How to Win Founders and Influence Everybody
This Wired article elevates the importance of communication by studying the role played by Margit Wennmachers, a partner at Andreessen Horowitz and co-founder of the OutCast Agency, in improving the messaging and image of Silicon Valley. The author focuses on how managing communications develops not only an image and identity but also helps to effectively run a business. From the article: "Andreessen Horowitz can advance its own editorial ideas through blog posts, podcasts, social media, and a newly launched YouTube channel independent of the media, connecting directly with people starting or building their own companies … 'the running joke of the firm is that we're a media company that monetizes through venture capital,' Andreessen says." This theme, that internally produced communications shared publicly can help attract like-minded, talented individuals, is reminiscent of the idea put forth in Alex Danco's Craft is Culture piece in the last edition of Beach Reads. Beyond this function, I found it fascinating to learn how messages are conceived, crafted, and disseminated; how narratives are controlled; and how meaning is created by a select few people. Powerful positions, no doubt.