logo
episode-header-image
Mar 2022
35m 48s

20VC: Gitlab CEO Sid Sijbrandij on Why Y...

Harry Stebbings
About this episode

Sid Sijbrandij is the Co-founder & CEO @ GitLab. GitLab’s single application helps organizations deliver software faster and more efficiently while strengthening their security and compliance. Prior to their IPO last year, Sid raised funding from some of the best including ICONIQ, GV, Tiger, Coatue and D1 to name a few. Under his leadership, the company has grown to over 1,500 employees and over 30 million registered users. If that was not enough, Sid is also an active angel and sits on the board of Meltano, a spinout of Gitlab that allows you to manage all the data tools in your stack.

In Today’s Episode with Sid Sijbrandij You Will Learn:

1.) The Founding of Gitlab:

  • How did Sid make his way into the world of tech and startups?
  • What was it about Gitlab as a project that excited Sid so much from Day 1?
  • How did Sid convince his co-founder to turn Gitlab from a project into a company?

2.) The Future of Work:

  • Why does Sid believe it is a fallacy that everyone will go back to the office?
  • What are the 1-2 most important things for companies to do when moving to a remote work environment? Where does Sid see many make mistakes?
  • What have Gitlab done to create a remote working environment so successfully? What have they tried that has not worked?
  • What stage of company building does remote work best for? When is it most challenging?

3.) Sid: The Leader

  • How has Sid changed and evolved as a leader over the Gitlab journey?
  • How does Sid look to get as much feedback as possible on his leadership?
  • How does Sid create an environment of safety where everyone feels they can provide feedback?
  • How does Sid work with his CEO coach? Should every CEO have one? What should one look for in them? How do you know when you need to change your CEO coach?

4.) Sid: The Board Member:

  • What have been Sid's biggest lessons on what makes successful board management?
  • In prep for the meeting, what materials does Sid provide? When does he send them? Does he present to the board? What mistakes do founders make in boards?
  • From being on the other side as a board member, what does Sid believe the best members do?
  • What would Sid most like to change about board meetings today?

Item’s Mentioned In Today’s Episode with Sid Sijbrandij

Sid’s Favourite Book: High Output Management

Up next
Yesterday
20VC: Daniel Gross and Nat Friedman: Acquired by Meta | OpenAI’s SBC Bombshell: More Stock Comp Than Revenue | Privat Equity is Back: Olo Bought for $2BN | Microsoft Lays Off 9,000 People: Is This Just the Start | Will Sequoia Part with Shaun Maguire
Agenda: [00:00] The AI Talent Crisis No One’s Ready For [03:00] Daniel Gross and Nat Friedman: Why Two Legendary VCs Walked Away From $1B to Join Meta [12:00] Meta’s AI Talent Magnet: Will It Actually Work? [15:00] Cursor Is Breaking the Market: Can Anyone Compete? [18:30] OpenAI ... Show More
1h 7m
Jul 7
20VC: Scott Galloway on Are Billionaires Happy & The Impact of Money on Psychology and Self-Worth | Becoming a Better Father & Husband | Why We Should Drink More and Not Work From Home | The Tinder Effect & How it Makes Young Men Radical
Scott Galloway is a Professor of Marketing at NYU Stern, where he’s taught for over two decades. He’s the founder of several successful companies, including L2 (acquired by Gartner for over $150M), Red Envelope, and Prophet. He’s a New York Times bestselling author of four books ... Show More
1h 10m
Jul 3
20VC: Figma's IPO: The Full Breakdown | Index Returns $3.5BN on Two Deals | Why Melio's $2.5BN Acquisition is "Discouraging" | Asana's New CEO and the Great Founder Exodus | Oracle's $30BN AI Deal and What it Means for Incumbents
AGENDA: 00:00 – $400B in AI CapEx: Rational Investment or Madness? 05:00 – Figma's IPO: Rule of 80, $1.5B in cash, 40% margins. Unreal. 08:00 – Adobe Screwed the Deal—Should They Have Just Bought Canva? 16:00 – Pay-to-Play Deals: Heroic Hail Mary or Guaranteed Write-Off? 21:30 – ... Show More
1h 11m
Recommended Episodes
Sep 2022
Advice from the CEO of an All-Remote Company
Most organizations have now accepted that the days of all their knowledge workers coming into the office full time are over. So what's next? Sid Sijbrandij, CEO and cofounder of Gitlab, thinks all-remote can be the answer. His open-source software development company took that ap ... Show More
28m 27s
Jun 2024
How GitLab Leads Its Fully Remote Workforce
GitLab, which builds and manages an open-source software development application, started off with employees fully dispersed and has stayed that way. Now with more than 1,300 people spread across more than 60 countries, it’s said to be the world’s largest all-remote company. In t ... Show More
30m 25s
Mar 2012
Leadership
The view from the top of business. Presented by Evan Davis, The Bottom Line cuts through confusion, statistics and spin to present a clearer view of the business world, through discussion with people running leading and emerging companies. The programme is broadcast first on BBC ... Show More
27m 49s
Mar 2024
281 - Reimagining Online Content Communities - With Sid Yadav
In this episode, host Chris Do sits down with Sid Yadav, the co-founder and CEO of Circle, a community platform for creators and brands, shares his entrepreneurial journey along with valuable lessons for success. Talking about the early days of Circle, he acknowledges the impact ... Show More
1h 13m
Jul 2020
Leading Through A Crisis with GitHub’s CTO Jason Warner
At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic,  companies around the world were asking the same question: How do I mobilize my workforce and give them the tools and skills they need to work from home? GitHub employs more than 1,000 employees, all of whom work remotely. So we invited ... Show More
25m 16s
Jul 2021
#116 Jeff Immelt: Leadership In A Crisis
Former General Electric CEO Jeff Immelt looks back on his two decades with the company and the strategies he used to lead during three separate crises. In this episode, Immelt discusses what happened during those events and why, what it was like to take over for GM icon Jack Welc ... Show More
54m 14s
Sep 2021
#119 Todd Simkin: Making Better Decisions
Todd Simkin calls on experiences from his lengthy career in financial services and educating traders to help Shane understand how to make better decisions. Simkin breaks down all the influences that go into how and why we make decisions, why financial decisions are different than ... Show More
1h 15m
May 2023
159. Voices of CEO Excellence: Merck’s Ken Frazier. Episode 1
As CEO of Merck, Ken Frazier gained the respect of his employees, shareholders, and the broader community - both through the company’s performance during his 11-year tenure and also through his handling of several tests of his leadership. Now Merck’s former executive chairman, he ... Show More
42m 20s
Jul 2014
#75: Simon Sinek—Why Leaders Eat Last
How do you create a culture where trust and cooperation are as common as a 10 a.m. coffee break? It’s all about great leadership. And on this episode, we’re discussing the secret to great leadership with one the most influential and innovative voices on the subject. Best-selling ... Show More
42m 45s
Apr 2019
Ep 122: Splitting Client-Facing Duties From The Mid- And Back-Office With A 'Supported Independence' Model with Jeff Concepcion
My guest today built his firm as a support platform for independent advisors. Jeff Concepcion is the founder and CEO of Stratos Wealth Partners, a corporate RIA and super OSJ under the LPL platform that oversees over $13 billion of assets under advisement across nearly 300 adviso ... Show More
1h 46m