AaronLEVIEBOX CO-FOUNDER

FEBRUARY // MARCH 2016

GENTRY’S TAKE ON TECHAaron Levie

THE ENGAGING CEOSHARES HIS STRATEGY+VISION

SLACK’sAPRIL UNDERWOOD

LEXUS LC 500

Working Faster + Smarter—and Getting Control of Your Inbox

THE DYNAMIC

TAIWAN’s Food CultureIRRESISTIBLE CUISINE on this ISLAND STATE

TODAY’S SUPERCARS:

Mercedes-AMG GT SMcLaren 675 LT

WDER…FRESH PO …

di t NFly down loc

100 miles noNorthwest, lo

e yourcapturendless adve

EDON

om the mid $200starting from the mid $800sng fr

to book a Discovery Package.2571.436WhitetailClub.com/Discovere at

ur family—only at Whitetail Club., on demand foreadye is rd so much mor

dic ski trails or warm up at our world-classcal downhill mountains, glide over our

orth of Boise.ocated in spectacular McCall, Idaho, just

r imagination. Look no further than Whitetaile, timeless beauty and moments thatentur

MAND

Geographic

ationalN–

”CATH AMERIORN

NS OFWOTKI S

RETCES“BEST Homesites stHomes starti

.677.87or call

ee morExplor

you and youspa. This an

dprivate Nor

y Report required by Federal Law and read it before signingderal agency has judged the merits or value, if any, of thisg, the California Bureau of Real Estate has not inspected,alified this offering. Whitetail Club is represented by Whitetailealty. We are pledged to the letter and spirit of U.S. policy forhi t f l h i t it th h t th ti

Obtain a Propertyanything. No Fedproperty. Warninexamined or qua

Club Reth h

the achScenes

hievement of equal housing opportunityand views may be of a location not on o

y throughout the nation.or related to the property.

FEATURES

ON THE COVER:Box CEO Aaron Levie photographed at Box’s

stunning new office in Redwood City. Portrait by Jack Hutcheson.

THE SPIN ON SILICON VALLEY

February // March 2016

< 46 >LEVIE’S VIEW

Box CEO Aaron Levie discusses the future of everything—from his

own cloud computing company to next-generation meat.

< 52 >FOLLOWING HIS INNER MUSE

Portola Valley product designer RogerStoller finds success and fulfillment as a sculptor. Award-winning writer

Sheryl Nonenberg catches up with Stollerat work in his Portola Valley studio.

< 58 >MISSION DRIVEN

VP of Product at Slack, April Underwoodwants you to work faster and smarter.

SV’s Amalia McGibbon sits down for an interview with this dynamic

young executive.

SVx4

46

52

58

C E L E B R A T I N G 2 5 Y E A R S O F T H E “ W O W ” F A C T O R

2289 Main Street Cambria, CA 93428 805.927.0300 www.vaultgallery.com The Vault Gallery

GORDON SMEDT

WILLIAM WRAYBRADFORD J. SALAMON

“Escape” 56 x 58 Oil on Canvas

“Sparky Charlie” 36 x 24 Oil on Canvas “Hollywood Blvd” 24 x 16 Oil on Panel

The Vault Gallery

< 8 >EDITOR’S NOTE

To the Moon and Back

< 15 >BUZZ

Favorites from CES; inside an audiophile club; Biz World Winners; and Big Fun Before the Big Game—

highlights from Super Bowl 50.

< 25 >ADVENTURE TRAVEL

Ilha Formosa. Amalia McGibbon discovers the adventure, allure,

and delicious feast that is Taiwan.

< 32 >SAND HILL INSIDER

Up or Down? Silicon Valley VC Ben Narasin takes a look at last year’s

IPO performance.

< 34 >SMART MONEY

Reading Bubbles. Alex Cushner takes alook at the burst of commodities.

< 36 >SPEED

Defining a Supercar. What makes asportscar super? SV’s Brian Douglas takes

a look at three different examples.

< 41 >GLOBAL TECH

Cowboys & Astronauts. Corrine Mehiganjets off for a once-in-a-lifetime 72-hour

excursion to Santa Fe that is quite literally out of this world.

< 64 >SV. SCENE

The Tipping Point Awards honored organi-zations and individuals committed tochanging the odds for people living in

poverty in the Bay Area, including the Com-munity Housing Partnership, The StrideCenter, and Nurse-Family Partnership.

< 66 >LAST LOOK

Senior Manager of Stadium Events for the Forty Niners Stadium Manage-

ment Company Angele Marshall

18 25 36

February // March 2016

DEPARTMENTS

SVx6

15

In This Issue . . .1. Brian Douglas // SV Automotive EditorIt’s nearly impossible to top a week in Mercedes’AMG GT S supercar. But that automotive excite-ment was followed by the amazing McLaren 675LT, a nearly $400,000 track-ready, yet very dri-vable machine that reduces superlatives to honestdescriptive adjectives. The toughest part of thisassignment was giving the cars back!

2. Amalia McGibbon // SV Contributing EditorOn interviewing April Underwood: I’ve interviewed many interestingentrepreneurs, all sure to do wonderful things, but sitting down withUnderwood felt different. As the newly promoted VP of Product at Slack,itself one of the most closely watched technology unicorns, Underwoodembodies the eye of the digital storm. And yet, for all her responsibilityand power, she’s remarkably humble and self-deprecating. The firststory out of her mouth was about being miscast as her high schoolorchestra’s concertmaster! Don't worry, though—hers is a happy ending. On exploring the foodie paradise that is Taiwan: I loved the food ofTaiwan, the landscape of Taiwan, the art of Taiwan, and perhaps mostof all—the people. They were engaging, relaxed, joking warmly andfreely. My favorite custom revolved around the refilling of cups; rule of thumb is to always pour a little in your neighbor’s glass, and theywill refill yours. It’s this kind of community and thoughtfulness thatpervades the culture, and makes visiting such a pleasure.

3. Corrine Mehigan // Editorial/Communications ManagerAfter landing at the secure Spaceport America site in New Mexico andascending the Astronaut Walk, I was instantly hooked on the dream ofspace travel. I kept thinking the cast of The Right Stuff or Armageddonmust have had the time of their lives playing astronaut. Experiencingthe Spaceport America’s G-Shock simulator is the ride of your life:bumpy and wild, with rapid acceleration comparable to what a realastronaut might feel in flight. The Four Seasons and Ted TurnerExpeditions have nailed it with this experience. Don’t miss it!

4. David Needle // SV Contributing EditorOn his cover story with Aaron Levie: “We sell software to enterprises. Ican’t think of anything less cool than that,” jokes Aaron Levie, the highenergy CEO of fast-growing Box. Ah, but not so fast. In fact, Box hasshaken things up by placing a premium on the contributions of bothconsumer and enterprise talent. He calls it a “great mash-up” of the twoapproaches that sets the company apart from more staid competitors. Atthe company’s new headquarters, Levie gave SV a helping of his trade-mark rapid-fire remarks.On catching up with Carmen Simon: One of the more interesting inter-views for me is with someone in a traditional field who approaches it ina non-traditional way. Carmen Simon is such a person. There are manyprofessional presenters and coaches, but her approach is based onknowledge of neuroscience and a focus on making each presentationmemorable and actionable. Her quiet intensity and sharp insights madefor a lively Q&A that lived up to the title of her book, Impossible to Ignore.

To theMoon and BackSilicon Valley is a land of dreamers. Even the first immigrants tothe area around the turn of the last century knew that this placehad extraordinary potential. They lovingly dubbed it the Valleyof the Heart’s Delight. Back then, the potential was in the soil, theweather, and the atmosphere. While today’s Valley is no longera hotbed of agriculture, it continues to feed the hearts and mindsof its citizens with a bounty of ideas, innovation, education, andpromise. Our features this month demonstrate this in spades.

Aaron Levie, CEO and co-founder of Box, saw the cloudstorage movement coming and dropped out of USC to capitalizeon it (Levie’s View, page 46). Slack’s April Underwood, named“One of the Most Creative People in Business” by Fast Companylast year, is taking her role as VP of Product very seriously. Shewants us to work faster and smarter, and with Slack’s laser focuson communication, one has to believe she’ll get us to do just that(Mission Driven, page 58).

Finally, Sheryl Nonnenburg catches up with product de-signer turned sculptor Roger Stoller. Stoller’s expert use of com-puter modeling enables him to conceive and execute fascinating

public and private art works of soaringgrandeur. A protégé of Isamu Noguchiand Buckminster Fuller, it comes as nosurprise that his work adorns the cam-puses of Google, Alza, and the heart ofSan Francisco’s biotech hub (FollowingHis Inner Muse, page 52).

Also in this issue, SV Senior Editor Corrine Mehigan jets off for an unforget-table weekend in Santa Fe that takes her

to Spaceport America, The Four Seasons Santa Fe, and TedTurner’s famed ranch (Astronauts & Cowboys, page 41). Con-tributing Editor Amalia McGibbon indulges in the gastronomicdelights of bustling Taiwan (Ihla Formosa, page 25). Silicon ValleyVC Ben Narasin and Jeremy Abelson (head of New York-basedhedge fund Irving Investors) team up to take a look at last year’sIPO performance (Up or Down?, page 32). And Alex Cushner ex-amines the burst of commodities (Reading Bubbles, page 34).

