Entrepreneur Marc Lore, the co-founder of several multibillion-dollar companies, recently sat down with TechCrunch to share his insights on navigating the startup landscape. Lore, who plans to take his food delivery and take-out business Wonder public in the next couple of years, discussed his management philosophies and the importance of embracing risk.
Lore emphasized that he doesn’t operate in the “founder mode” commonly associated with tech leaders, where they actively engage with employees at all levels. Instead, he focuses on aligning his team around the company’s vision, strategy, and core elements, then empowering them to execute.
“When everybody is fully aligned and you have really good people, you just let them run; I don’t need to be involved at all,” Lore explained.
Regarding hiring, Lore stressed the importance of recruiting “rock star” talent, noting that a one-hour interview is often insufficient to assess a candidate’s true potential. He looks for resumes that demonstrate a clear pattern of success, including multiple promotions and big career leaps, rather than lateral moves.
“When I see somebody who has a superstar resume, they’re almost always a superstar,” Lore said. “I grab it and I pay them whatever they need.”
Lore also discussed his belief that taking calculated risks is essential for startup success, even if it may seem counterintuitive to many. He pointed out that the “status quo is the worst thing you can do” and that “doing nothing is the most risk you can possibly take.”
“If you have a life-threatening medical condition, and the doctor’s like, ‘You have six months to live,’ at that point, a trial drug or anything, even if it’s super risky, [is going to look good],” Lore said. “You’re basically seeking opportunities to take risk, to not have that inevitable death.”
As Lore prepares to take Wonder public, his insights on hiring, risk-taking, and maintaining a focused, aligned team offer valuable lessons for aspiring entrepreneurs and startup founders navigating the dynamic landscape of the tech industry.
