Reading Marc Randolph’s That Will Never Work reminds you of the classic joke from the Seinfeld episode where José Carreras, one of the ‘Three Tenors’, is constantly referred to as ‘the other guy.’
Randolph, the first CEO and the co-founder of Netflix, somewhat falls in the same category. He might have been the galvanising force that made Netflix go from an idea of renting videotapes to a media giant but much like Carreras being forgotten in the shadow of Luciano Pavarotti or Plácido Domingo, Randolph, too, is overshadowed by Reed Hastings, the entrepreneur, the co-founder and chairman of Netflix.
Although Randolph might be little known beyond the world of developers and innovators, that is just half the story.
Through the pages of That Will Never Work, Randolph takes the reader on a wonderful journey that is more than the birth of an idea or the subsequent dominance of the entertainment industry.
A tad over the top and even preachy, at places, this autobiography is all about perseverance that extended beyond workspace and manages to leave you both entertained and enriched.
Many autobiographies are candid, but few tech-based chronicles manage to be both searingly honest and funny at the same time. Randolph co-founded the magazine MacUser and also worked in directing marketing before his friend Hastings, who was on the lookout to fund a new company, showed some interest. Randolph pitched ideas to Hastings, during his carpool duties, and his first point of cracking it was delivering customised hair conditioner.
A discussion about overdue rental on a video cassette - remember, this was the 1990s - got him thinking about renting videotapes through the mail. Had it not been for the arrival of the DVD, the Netflix story might not have played out the way it did as sending videotapes by mail seemed like an expensive proposition.
Randolph put together a great team that executed the idea, came up with the brainwave of a monthly subscription with no late fee that changed Netflix’s standing among people.
All the same, Randolph had to relinquish the CEO’s post when Hastings told him he wasn’t performing to his best. Making Hastings the CEO got investors to lineup, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Perhaps the long duration between the event and writing about it gave Randolph the clarity to talk about his shortcomings, or maybe it was the learning that he was taught as a young boy.
The book is peppered with incidents from Randolph’s life that offer insight into how sustaining an idea for startup and asking for money from others for your vision is a culmination of one’s entire life up until that point.
For example, during camp, one of the exercises that a young Randolph undertook was to survive a day without any money in a remote town, and on occasions, even begging for money to feed himself.
After this, asking an investor for $2,50,000 was a cakewalk. A charming read that becomes better thanks to Randolph’s straight talk even though it could have been a little less flashy, at places, at least.
That Will Never Work
By: Marc Randolph
Publisher: Hachette
Pages: 320
Price: Rs 699