There’s a lot in store here. Enjoy!

Editor’s Note

1

2

3

SVx8

4

Stefanie Lingle Beasley // Editorial Director // edit@18media.com

Pacific Heights will soon welcome a striking nine-story addition at 2121 Webster Street. Beautifully appointed and impeccably designed, The Pacific introduces a new standard of modern luxury to a limited collection of

76 pristine residences in one of the world’s most sought-after neighborhoods.

Residential Sales Begin Early 2016

2 1 2 1 W E B S T E R S T R E E T S A N F R A N C I S C O , C A L I F O R N I A 9 4 1 1 5 4 1 5 9 2 8 2 1 2 1 T H E P A C I F I C H E I G H T S . C O M

A N I M P E C C A B L Y W E L L - D R E S S E D A D D R E S S

Trumark Urban and The Pacific reserve the right to make modifications in plans, exterior designs, prices, materials, specifications, finishes, and standard features at any time without notice. Photographs, renderings, and landscaping are illustrative and conceptual. Real Estate Consulting, Sales and Marketing by Polaris Pacific—a licensed California, Washington, Oregon, and Colorado Broker—CA BRE #01499250. ©2015 The Pacific. Brokers must accompany their client(s) and register them on their first appointment in order to be eligible for a broker commission.

ABOUTSV.: THE SPIN ON SILICON VALLEY is a publication about the world

of Silicon Valley—its people, ideas, and companies. SV. engages ambi-tious entrepreneurs, thought leaders, and core executives. SV. deliversthought-provoking news and information, along with Silicon Valley’s

interaction with fashion, lifestyle, and finance.

EDITORIALPlease send written correspondence by mail to: SV. Magazine,

Editorial Department, 1162 El Camino Real, Menlo Park, CA 94025. Email correspondence can be directed to: edit@18media.com.

ADVERTISINGFor information about advertising or for a personal appointment with

a sales associate, please call Lisa Lemus at 650.324.1818 x200.

ONLINEVisit us online at www.svmagazine.net. You can read complete editions

of SV. as well as other 18 Media publications on our websites:www.svmagazine.net or www.gentrymagazine.com.

CIRCULATIONSV. is published bimonthly and is distributed to hundreds of tech/social

media/venture locations, as well as poly-bagged and distributed withGentry Magazine to nearly 30,000 leaders and professionals in

San Francisco, the Peninsula, and Silicon Valley.

CIRCULATION SERVICESFor questions about delivery, please call Lisa Lemus at 650.324.1818 x200,

or send written correspondence to: Circulation Services, 1162 El Camino Real, Menlo Park, California 94025.

SUBSCRIPTIONS, GIFTS, AND SINGLE COPIESTo start a one-year subscription to SV., please send a $24 check,

along with the proper name and address, to: Circulation Services, 1162 El Camino Real, Menlo Park, California 94025. Please add $25 per

year for foreign addresses. To send a gift of SV., along with your payment, name and address, please list the recipient’s name

and address and we will send the recipient a gift card. If you would liketo purchase a single copy of SV., please list the issue and month and

enclose $7 per copy ordered.

Editorial Director | Stefanie Lingle Beasley

Art Director | Lisa M. Duri

Creative Services Manager | Michael Kanemura

Editorial/Communications Manager | Corrine E. Mehigan

Chief Photographer | Jack Hutcheson

Senior Editor | Robin Hindery

Associate Editors | Brian Douglas, Amalia McGibbon

Contributing Writers | Alex Cushner, Ben Narasin, David Needle

Contributing Photographers | Drew Altizer, Devlin Shand

Vice President/Associate Publisher | Brenda Beck

Vice President/Associate Publisher | Sara Shaw

Vice President/National Accounts | Norene Sheehan

Senior Account Executive | Tiffany Birch

Senior Account Executive | Collier C. Granberry

Chief Financial Officer | Dot Juby

Director of Operations | Lisa Lemus

Distribution Management | California Delivery

Printing | RR Donnelley

SV. is published six times a year by 18 Media Inc., a California corporation. Entire contents ©2015 by 18 Media Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of content in any manner without permissionis strictly prohibited. SV. is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or artwork. SV. offices are located at 1162 El Camino Real, Menlo Park, California 94025. Printed in the U.S.A.

Setting a higher standard.

ELSIE M. FLORIANI Founder/Executive Editor

GENTRY’S TAKE ON TECH

SV Editorial Advisory Board Paige Cattano, Jesse Draper, Sherri Douville, Anna Morris, Leila Janah, Shari Jones, Carolyn McCusker, Ben Narasin, David Needle, and Keith Newman

SLOANE CITRONFounder/Publisher

The New Vision for Exceptional Ocean View Condominium Homes in Hawaii

A lifestyle that evokesthe heartbeat of Honoluluand the calm of the sea.

Photos and drawings of the Project are artist renderings and should not be relied upon in deciding to purchase a unit. The Developer makes no guarantee, representation,

or warranty whatsoever that the units depicted will ultimately appear as shown. © Copyright 2014 Park Lane Ala Moana

Patricia Choi, R, CCIM, CIPS

808.734.7711

pat@choi-realty.com

1215 Hunakai Street, Suite 200Honolulu, HI 96816

WWW.CHOIREALTY.COM

Presented by Honolulu’s #1 Realtor

BUZZ

SVx15

BEAM ME UPTouch base with the marketing

team in Shanghai, tour theoffice in Sao Paolo, meet withthe team is Seattle—all fromyour SOMA loft. You can do itwith BEAM PLUS from PaloAlto’s Suitable Technologiesfor just under $2,000. BEAMPLUS is a little smaller than

the BEAM PRO, but it has thepower and capabilities you’vecome to expect from BEAM.

www.suitabletech.com

FEEL THE BOOMBoomStick by BoomCloud

360 is a $99 device thatboosts the sound quality of your earbuds or head-

phones. For those who don’twant to splash out for the

priciest top-of-the-line head-gear, BoomStick is an effi-cient way to make the most

of what you’ve got.www.boomcloud360.com

ShowstoppersA few of our favorites from CES 2016.

CHIP OFF THE OLD BLOCKChipmaker Intel introduced the Curie module,

a system-on a-chip (SoC) based on the company’s Quark SE. The incredible Curie (a

32-bit computer with 384kB of flash memory and80kB of SRAM) includes sensors, a pattern-

matching accelerator, battery-charging units, andjust about everything you could need to make afully functional wearable device. Intel CEO Brian

Krzanich discussed Curie’s capabilities in hiskeynote at CES and unveiled a new fan and

athlete experience powered by Intel® Curie™technology. Krzanich demonstrated how BMX

bikes outfitted with Curie could track and deliverreal-time performance statistics on speed,

height, acceleration, rotation, and more to helpathletes improve and also provide fans with anew level of experience. And that’s just the tip

of the iceberg for what Curie can do.

PHO

TO: I

NTE

L CO

RPO

RA

TIO

N/B

OB

RIH

A, J

R.

SVx16

BUZZ

BizWorldAwardsFostering an entrepreneurial spirit

For almost 20 years, BizWorld.org has been empowering children to be-come 21st-century thinkers by awakening their entrepreneurial spirit, in-spiring them to become the architects of their future, and giving them theconfidence to transform their world. With more than 600,000 childrenworldwide, BizWorld is the largest teacher-led entrepreneurial educational

program in the world. Each year, an influential and well-known Silicon Valley businessleader is recognized for their entrepreneurship and innovative spirit by receiving theBizWorld “RiskMaster” award from Tim Draper, founder of BizWorld.org. In Decem-ber 2015, they honored Eric Migicovsky, founder and CEO of Pebble Technology. Thefireside chat between the two dynamic and futuristic business leaders was inspiring.Three Bay Area schools participated in a competition to present their BizWorld compa-nies to the audience and showcase their entrepreneurial skills. Congratulations went toVenetia Valley from San Rafael for winning $1,000 for their school!

Laura Tellez, Josh Israels, Hector Gutierrez, and Alma Elizondo

Hale Boggs and Tess Wallace

Grazia Bennett and Carla Foster

Thais Rezende, Tim Draper, and Eric Migicovsky

Mary and DavidTheroux, WilliamDraper, and Grazia Bennett

Steven Singer, BizWorld Alumni

Shefali Billon and Francie Kugelman

Jaleel White, Thais Rezende, Tim Draper, and Eric Migicovsky, Venetia Valley BizWorld Alumni

Janet Lee and Ross Mistry

PHO

TOS:

ALA

IN M

CLA

UG

HLI

N

SVx18

BUZZ

If you confess to being a card-carrying member of the hobbyknown as “audiophile,” manypeople will think you’re takingsound way too seriously. We’regenerally accused of listening

more to the gear than to the music, andworse, of holding techniques likestreaming music in scorn. So over thedecades that I’ve been an audio—andlater video/home theater—enthusiast,I’ve resisted membership in an organiza-tion that celebrated the hobby.

