Jon McNeill’s lessons on innovation through subtraction
Before Jon McNeill was CEO at VC firm DVx Ventures, he was the president of Tesla and chief operating officer at Lyft.
Before Jon McNeill was CEO at VC firm DVx Ventures, he was the president of Tesla and chief operating officer at Lyft. He helped Tesla grow its revenue run rate from $2 billion to $20 billion in 30 months, and he doubled Lyft’s revenue ahead of its IPO. He’s also on the board of GM’s Cruise and Lululemon, among other companies. So when he comes out with advice for how to build an innovative company, startups listen.
During the World Business Forum this week in New York City, McNeill presented insights into building innovative companies, a method Tesla CEO Elon Musk calls “the algorithm.” This approach, covered in Walter Isaacson’s biography of Musk, emphasizes radically simplifying both goals and processes.
McNeill’s key lesson: Start by identifying the problem you’re solving, then aim for massive (not incremental) goals. “Order of magnitude big,” he said.
He recounted Tesla’s 2017 “production hell” when the company, facing bankruptcy, sought to boost digital sales of the $100,000 Model S by 20x. Tesla reduced the 63 clicks to buy a car online to 10, simplifying both the process and the supply chain.
McNeill’s takeaway for startups?
“The answer isn’t ‘No,’ or ‘It’s crazy.’ The answer in innovative communities is: ‘I have no idea how to do that, but we’ll try.’”
Article