Hi everyone,
Today we will explore how tech's most influential CEOs are ditching management "best practices" - and why some are succeeding while others are setting themselves up for failure.
What you'll learn:
Why the anti-one-on-one movement is spreading from Nvidia to Airbnb to Linear (and what these CEOs know that others don't)
The hidden cost of "innovative" management structures - from holacracy to flat hierarchies - that no one talks about
A battle-tested framework to evolve your leadership without falling for management fads or destroying what's working
🙏 But before we jump in, I have one ask 🙏
I am currently testing new tools with my clients to enhance their leadership skills and team dynamics. I am opening these exclusively to some of my subscribers to improve them further before publicly launching them. If you wish to beta test any of the below, please leave a vote:
Product Research
- AI-AUGMENTED TEAM ASSESSMENT: Enhance team performance with our AI analysis and a personalized strategy session with me, Julius, to drive measurable results.
- RELATIONSHIP ACCELERATOR: Master the art of leverage with key strategies to enhance collaboration with your Executive Assistant, Founders Associate, or Chief of Staff
- ENTREPENEURIAL MINDSET TRAINING: Transform your team into proactive mini-entrepreneurs, elevating their ownership and initiative.
The Story: The Management Rebellion
Last month, three of my most successful clients caught the management revolution fever.
One runs a deep-tech unicorn. Another bootstrapped to $50M. A third is the CEO of a Series B SaaS company. All of them were ready to throw out their entire leadership playbook.
Why?
They'd just discovered they were in good company:
Jensen Huang: 60 direct reports, no one-on-ones at Nvidia
Brian Chesky: Ditched regular one-on-ones at Airbnb to avoid playing "therapist"
Karri Saarinen: Replacing one-on-ones with group meetings at Linear
"This is the future," they told me. "Traditional management is dead."
Then one dropped the real bomb: "I want to go back to pure founder mode. Be more hands-on. More involved."
I had to stop him right there.
"Let me be direct," I said. "Founder mode is fantastic when you have a rock-solid team and want to spark innovation occasionally. But are you using it because you don't trust your team's performance? That's not founder mode. That's organizational failure mode."
He got quiet.
The insight started to form: They weren't excited about Nvidia's structure because it was better. They were excited because it seemed to validate their instinct to avoid building actual organizational capability.
I've heard this before. Every few years, a new wave of founders discovers self-management (Holacracy or something similar) and thinks they've found organizational nirvana.
But here's what most miss: These CEOs aren't eliminating management. They're reinventing it for their specific context.
That conversation led us somewhere unexpected...
The Insight: The Leadership Evolution
Here's the truth most "thought leaders" won't tell you: Almost every founder who resists traditional management is actually resisting their own growth.
I call this the Leadership Evolution:
Level 1 (Most Founders): "I'll do it myself" = Control addiction
Level 2 (Some Founders): "I'll tell others what to do" = Delegation without development
Level 3 (Rare Founders): "I'll build systems that run without me" = True scale
Level 4 (Elite): "I'll build leaders who build systems" = Empire building
Jensen Huang isn't avoiding management.
He's transcended it.
Big difference.
Your Quick Win: The 7-Day Leadership Reset
Here's a practical way to evolve your leadership style while staying true to your strengths:
Day 1: Leadership Pattern Recognition
Document your current management practices
Note which ones energize vs. drain you
Identify patterns in what you tend to avoid
Day 2: Select Growth Opportunities
Choose 5 leadership areas you'd like to strengthen
Look for patterns in feedback you've received
Consider what your team needs most right now
Day 3-6: Intentional Practice
Focus on one new leadership practice each day
Document what works and what doesn't
Notice the impact on your team
Collect feedback and adjust
Day 7: Strategic Review
What practices created the most positive impact?
Which approaches felt both challenging and valuable?
What would make these practices more sustainable?
The goal isn't to copy Nvidia's structure or any other company's approach. Instead, it's about finding the right balance between innovative leadership and proven practices to serve your company's unique needs and culture.
What leadership practice are you excited to experiment with this week? I'd love to hear about your journey.
Book Recommendation!
Over the next few weeks, I’ll be introducing you to several pivotal books, starting with Radikale Freundlichkeit by my friend Nora Blum, a successful entrepreneur, psychologist, and arguably the kindest soul in our German venture ecosystem.
In this compelling read, Nora demonstrates how kindness is not a sign of weakness but a powerful tool to build connections, resolve conflicts, and fortify communities in our fast-paced, digital world. Across 14 insightful chapters, she provides practical methods for cultivating kindness towards ourselves and others, boosting happiness, and establishing healthy boundaries even in stressful situations. This guide combines the latest scientific research, riveting personal anecdotes, and hands-on tips, along with self-reflection tests designed to help you counteract unkindness with grace and manage conflicts with compassion. By embracing kindness as a profound gift to ourselves and others, we can truly make the world a better place.
I know this one is in German, but I am sure it will be a bestseller and be translated into 40 languages.
And here’s my own take on kindness:
INTERESTED IN MORE OF MY WORK?
If you’ve made it this far, perhaps you’d be interested in my other writing and resources:
1. Most read all time: Why I Stopped Using OKRs
2. Most read Q4: Clarity, Leverage, Resilience: The Secret Sauce of High-Growth CEOs
3. New Cheat Sheets every month, full collection in this FOLDER. (20 in total)
Want to work with me as a Coach & Catalyst for your business? Schedule a call HERE. Available in Q2.
Bachmann Catalyst is a human-centric CEO advisory boutique. We specialize in guiding growth-stage CEOs through the most pivotal challenges at the intersection of strategy, funding, and leadership. By balancing business outcomes with team dynamics, we help leaders scale with clarity, confidence, and purpose.
If this email was forwarded, click HERE to subscribe to the newsletter.