More Than Knobs and TubesTwo years ago, I was touring through listening rooms at the Westin SFO hotelwhile covering the California AudioShow. The exhibitors were all represent-ing the high end of the hi-fi spectrum.But in one room some very nice gearwas accompanied by friendly peoplefrom the San Francisco Audio Society.They were there to solicit memberships

and offered the first year free fromdues. I was smitten by the offer, an un-usual outreach for organizations of thistype, and it was without risk.

During my past two years of mem-bership, SFAS has arranged seminars,factory tours, and listening events atmajor retailers and I’ve found the few Iattended quite worthwhile. In addition,the organization booked prime seatingfor concerts at the new San FranciscoJazz Center, complete with a pre-showreception for members. Live music in anacoustically advanced theater is some-thing real audiophiles can wrap theirears around.

Spirited LeadershipThe San Francisco Audiophile Societybegan life 20 years ago with “Bay Area”leading the organization’s name. Overthe years, it led a relatively quiet exis-tence as a small club of earnest enthusi-asts, but like most volunteer hobbyist

organizations, founders moved or re-tired. When that happened a couple ofyears ago, a couple of relatively youthfulSFAS members took the reins andmade substantial, positive changes tothe organization.

Alon Sagee, a Marin County enthu-siast, and Leslie Lundin, a fellow life-long audio enthusiast who resides inOrinda, formalized SFAS as a nonprofitcorporation and embarked on an out-reach effort. The results are visible, with a youthful, involved board and creative programs. So if the term audio-phile seems a bit off-putting, but youlove music in your life, visit the websitewww.sanfranciscoaudiophilesociety.com.I’ve found membership fun and informative. �

The Art of SoundThe San Francisco Audiophile Society is a welcome hi-fi resource.

BY BRIAN DOUGLAS

Alon SageeLeslie Lundin

©20

16 Je

tSui

te®

All

Righ

ts R

eser

ved.

All

fl igh

ts op

erat

ed b

y Jet

Suite

Air,

FAA

Air C

arrie

r Cer

tifi ca

te #

9SUA

667M

.

JETSUITE CORE VALUE #5

ON COMMITMENTSDELIVER

OUR REPUTATION DEPENDS UPON HOW WELL AND HOW OFTEN OUR ACTIONS ALIGN WITH

OUR WORDS. AT JETSUITE, WE ARE COMMITTED TO TRANSPARENCY. THAT IS WHY WE

PROVIDE EXACT QUOTES ONLINE BEFORE EVERY FLIGHT, AND PUT OUR COMPLETE

MEMBERSHIP CONTRACT ON OUR WEBSITE. WE ALSO STRIVE TO COMMUNICATE THE STATUS

OF OUR COMMITMENTS ACCURATELY AND OFTEN TO MAINTAIN CLIENT TRUST, AND WHEN

ELEMENTS BEYOND OUR CONTROL INTERFERE, WE MAKE IT RIGHT.

JETSUITE.COM 866-779-7770

JETSUITE.COM/VALUESSEE ALL OUR VALUES AT

SVx20

BUZZ

Big Fun Before the Big GameSuper Bowl 50 fever is spreading.Here are a few fun things to do in and aroundSilicon Valley to get into the spirit.

THROUGH FEBRUARY 7Super Bowl City presented by VerizonSuper Bowl City presented byVerizon is the Host Committee’sfree-to-the-public fan villagedesigned to celebrate the milestoneSuper Bowl 50 and to highlight itsunique place in the Bay Area.Together with the NFL ExperienceDriven by Hyundai (pro football’sinteractive theme park experiencethat will be held at the MosconeCenter), Super Bowl City will be thehub of fan energy and excitementleading up to game day at Levi’s®Stadium in Santa Clara. Super Bowl City will feature family-friendlyactivities for fans of all ages. Justin Herman Plaza, San Franciscowww.sfbaysuperbowl.com

THROUGH FEBRUARY 7 NFL Experience Driven by HyundaiPro football’s interactive theme parkwill celebrate the sport’s history and

electrifying atmosphere of SuperBowl. Highlights will include interac-tive games, the NFL PLAY 60 Zonefor the youngest of NFL fans, andthe opportunity for fans to meetsome of their favorite NFL players ofthe past and present, including auto-graph sessions. The history of thegame will be on display, includingthe opportunity to get an up-closelook at all past Super Bowl champi-onship rings and a photo opportunitywith the one and only VinceLombardi Trophy. The NFL SHOP at Super Bowl will be complete withthe largest offering of official NFLlimited-edition Super Bowl 50 mer-chandise and the latest in authenticNFL products.Moscone Center, San Franciscowww.sfbaysuperbowl.com

FEBRUARY 3 – 4Films and San Francisco Symphony:Concert of ChampionsHosted by NFL Hall of Fame runningback Marcus Allen, these concertswill feature the iconic music andfilmmaking of Emmy Award-winningNFL Films. The San FranciscoSymphony will provide live orches-tral accompaniment to a selection of short documentaries produced byNFL Films, featuring original scoresby composers David Robidoux,Thomas Hedden, and Sam Spence.These short films cover topicsincluding the history of the NFL,Super Bowl moments, the life ofNFL Films founders Ed and Steve

Sabol, and the best of NFL Films’well-known football follies.

Prior to the Wednesday,February 3, performance, dinnerpackages are available for guests to experience a tailgate like noother. Dinner package ticketsinclude a 5PM cocktail reception in Davies Symphony Hall’s WattisRoom and a 6PM dinner held inZellerbach Rehearsal Hall A. Thepre-concert dinner is chaired byKaren & Ronnie Lott along withMarcia & John Goldman.

Proceeds from the February 3dinner benefit the San FranciscoSymphony’s educational and com-munity programs, which reach hun-dreds of thousands of people of allages throughout Northern California,touching a broad economic and cul-tural cross-section of the population.Davies Symphony HallSan Franciscowww.sfsymphony.org/NFL

FEBRUARY 6Wounded Warrior Amputees vs. NFL Alumni GameThe Wounded Warrior AmputeeFootball Team is composed of men and women who lost a limbwhile serving this nation in Iraq orAfghanistan. The WWAFT record vs.the NFL Alumni now stands at 13 –0 and the WWAFT has defeated theNFL Alumni at the last four SuperBowls. More than 400 NFL stars andcelebrities have participated in theseWWAFT vs. NFL Alumni games.

More than 50 of these NFL Alumniand celebrities will play in this year’sWWAFT game at CSM. All Proceedsbenefit the WWAFT & DisabledVeteran’s Initiatives in the Bay Area. College of San Mateo, San Mateowww.woundedwarrioramputeefoot-ballteam.org

FEBRUARY 6Big GAME Big GIVESuper Bowl 50 will be the most phil-anthropic game in history—and thisgiving will be furthered at a majorfundraising event on the eve of thebig game, with plenty of athletes,Hollywood stars, and tech mogulsrubbing shoulders for a cause.

Former 49er Super Bowl heroJoe Montana and former SF GiantsAll-Star Matt Williams will serve asco-hosts along with Silicon Valleyphilanthropist Jillian Manus at BigGame Big Give, the largest SuperBowl philanthropy party in the coun-try. Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom willserve as the Honorary Co-Chair asthis event places philanthropy frontand center on the World’s BiggestStage. The event will showcase thestate of California—reimagining ourmost iconic landmarks, paired withthe food, wine, and music that setsour state apart. Proceeds will benefitthe Stanford Hospital CancerCenter, Joe and Jennifer Montana’sFour Rings Family Foundation, andthe Giving Back Fund. Athertonwww.biggamebiggive.org

However excited you are about Super-Bowl 50, Chef Michael Mina is more so.This Niners fan is so thrilled to havethe game in his backyard that he isworking two culinary tributes.

First up is “On The Fifty,” the second-ever NFL pop-up restau-rant to be hosted at Mina’s RN74. Open February 1– 7 for lunchand dinner service, On The Fifty will showcase autographed mem-orabilia available for purchase, NFL player appearances, and amenu that features flavors of NFL cities from across the country.

Mina’s other love letter to the game is theSecond Annual Culinary Kickoff, which hewill co-host with acclaimed restaurateurCharlie Palmer on February 4, at MichaelMina Restaurant (located in the FinancialDistrict). The culinary stars will be joined byTodd English and David Burke to prepare afour-course meal for an exclusive gatheringof 80 people.

Guests will begin the night with a cocktail party featuring winefrom vintners with ties to the NFL, like Charles Woodson (CharlesWoodson Wines), Rich Aurilia (Red Stitch Wine), Rick Mirer (Mir-ror Napa Valley) and teammates Damon Huard and Dan Marino(Passing Time Wines).

NFL Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk will emcee the event, and—drumroll—SuperBowl 50 will close out the evening with a memo-rable musical performance.

Tickets are $5,000 a pop and will benefit The Culinary KickoffYouth Scholarship Fund, which offers CIA scholarships for aspir-

ing culinary and hospitality students.“I’m so grateful that our restaurants have

been invited to participate and represent SanFrancisco in Super Bowl 50,” says Mina. “Thechance to combine my passion for food, foot-ball, and giving back is a great opportunity.”Visit On the Fifty at 301 Mission Street, San Francisco. For tickets to the culinarykickoff, visit culinarykickoff.com.

