’s Culture:
- direct Communication:
– Employees experience proactive cooperation, where tasks are completed swiftly when a request is made. this is indicative of a culture that values efficiency and accountability.
- Use of Whiteboards:
– Whiteboards replace conventional presentation methods,encouraging real-time problem-solving and clear exhibition of thought processes. This method highlights the importance of understanding the subject matter thoroughly and being open to discussion.It symbolizes NVIDIA’s dynamic approach to innovation, suggesting a philosophy where ideas can be built upon and revised.
- Mission-Driven Leadership:
– NVIDIA operates without rigid long-term plans, emphasizing adaptability and responsiveness to change. Employees are encouraged to view their mission as their guiding principle, rather than organizational hierarchy or executive titles. This allows for quicker decision-making and greater ownership of projects.
- Encouragement of Collaboration:
– The company culture promotes a mindset where seeking assistance is seen as an integral part of teamwork. Employees are expected to reach out for help when needed—building a supportive work environment.
- High Expectations and Accountability:
– Jensen Huang’s management style includes public censure as a form of feedback, promoting a learning culture where mistakes are acknowledged and used as learning opportunities for everyone. This approach emphasizes that everyone is responsible for their contributions, fostering a culture of continuous betterment.
- Commitment to Hard Work:
– NVIDIA sets high expectations for its employees, requiring dedication and consistent effort. The atmosphere is highly demanding,with employees frequently working long hours. huang compares the commitment required at NVIDIA to the rigorous training of Olympic athletes, underlining the idea that striving for excellence demands significant effort.
- focus on Results Rather Than Titles:
– by assigning project leaders who report directly to the CEO, NVIDIA eliminates hierarchy barriers and encourages accountability at all levels.This structure promotes a results-oriented approach while maintaining the adaptability needed for innovation.
- Recognition without Complacency:
– The culture at NVIDIA discourages resting on past achievements. Instead, it emphasizes the importance of constant learning and adapting to maintain a competitive edge.
NVIDIA’s culture embodies an unyielding commitment to innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement. This deeply ingrained ethos drives the company forward and establishes a high-performance environment where employees are pushed to excel while feeling supported by their peers.