Michael Mina for the Win

A s the Co-founder of RexiMedia, a San Francisco-based presentation designand training company,Carmen Simon uses herknowledge of neuro-

science and instructional technology tohelp companies and individuals give moreeffective presentations. Over lunch at Kincaids in Burlingame (open-faced crabsandwiches and their legendary focacciabread) she talked about one of the advan-tages of growing up under Communism,what it was like to attend a four-day TonyRobbins seminar, and why Steve Jobs isnot a good model for presenters.

D.Needle: How’d you get into this field? C.Simon: I grew up in Romania and gota scholarship to come to the U.S. Origi-nally, I was going to study journalism. Iwanted to be the next Barbara Walters andI worked at a TV station for while. Peoplewould mention my accent, not in a nega-tive way, but I took it to mean somethingthat would not help me in television.Looking back, I was overly sensitive.

DN:So you didn’t pursue journalism? CS: Not as a career. I got into computersand technology instead. But journalismhas helped throughout my career. In jour-nalism, the focus is always on the art ofconversation and finding the truth. Askingquestions is one of the greatest skills onecan have. I don’t think we’d able to evolveas a society without that.

I got a job at AT&T and continued goingto school. I earned a doctorate degree andstudied technology and software that ledto an interest in how the brain processesinformation. So, I went after another degree in psychology, focusing on neuro-science and then worked for AT&T for 10 years.

Then I formed my own company, RexiMedia, and that’s when I got the seconddegree focusing on neuroscience. Thathelped me understand that it doesn’t matter how much information you give topeople—it’s how the brain processes thatinformation and what people then do withthat information that counts.

DN:Some may not think of themselves as presenters, but we’re all presenters at one time or another aren’t we? CS: Yes! My book coming out in June, Impossible to Ignore: How to Create Mem-orable Content to Influence Decisions UsingBrain Science, covers a lot of this. There is a theory and a formula called the forget-ting curve, which reminds us that peoplefor-get most new information after twodays. From a business perspective, wehave to realize that not only do people remember very little, but that little may be inconsistent and passive. You may

SVx22

BY DAVID NEEDLESV. Q+A

Impossibleto Ignore

SV’s David Needlecatches up with

Rexi Media Co-founder

Carmen Simon.

remember a Colgate commercial but will you buy it at the store or just choose what’son sale? For example, I once attended afour-day Tony Robbins seminar and it wasan amazing experience, although I don’tknow if I want to recommend it.

DN: It seems like it’s almost a cult thing . . . CS: It is! Coming from an ex-Communistcountry, I can detect a cult instantly, andthis took it to a new level. It was difficultfor me to be there because you’re sur-rounded by 3,000 people and you’re being

asked to chant or repeat things in a syn-chronized level. It’s beyond Communism.

I was there for four days of that and I made it through. I remember thinking—that’s a good technique or that’s good in-formation and I’m definitely going to dothat. It’s been maybe three or four yearssince I attended. Have I done anythingwith the info from the conference? No.

DN:Research has shown it’s almost impossible to accurately remember anevent. Instead, our brains fill in the blanksthat we aren’t sure about. CS: Exactly. We add our own meaning toit. There is a difference between what hap-pened and what you make it mean. Froman evolutionary perspective, it helps us toadd meaning to things. The brain has oneprimary function, to help you survive. Indoing that, it looks to conserve energy.One of the ways it can do that is to formpatterns, write scripts, and templates andestablish stereotypes. Once we do that, we don’t have to take things apart the nexttime in a similar situation. Once you havemeanings and repeated patterns you don’thave to think as hard—even the choice tothink or not to think is simpler.

DN:You have terms in your courses like‘memory magnets,’ ‘attention triggers,’

and ‘decision drivers’. Are these the tricks to effective presenting? CS: I’ve been looking at ways to provide amodel for the topic of moving people intoaction. I started with memory becausebusiness professionals ask for techniquesto create memorable content. This is fairlyintuitive until we ask the question: whydoes it matter if something is memorable?From a business angle, the only reason youwant something to be memorable is thatyou want people to do something with it.Memory feeds decision making because

people make decisions based on what theyremember. This is why it is mandatory to look at strong decision drivers for thebrain. The model I created includes atten-tion triggers, which leads to memory,which leads to decisions.

DN: Is it a challenge, more so than ever, to be an effective presenter because of awhole new generation of people using thesedevices? They are almost distracted by de-fault and they have short attention spans. CS: The brain hasn’t changed in 40,000years, but what has changed is our thresh-old for stimulation. That’s why we’re more inclined to reach for a device thanlisten to somebody talk. We’re addicted to that stimulation now. The concept ofvariety, the more you vary a stimulus, the harder it is for the brain to look awaybecause now things are unpredictable.

DN:There are so many tech- savvy peoplein Silicon Valley, but am I right in saying thatmany aren’t good at presenting? CS: I see it all the time. Our clients aren’tprofessional presenters, they’re businessexecutives who have to talk to an audi-ence. That audience can be large or assmall as three to five people. But it’s an audience and the presentation should beimportant no matter the size. The client

has to raise money or sell a product. Mostare working with companies that havefairly dry, complex content to explain toaudiences that aren’t technical. That’schallenging—to impart your knowledge to people who don’t have the same mentaltemplates or schemas that you have.

DN:PowerPoint has been around for along time, and now you have Keynote andPrezi and other programs with unique fea-tures. How important is the tool you use?Can people get hung up on the technology?

CS: We do. I remind people that to blamePowerPoint or Prezi for a bad presentationis like blaming a pen for bad poetry. It’sjust a tool. One of the things we look atfrom a brain science perspective is: howmuch stimulation can you integrate in acertain period of time that doesn’t makethe person bored or look elsewhere?

Mind wandering is a whole field in brainscience. We’re realizing the brain can be intwo states: either you’re mind wandering,like you’re thinking about Boston eventhough physically you’re here having aconversation. The other state is your fo-cused state: this is your task-oriented statewhere you press buttons, ask questions,and you’re present. Statistics remind usthat the mind is in a mind wandering state49% of the time. We’re meeting here for anhour, but imagine that for half the time youweren’t really here in your mind.

DN: Presentations expert Rick Altman has said you can get away with only a fewslides depending on the situation. CS: I’ve heard anecdotes where an execu-tive will say, “You can’t come to my meet-ing with more than five slides.” If that’sthe case, and you have a 30-minute presentation, you better be an amazingstoryteller and give a lot of sensory detailor people will forget.

SVx23

The brain hasn’t changed in 40,000 years, but what has changed is our threshold for stimulation. That’s why we’re more inclined to reach for a device than listen to

somebody talk. We’re addicted to that stimulation now. The more you vary a stimulus, the harder it is for the brain to look away because things are unpredictable.

DN:What about getting out from behind the podium and walking around? CS: The physical gestures aren’t bad inproviding some variety, but they aren’tgoing to add much to make the contentmemorable, unless you use those gesturesto start acting out things you want to say.Like, my house is this small (gestures withfingers close together) and you create amental picture.

DN:When you go to events and see otherpresenters, what drives you up the wall? CS: When I don’t see them try and controlthe 10% that will be remembered. Youshould have a solid message with no morethan three or four points, max, that youwant the audience to remember. You haveto do specific things like making sure it’srepeated often enough. People believethey only have to say the important stuff at the beginning and then maybe in a summary at the end. That’s not enough.

DN: If black and white photos are usedin a presentation—that’s different fromwhat we’re used to seeing. But if the entirepresentation includes black and white pho-tos—the presentation blurs together. Is thatwhat you’re saying? CS: Yes, retro is a trend. But if there is nodistinction, it won’t be effective. Memoryis a discrimination problem. Unless some-thing deviates from a pattern you’velearned to expect, nothing is going to stand out. In the book, I identify 15 vari-ables that affect memory that we can con-trol. But there are many things we can’tcontrol that affect memory, like whether

the person had enough sleep, stress level,the mood they’re in.

DN: Is there any difference between gen-ders when it comes to presenting or the waywe remember things? CS: I would tend to say there’s more a dif-ference between people with big egos andthose less so. Sometimes, especially herein Silicon Valley, people are so ego driventhey don’t practice their presentations and fool themselves into thinking they’regreat. It’s hard to tell these people they are not great presenters, because their ego gets in the way.

DN:Do you have presentation role models? CS: I’m amazed how many people want tobe Steve Jobs. Seriously, they have to findsome other idols.

DN:Why? CS: If you look at it scientifically speak-ing, the context of his presentations was so unique that it’s not generalizable to awider population. You have a product thatsells itself, but most products need a lotmore marketing. He had great attributes—as a speaker—that aren’t generalizable.You can say you really appreciate the wayhe used very minimalist slides. But, if youtold that to an engineer, he might say: “If I go to my boss with slides that haveonly a few words each, he’ll say I haven’tworked on them at all. I need charts and diagrams.”

That’s where the variety of stimulationcomes in. A lesson to be learned fromSteve Jobs is to bring in those more mini-malistic slides along with others that aremore complex.

Many presenters really don’t know thekey messages they want people to remem-ber. It all starts with that. Also, if you havea message that’s too familiar, for example,“We have great customer service, ” yourpresentation won’t stand out.

I used to admire Al Gore for his delivery

style until I saw him give a TED talk. Hestarted with: “I haven’t seen these slides.”Well, if you haven’t seen them, why I amlistening to you? I want to hear someonewho has given some thought to a TEDtalk—not talking off the cuff. It’s ego. If he doesn’t do so well, he has an excuse.

DN:You wouldn’t recommend that? CS: Noooooh! Starting by apologizing or saying: “I didn’t know that was here,”doesn’t work.

DN: Is it an urban myth that we only use 10 % or a small fraction of our brains? CS: It’s a myth. It comes from when youlook at MRI scans that show some areas ofthe brain highlighted in red. That simplymeans those areas were active when a specific task was being performed. Like aparticipant in the scan was told: “Anytimeyou see this image, think of a romantic encounter.” Or, “read this paragraph.”But, that doesn’t mean the rest of the brainwas inactive during this time. We woulddie if the rest of the brain was shut off.

DN:There are many tricks to presenta-tions. Like starting with a joke or a quote . . .CS: I hate when someone starts a presen-tation with ‘Here’s a quote from . . . ’ Thereason it doesn’t work, especially if you’rea leader, and we’re at a time where we needstrong leaders, we’re looking for a strongvoice, and if you’re starting with someoneelse’s quote, how can I trust that yourvoice is what I’m supposed to hear.

There are exceptions to everythingthough. For example, you could start witha quote and then say “that’s wrong.” Oryou could show a quote and modify it tomake another point or add your own in-sight. I heard someone say, and we’ve allheard this before, “knowledge is power.”But then he said, “It’s not that knowledgeis power, it’s the application of knowledgethat’s power.” He added something andmade it his own. �

SVx24

SV. Q+A

You should have a solid message with no more than three or four points, max, that you want the audience to remember. You have

to do specific things like making sure it’s repeated often enough.

Why do we travel? I suppose it’s for the food,the adventure; the culture, and the scenery.But what about the surprise? Remember thatpart? When you would experience some-thing totally new and unexpected, and feel alittle bit changed as a result? In this increas-ingly connected world, “new” is hard to

come by. The Maldives, with their crystal blue waters and stiltedbungalows, will never really shock you with their beauty, becauseyou’ve been enjoying that visual as your screensaver for the lastdecade. Much like Yelp has already told you what the Croque Mon-sieur will taste like before your Parisian waiter has handed you themenu. It can feel like there are very few unexplored frontiers,though as author Jim Malusa puts it, isn’t “travel without surprisejust an agenda?”

But then along came Taiwan. Well, to be fair, Taiwan has alwaysbeen there, located 100 miles from mainland China—we just usu-ally pass over it on our way to more popular destinations like glitzyHong Kong or super-budget Thailand. But this little island nation isfull of surprises, from the strange, exotic smell in the air as soon asyou step outside the airport (a mix of flower markets and burningincense and car exhaust) to the impressive political achievementsdespite a beleaguered past (the Taiwanese are credited with having

Asia’s most vibrant democracy, and a boisterous free press). Andthen there’s the food. Food, glorious, Taiwanese food.

A country’s cuisine is a window on its history and culture, andTaiwan’s complicated history—centuries of colonial rule, waves ofimmigration, contentious sovereignty—has manifested itself in arich variety of food. From aboriginal specialties, to a range of Chi-nese cuisines, to the best Japanese food outside of Tokyo, Taiwanhas emerged as a secret culinary paradise. Its night markets arelegendary, serving mobile feasts of stinky tofu, steamed dump-lings, oyster omelets, shrimp rolls and shaved ice. And whenyou’re thirsty you can look forward to fresh local juices, heavenlymountain teas, and—surprise!—the world’s best whisky, accord-ing to the 2015 World Whiskies Awards. Food matters in Taiwan, a place where eating out is a national pastime, and “Have youeaten?” is the common greeting.

Take my first 24 hours in the city. My direct China Airlinesflight from SFO landed in Taipei just as the sun was rising on thecapital. I knew I needed carbs and sleep, so we made a quick detourto the no-frills Fu Hang Dou Jiang for a classic Taiwanese breakfastof shao bing you tiao, a long, savory doughnut wrapped in a flaky,sesame seed flatbread. Yes, it’s essentially bread wrapped in bread,but you’ll swear you’ve never tasted anything finer. I enjoyed it with a warm bowl of Chinese soymilk and my new favorite �

SVx25

BY AMALIA McGIBBON Adventure Travel �

TAIW

ANIlha

FormosaDiscover the adventure, allure,

and delicious feast that is Taiwan.

snack, the simple but addictive dan bing (a Taiwanese egg crepe). I then checked into my hotel, the very luxe Regent Taipei, rested

for an hour, and rose to eat again. A 45-minute car ride brought meoutside the city, and then—unexpectedly—to a country teahousein the mountains. Shi-Yang Culture Restaurant, a Zen-like estab-lishment with minimalist décor, private dining rooms, and tatami-mat floors, offers a 10-course, Kaiseki-style lunch. Knockoutdishes include the flavorful corn soup served with peanut milktofu, and a bowl of chicken and mushroom soup, served with adried lotus flower on the surface that slowly unfurled its petals inresponse to the steam. The meal was as beautiful as it was deli-cious, which would prove to be a theme in Taiwanese dining. Fromthe carving of Peking duck at a 5-star restaurant, to the visual play-fulness of all the many themed restaurants (Barbie Café? ModernToilet?), in Taiwan, food is theater, cooking has artistry.

From there, I was off to The Ice Monster for a ‘palate cleanser’of finely shaved ice, topped with a variety of sweets, bubbles, jel-lies, beans, and fresh fruit. (The mango is their most popular, butmy vote goes to the Taro “Avalanche.”) Of course, one can’t sim-ply hop from meal to meal to meal, so a bit of non-edible touringwas squeezed in: Taipei 101 (that’s 101 floors), the tallest greenbuilding in the world (surprise!). Sunset on the observation deck isdefinitely worth the price of admission ($15), and the best part is

you don’t have to travel far for dinner. Din Tai Fung, the beloveddim sum chain, is in the skyscraper’s basement food court. Therestaurant—which will be opening its first Bay Area outpost in SanJose’s Westfield Valley Fair Mall this Spring—is famous for its soupdumplings. Chef Anthony Bourdain called them a “deeply religiousexperience,” and food critic Jonathan Gold described them as“structurally impeccable” and “small miracles.” I slurped and heldup my hand for more.

Every evening in Taiwan, the sun sets, the lights turn on, andover 300 night markets open for business across the country. Theyspecialize in traditional Taiwanese small eats (called xiaochi), likepepper pork buns baked on-site in deep charcoal ovens, popcornfried chicken, bubble milk tea (which was invented there), and theterrifically named “Small Sausage in Large Sausage” (grilled porksausage enclosed in a sticky rice wrapper). And then there’s stinkytofu. Made from heavily fermented tofu—and then often deep-fried—this popular and pungent snack is compared to certain stinkyEuropean cheeses. You’ll either find it delectable or repugnant (I didnot find it delectable). But Taiwan is the land of weird and wonder-ful food, and these night markets guarantee a tasty surprise or two.

The only thing better than a good meal is a good meal you feelyou’ve earned, and Taiwan’s vast array of physical activities can helpon that front. Over 50% of the country is mountainous, making �

SVx28

Adventure Travel

�

TAIW

AN

DeLeoL

on RealtyList your home with

at noDeLeon Realty

ge:additional charwill cover all of the fol

lowing

at no additional

• Staging*• Property Inspe•

n*Includes: Design, Installation, 1 Month of Fur

Pest Inspectio

®

Michaeom freceive rthey attention personal clients love the Our

handyman work, and dedicated marketing to

inceam, TDeLeon the om services free freceive a suite of will ryou

ge:char

ection

ealty CalBRE #01903224eLeon R

e Rental and Removal nitur

on

Additionally end. to beginning om frel Repka,

eign buyers. o local and for

consulting, construction design, cluding interior

e.com | Dealty.deleonr650.488.7325 | www

it a choice destination for hikers and cyclists. In fact, Taiwan is oneof Asia’s premiere cycling destinations, with a wide network ofbike routes crisscrossing the country. In my opinion, there’s nomore scenic a route than around the breathtakingly beautiful SunMoon Lake, the largest body of water in Taiwan. To get there, youtake the high-speed train from Taipei, which, at 300KM/hour, willtransport you in under an hour. (Keep in mind that a trip plannedfor February or March will allow you to catch the cherry blossomsin bloom—a double victory when you consider their reflections inthe lake.) For those in the region overnight, stay at the 5-star Fleurde Chine, a 200-room spa hotel with natural hot spring bathtubs,and a mirror-lined rooftop terrace.

There’s a reason the Portuguese explorers named the countryIlha Formosa (meaning ‘beautiful island’) when they first sailedpast it in the 1500s—the opportunities for natural exploration areplentiful. Hikers should look no further than Taroko Gorge,which—with its marble cliffs and misty waterfalls—looks like

something from a painted Chinese scroll. It is an incredibly popu-lar tourist destination, but if you get there after 6PM, you can avoidthe tour buses and get the canyons to yourself.

And while you’re up from the table, you should know thatPenghu, a collection of islands in the Strait of Taiwan, is known ashaving the windiest waters in the northern hemisphere, and is,consequently, a mecca for windsurfers.

Taiwan is a constant revelation. Did you know it was one of thefirst places in the world to offer free countrywide WiFi? And thatits National Palace Museum in Taipei happens to house the largestcollection of Chinese artwork in the world (almost 700,000pieces)? Occasionally, Taiwan seems to surprise even itself; for ex-ample, when its own Kavalan Solist Vinho Barrique whiskey wasnamed the world’s best single malt whiskey, stealing the crownaway from Scotland and Japan. But I’ll stop there. Enough spoileralerts. Go to Taiwan. Bring a fork, and no other expectations. It’stravel as it was meant to be. �

SVx30

Adventure Travel

�

TAIW

AN

hen Square’s December IPO priced below itslast private offering, conversations in SiliconValley turned to whether the IPO market fortech was eroding, or ending. At one investorevent I attended, one early-stage player opinedthat, “all IPOs this year were down rounds.”

Khosla Ventures’ partner Keith Rabois (Khosla Ventures is aSquare investor) was quoted in the Wall Street Journal as saying,“The steroid era of startups is over.” But the data on IPO downrounds, a concept we first reported on in last year’s June issue ofSV, tells a different story.

As we did last June, my colleague Jeremy Abelson (head of NewYork-based hedge fund Irving Investors) and I decided to investi-gate. We gathered the data on IPOs through the end of October2015, and compared the IPO price of each company to the last pri-vate round of financing they’d raised to determine which weredown rounds. Here’s what we learned:

Among the 95 IPOs in the period, 21 of which were in tech, 20 ofthe total and 5 of the tech IPOs were down rounds; slightly fewerthan in 2014.

In 2014, 27% of all IPOs were down rounds, compared to 21% ofthe 2015 IPOs through the end of October. In tech, the spread is abit tighter with 2014 yielding 26% of IPOs as down rounds versus24% for our 2015 cohort.

So while some IPOs are pricing below the last private roundscompanies have raised, they are not doing so at an acceleratingrate, as yet, and remain the minority of cases.

One interesting trend that makes the lack of acceleration thatmuch more intriguing is that IPOs are now coming to market farfaster after their last private round than previously. In 2014, thetime from the last private round to IPO averaged 20 months. Our2015 analysis showed that time was cut in half to ten months. Intech, the time to market went from 21 months to 10.

One would assume that if deals were being rushed to market thepricing would reflect it as public investors enforced the rigor anIPO process and diligence enforces, but the modest decrease indown rounds doesn’t show that to be the case.

While the IPO markets are certainly evolving and creating morechallenging realities for the companies going public, and perhapsthereby creating a self-cleansingsystem where only IPOs that cansustain or justify their valuationscan be brought to market, the datamakes it clear that the trend of anIPO down round is not worsening. �

SVx32

Sand Hill Insider

Up or Down?

WA look at last year’s IPO performance.

BY BEN NARASIN & JEREMY ABELSON

Ben Narasin was an entrepreneur for 25 years, a seed investor for 8 years, and is now a General Partner at Canvas Ventures.

@BNarasin PHO

TO: J

ACK

HU

TCH

ESO

N

WHY HAMMER AUTO?• Extensive Supplier Network

• All Makes and Models

• Purchasing/Leasing/Financing

• Volume Purchasing Power

• Complete Turn-Key Service

• Free Consultation/Input/Advice

• Professionally Proven for Over 20 Years

4898 El Camino Real, Suite #205 | Los Altos, CA 94022 | 650.210.1800

YOUR AUTO PURCHASING &LEASING SPECIALIST

appy belated New Year! Did everyone get enoughbubbly? I certainly am a fan of champagne, butgiven that I have a second home in the AndersonValley, I do take a preference to Roederer Es-tate’s Brut. If you have not yet taken the cir-cuitous Highway 128 to Philo, I highly recom-

mend tasting all of the varietals and trying Stone and Embersrestaurant for some great pizza and their divinemushroom chicharrones. Even if you have notyet benefited from my investing words ofwisdom, I can at least share some local foodand wine insights.

The topic for this article, though, isnot French or Anderson Valley bubbles;it is market bubbles. I keep returning tothis subject because market bubbleskeep on happening. The latest is thecommodity bubble. It’s popping hascaused dramatic dislocations in globalmarkets. As the Chinese economy grewand grew—barely hitting a speed bump,even during our so-called Great Recession of2007—the global commodity producers of theworld kept expanding their production to meet the

insatiable and supposedly never-ending Chinese demand. Andguess what? As oil traded around $100 a barrel from late 2010 to late2014 and copper, coal, iron ore (and all of other things that hurtwhen they fall on your foot) were trading near all-time highs, theseglobal commodity producers and investors, like internet and realestate investors before them, assumed that prices would never cor-rect. And guess what? All of the bankers kept extending loans and allthe investment bankers kept underwriting deals as they both eitherassumed that the prices would never come down or that if they didthat they would not own the bond, or equity, or mine or well whenthe prices collapsed. And guess what? Quite recently, those pricesdid indeed collapse.

As of this writing, the prices of most commodities, including oil,are down 70% or more. Additionally, we’re seeing: a reverse humanmigration from South Dakota and Fort McMurray; the bankruptcies

of the leveraged players; layoffs (Anglo American, the world’s 5thlargest miner recently announced 80,000 job cuts); dividend cuts;and crashing stock prices. People are blaming the common culprits,OPEC and its head honcho, Saudi Arabia, for not cutting production,and China, given its economic growth has slowed. While I agree thatall are partially to blame, I would point my finger instead at greed.

Bubbles rise because of greed and they fall when it’s gone too far.When the internet and real estate bubbles inflated and

then crashed, citizens of the Bay Area had frontrow seats. But, the commodity bubble and re-

cent bust mostly happened in lands far away.So, except for noticing that gas prices were

really high a few years ago and are nowreally cheap, or unless they owned someMLP stocks that have been cut in half,most people are not aware of this riseand fall. But guess what? It matters. Be-sides the price at the pump, the falling

price of oil impacts bonds, currencies,geopolitics, jobs, and stock portfolios.

While the net effect in the long run is prob-ably favorable, the effect in the short run is

likely negative as the market attempts to adjustand to sort out the winners and losers.

My main takeaway is that I greatly prefer the bubbles fromFrance or the Anderson Valley to those from Wall Street, but sincegreed is never going to be extinct, we should all be on the lookout forthem. While our previous two bub-bles led to recessions and bear mar-kets, the impact of this commoditybubble is not yet known. �

Smart Money

Reading Bubbles

H

Alex Cushner is a Managing Director and PrivateWealth Manager at Robert W. Baird & Co.

He has more than 20 years of financial servicesexperience and specializes in the technology sector. To set up a meeting or to discuss yourwealth management needs, contact Alex at

acushner@rwbaird.com or 415. 627.3203.

The opinions expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of Robert W. Baird & Co.

SVx34

BY ALEX CUSHNER

PHO

TO: J

ACK

HU

TCH

ESO

N

Alex Cushner takes a look at the burst of commodities.

People are blaming the common culprits, OPEC and its head honcho, Saudi Arabia,for not cutting production, and China, given its economic growth, has slowed.

While I agree that all are partially to blame, I would point my finger instead at greed.

©2015 Robert W. Baird & Co. Incorporated. Member SIPC. MC-43293.

Discover a true fi nancial partner. Visit BairdCalifornia.com.

If every client’s goals followed the same fl ight plan, being a fi nancial advisor would be easy.

At Baird we know that’s not the case. Th e future you want for yourself and those you care about is as unique as you. And the advice and service we provide are specifi cally designed to get you there.

Capital Markets – Investment Banking Private Equity Asset Management

A DIFFERENT KIND OF FINANCIAL PARTNER

W hen the Lexus LF-LCConcept debuted at the 2012 North American Interna-tional Auto Show, the

press, loyal customers, and enthusiastswondered if the concept’s arresting styling and dramatic proportions could everevolve into a production 2+2 coupe. Fouryears after the debut of the breakthroughconcept that inspired it, Lexus revealedthe all-new LC 500 luxury coupe. Thisprovocative, athletic flagship coupe makesthe strongest statement yet about Lexus’future product direction.The past five years have seen Lexus

evolve rapidly with the creation of the luxury brand’s globally-focused organiza-tion, Lexus International. Exciting newmodels involving elevated levels of emo-tional styling and dynamic driving charac-teristics, such as NX, RC, and IS, have alsohelped Lexus’ brand shift with consumers.Chief Branding Officer and Master Driverfor Lexus, Akio Toyoda, has been at thecenter of the Lexus global expansion,

personally driving a heightened level ofcollaboration among design, engineering, and marketing teams to help build a luxurybrand better suited to meet the needs ofthe next generation of consumers.The new LC 500 serves as a symbol

of the achievement that can result from heightened collaboration betweendesign and engineering groups and theircommitment to help overcome eachother’s hurdles. The new production model shares

many of the key design elements, propor-tions, and visual dynamism of the conceptcar that inspired it. The LC 500’s visualappeal is defined by an athletic aerody-namic shape. It features sensual curves,emotional forms, an available flowing carbon-fiber roof (glass roof standard),helping create a low, wide imposingstance that comes together for a highlyfunctional, passionate package.

Interior DesignThe interior design of the LC 500 is influ-enced by the dynamic luxury theme of the

exterior with a layout that is both cockpit-focused and elegant. The coupe’s drivingposition was calibrated to invite spirited,sporting driving, and help develop easierconfidence with a more intuitive controllayout. In fact, for LC 500, the driver’s hippoint was engineered to be as close aspossible to the vehicle’s Cg (Center ofgravity) where feedback from the car isthe most communicative to the driver.The front seats offer excellent support andcomfort for long drives while availablesport seats offer additional bolstering andlateral support during cornering. Lexusengineers put considerable effort into creating an engaging yet seductive atmos-phere for the driver, focusing on detailssuch as the size and angle of the steeringwheel, the feel and positioning of magne-sium alloy paddle shifters, and availablesupple leather and Alcantara seating sur-faces. The LC 500’s exquisite door panels,center console, and dash pad structuresfeature elements of Lexus’ world-renowned, detail-obsessed Takumicraftsmanship in their finish.

SVx36

Speed

A NEW ERA FOR

LEXUS

The global debut of the 2017 Lexus LC 500 at the

2016 NAIAS LC 500 utilizesthe brand’s new architecture

and promises dynamic capability and performance.

• Get a full-service tune-up – recommended at 30k • 60k • 90k

• Have your battery “load tested.” Cold weather greatly decreases a battery’s ability to hold a charge.

• Have the antifreeze strength checked. It should be clean, up to the proper level, and strong enough to provide protection at -36 degrees F.

• Install all-weather tires.

• Replace the coolant and/or flush the cooling system if this hasn’t been done in the last 15k miles.

• Fill your washer-fluid reservoir. Use washer fluid that has windshield antifreeze, not plain water.

• Replace your windshield wipers.

• Have your headlights, tail lights, brake lights, and turning signals checked to be sure they are working properly.

• Check the status of your four-wheel-drive system.

Let Redwood General Tire help prepare your car ...

Heading to the

Discover for yourself the extraordinary service

Redwood General Tire offers. Download our free app

for coupons, appointments and quotes or visit us at

www.redwoodgeneral.com.

1630 Broadway, Redwood City | 650-369-0351 | www.redwoodgeneral.com

Exceptional ServiceSince 1957

SNOW?

Gift Certificates Available

When the McLarenpeople called, offering a newmodel of theirfabulously fastsupercars, I wassure it was the

brand new 570, the company’s “afford-able” sportscar. But when the detail fol-lowed, I discovered they were sending a675 LT, a rare, limited edition ultra fastMcLaren whose 500 copies had beenquickly sold out. And here I had my storyformed, comparing an “entrance level”McLaren ($182,950 est.) with an AMG GT S($129,900) supercar from Mercedes-Benz.

Of course knowledgeable readers willassert that an ultra light, carbon fiber,mid-engine McLaren is bringing a gun to a knife fight. The big, powerful AMG isfast, accelerating from 0-to-60 MPH in3.7-seconds, but the 675 McLaren lobs afull second off that time and keeps flyingto 142 MPH in a quarter mile on its way to a 203 MPH top speed. But specs like thesehardly tell the real story.

>>> The Wow Factor >>>

Since Tesla’s Model S P90 D with Ludi-crous Mode option can sprint from naughtto 60 in 2.8-seconds, drag racing braggingrites just aren’t what they used to be. Andthe vivacious Dodge Hellcat Challengerbrings racetrack power to the people foran MSRP that’s half the price of Tesla’smost powerful electric. But how do pro-duction cars line up in a valet parking cue?I tested this theory with the AMG.

When I arrived at the Rosewood SandHill Resort for a holiday party in the AMGGT S, I had little doubt where I’d find theCardinal Red machine a couple of hourslater—front and center and very visible to well-heeled guests. A few people mayglance at a Tesla in our area, but they stare at a supercar. That’s the exclusivityyou’ve paid for.

I didn’t valet the McLaren 675 LT dur-ing my time with this rare machine, butbased on past experience, I know it wouldreceive up-front stature. And the

SVx38

Speed BY BRIAN DOUGLAS

DEFINING A SUPERCARWhat makes a sportscar super? We look at two very different examples.

McLaren received plenty of attention inmy garage during our annual holiday partya few weeks later. The Delta Red McLarenwas a great prop, even without firing upits 666-horsepower V8, and I’m surethere’s a Facebook photo or two our therein cyberspace with guests posing in ornear the dramatic supercar.

>>> McLaren 675 LT >>>

A machine for serious driversFrom what I’ve witnessed after testingMcLaren’s MC12 4C, the 650S and nowthe 675 LT, this race-bred company does-n’t know how to make anything but a truesupercar, a machine that competes head-to-head with Ferrari and Lamborghini. Sowhen McLaren suggests that its upcoming570 plays in the “sports” rather than the“supercar” category, I’m betting they’reway too modest. I can testify to the 675LT’s credentials—its supercar status is atrack-ready fact.

My Delta Red 675 LT was lurking atMcLaren San Francisco in Palo Alto, readyfor serious roadwork. El Niño had visitedthe previous day and was due back for theweekend to dampen my driving enthusi-

asm. But that morning the sun was bril-liant, birds were singing, and I knew thebest McLaren route to the coast—280 toWoodside, up Kings Mountain Road,across Skyline and down Tunitas Creek to Highway 1.

On a weekday there’s little traffic andfew cyclists to alarm. It may be one of thegreat routes in America to test the reflexesof a tightly wound sportscar when a race-track is unavailable. And with the 675 LTchassis and engine settings set to trackmode, the McLaren was fully in its element.

There are few opportunities to usemore than two gears of the seven-speedSSG transmission while bolting throughthe tight turns of this route, but those gearchanges at full throttle are punctuatedwith a crack out the exhaust. And there’sso much power available that McLarenengineers dialed back the torque to 443-ft. pounds to keep the big rear tiresplanted. I’m personally grateful for thisattribute since there’s no chance forrunoff on these roads, only big redwoodtrees to halt your progress. Fantastic is toomodest a superlative to describe the 675LT’s performance.

The 675 LT coupes, limited to 500worldwide, were sold faster than Warriorsplayoff tickets. And the new Spider versionwith an automatic retractable top addingjust 88-pounds to the superlight formula isselling at the same pace. It’s the first timein decades that the Italian prancing horsehas had a serious competitor.

2016 McLaren 675 LT CoupeENGINE: 3.8-liter Twin Turbo V8HORSEPOWER: 666 @ 7,100 RPM

TORQUE: 516 lb.-ft. @ 5,000 RPM

MPG: 16-City/22-Highway/18- CombinedBASE PRICE: $349,500AS TESTED: $396,820

>>> AMG GT S >>>

Shooting for Porsche, hittingAston MartinMercedes-Benz has a long, successful his-tory in the true luxury sportscar segment.It really began in 1954, when the companycreated a grand touring coupe from itsgullwing racecar. For more than sixdecades, Mercedes SL models have domi-nated this marketplace, easily fending off

SVx39

rivals. But when Mercedes added horse-power from its AMG performance divisionto its big SL, it created a sportscar moresuited to Autobahn cruising than cornercarving. For example, today’s SL 63 AMGtilts the scales at 4,130-pounds, about theweight of the company’s E-Class sedan.

Although Mercedes-Benz has beensuccessful selling SL models, as well asevery other nameplate in its large lineupwith optional AMG tuning, it lacked a truehalo sportscar. Years ago, the companyteamed with McLaren to produce an SLRsports model, complete with wing doorsand side exhaust pipes. But like AMGmessaged SL coupe/roadsters, it offeredmore speed than quick reflexes. Recently,the Mercedes-Benz SLS Gullwing offereda 21st-century interpretation of the classic300SL, complete with better handling.

If the SLS was the offspring of the fa-bled 300SL, the new AMG GT S takes therich, classic style minus the gullwingdoors, lobs off a few hundred pounds ofvehicle weight and nearly $100,000 off theMSRP. The result is a GT car with quickerreflexes, better economy, and an exclusivebrand. Mercedes marketing people pointto Porsche 911 and Audi R8 models as

rivals, but these rear and mid-engine ma-chines punch in a lighter, quicker class.Better rivals in my opinion are Aston Mar-tin’s Vantage, Maserati’s Grand Turismoand Jaguar’s F-Type R. All are sought-after grand touring sports offerings andthat’s pretty good company to keep. �

2016 Mercedes-AMG GT SENGINE: 4.0-liter Twin Turbo V8HORSEPOWER: 503 @ 6,250 RPM

TORQUE: 479 lb.-ft. @ 1,750 RPM

MPG: 16-City/22-Highway/18-CombinedBASE PRICE: $129,900AS TESTED: $153,080

SVx40

Speed

DAY // 01REST AND REJUVENATESanta Fe is known as a sanctuary for the body, mind, and spirit. Ifdone correctly, you’ll leave relaxed and rejuvenated. Set on 57 un-spoiled acres tucked into the Sangre de Cristo foothills, the FourSeasons Resort Rancho Encantado Santa Fe feels like a hiddengem, yet it is just 10 minutes away from downtown Santa Fe. Theresort exudes the luxury and service associated with the Four Sea-sons brand, but with the added flair of adventure and romance. Youcan’t go wrong with any one of the resort’s 65 casita guest roomsand suites, each with its own fireplace and private terrace as well asother comforts such as multiple televisions and heated floors.

First, get settled in and make sure you have plenty of water soyou can acclimate yourself to the 7,200 foot altitude. For better orfor worse, one alcoholic beverage at that altitude is the equivalentof three. Thus, despite the sensational libations on hand to choosefrom in the attractive bar across from check-in, you might wantto take it easy upon arrival and opt for some h2O instead. Feelingready for some relaxation? A perfect way to acclimate is to visitthe Spa and enjoy a hot stone massage, an herbal body wrap, or ahot tub soak. Santa Fe is famous for its alluring spas, which offer avariety of treatments guaranteed to rejuvenate and refresh. Theresort’s own Spa is known for being second to none in the area.

Amidst the tranquil, high-desert foothills, the Spa at RanchoEncantado is uniquely designed to echo the sacred kiva rooms ofthe indigenous Pueblo Indians. Comfortable, simple, and serene,the Spa’s pared-down Southwest style is seen in regionally in-spired treatments, massages, and bodywork, all complementedby the best of rituals from the Far East. The Altitude AdjustmentTreatment is a specialty massage that helps your body adapt andestablish equilibrium at Santa Fe’s elevation. The treatment focuses on easing respiration and relieving headaches and otheraltitude-related symptoms. Their world-class therapist, well worthreserving in advance, gently massages your face and scalp withoils. It’s impossible not to drift off into another world.

After your treatment, it’s best to soak in the outdoor hot tuband consider your options. There are two ways to go. A nap is an obvious choice and no one will criticize you for engaging in this no-brainer before dinner. But should you be invigorated andready for action, there’s no better way to escape the stresses ofeveryday life than by getting into nature. To wake right up, try aprivately guided biking experience on the hotel’s state-of-the-artfull suspension “Santa Cruz” mountain bikes. The resort’s popu-lar biking excursions offer a variety of seasonal trail options. Eachtour can be tailored to your level of ability, interests, and timecommitment.

SVx41

BY CORRINE E. MEHIGAN Global Tech �

SA

NTA

FE

COWBOYS +ASTRONAUTS

Jet off for a once-in-a-lifetime 72-hour excursion to Santa Fethat is quite literally out of this world.

Thanks to an exclusive new partnershipbetween the Four Seasons Santa Fe,

Ted Turner Expeditions, and SpaceportAmerica, the exclusive “Spaceport

America Immersion Excursion” providesguests with VIP access to the world’s first

purpose-built commercial spaceport fol-lowed by a VIP eco-conscious journey to

Ted Turner’s exclusive ranch properties.

Ready for dinner? Santa Fe is known for its diverse fare fromtraditional New Mexican cuisine to global fusion. Luckily, FourSeasons’ guests don’t need to do anything more than enjoy aleisurely walk down to the restaurant, stopping only to breathe inthe fresh air and enjoy vast views of Santa Fe at sunset. JamesBeard-nominated Chef Andrew Cooper sources the freshest localingredients from the region to create contemporary Americancuisine that incorporates New Mexican influences. Don’t leavewithout tasting the filet mignon with black pepper spaetzle, wildmushrooms, Brussels sprouts, and pearl onions. And the smokedmole chicken enchiladas with bean spread, Spanish rice, Crema,and Queso Fresco is to die for. Be sure to reserve a spot at theChef’s table well in advance of your visit and treat yourself to any-one of Cooper’s behind-the-scene experiences.

DAY // 02READY TO LAUNCHThe next day, it’s time for a visit to Spaceport America, the world’sfirst purpose-built commercial spaceport. Thanks to an exclusivenew partnership between the Four Seasons, Ted Turner Expedi-tions and Spaceport America, this exclusive “Spaceport AmericaImmersion Excursion” allows you to play astronaut AND cowboyfor a day. Additionally, guests can opt to land their private aircraftat 9NM9 spaceway 16-34, Spaceport America’s two-mile-longspaceway designed to accommodate all types of space and air vehi-cles known to humankind. Alternatively, expert TTX adventure

guides can arrange for helicopter transport or drive guests to theSpaceport America destination. It’s an experience like no other onearth, literally.

Nestled alongside the historic El Camino Real de Tierra AdentroTrail, the futuristic spaceport is barely visible when approached byroad, vehicle, or by foot. When approached by air, however, you’reactually aware of the awe-inspiring feat it must have taken to carveout a spaceport designed to send people and payloads into spacefrom the remote high desert and rugged landscape below. AnFAA-licensed launch complex, Spaceport America is situated on18,000 acres adjacent to the U.S. Army White Sands Missile Rangein southern New Mexico. It boasts 6,000 square miles of re-stricted airspace, low population density, a 12,000-foot space-

Global Tech

�

SA

NTA

FE

Top to bottom: The Four SeasonsResort Rancho Encantado Santa Fe

offers 65 casita guest rooms decorated with chic, contemporary

Southwestern flair. The resort’s TerraRestaurant features contemporary

American cuisine while incorporatingNew Mexican influences. The Spa at

Rancho Encantado sits amidst thetranquil, high desert foothills.

SVx42

way, and 340+ days of sunshine and low humidity. It is one of theonly places on Earth where 6,000 square miles of airspace is per-manently protected from the ground to infinity.

After your pilot lands on the Spaceport America spaceway, getready for an exclusive tour. From the runway, you’ll take the Astro-naut Walk and then enter the Gateway Gallery. There, your journeythrough commercial space will continue with numerous interac-tive exhibits and kiosks. Some visitors choose to experience the G-Shock simulator that subjects the would-be astronaut to rapidacceleration comparable to what an actual astronaut might feel inflight. Later, visitors can venture into the Spaceport OperationsCenter (SOC) and interact with Spaceport America crewmembersand the state-of-the-art fire station before stopping in front of theiconic URS/ Foster + Partners structure, Gateway to Space termi-nal/hangar, for the ultimate photo opportunity.

Are you interested in being among the first to experience spacetravel? The dream is alive! An announcement expected later thismonth will see the ever-innovative Richard Branson, founder ofVirgin Galactic, inviting scientific heavyweights, including StephenHawking, to herald the company’s return to testing for commer-cial spaceflight tourism.

SADDLE UPThe next stop on your “Spaceport America Immersion Excursion”experience is a journey of discovery at Ted Turner’s Ladder andArmendaris Ranches located in south central New Mexico. TedTurner Expeditions was born to provide guests with individuallycrafted nature and wildlife experiences combined with memorablestays in various Ted Turner-owned hotels, wilderness lodges, andhomes—to which only friends and family have previously been in-vited. Created by Turner as a pioneering investment in balancingconservation and economic sustainability, Ted Turner Expedi-tions selected Adventure Partners as its principal collaborator inthe design and delivery of these exclusive ecotourism programs.Managing the operations, based in the nearby town of Truth orConsequences, is the passionate husband-and-wife team of Dan

SVx43

Spaceport America is the first purpose-built com-mercial spaceport in the world. The “SpaceportAmerica Immersion Excursion” experience providesguests the exclusive opportunity to land their private aircraft at the two-mile-long spacewaydesigned to accommodate any type of space andair vehicle known to mankind.

and Jares Gallagher, who come to this enterprise with a strong lux-ury hospitality background and a deep understanding of experien-tial travel. With the Gallaghers at your side, Turner’s two localranches, comprising a half-million acres of preserved land, feel likeyour own private adventure parks.

One natural wonder to experience is the Jornada Bat Cave—acomplex of two massive lava tubes that serve as a temporary hometo an estimated 1.6 million bats. These Mexican Free-Tail batsemerge each evening at dusk to feed in what appears to be a“river of bats.” This spectacle of nature, which occurs most everyevening from approximately June to September, has been com-pared to the great animal migrations of Africa. Turner’s ranchteams with wildlife. You may also see bison, pronghorn, and oryx,as well as other desert-dwelling animals and birds. No surprise,the bats’ emergence is not on a set schedule. Never fear, just soak-ing in the spectacular sunset Armendaris has to offer while wait-

ing for the bats to emerge for their flight is a moment in time thatyou will never forget.

Landing back at the resort that evening, you may be ready tocurl up and call it a day! But don’t miss tasting the latest in liba-tions from mixologist Nick Tyson while enjoying another spec-tacular dinner prepared by Chef Cooper. The Honey Badger FourSeasons 100-mile cocktail with its Taos Lightning Bourbon,Apple Brandy, and honey is a must. Not only does this talentedduo generate the most sublime pairings you’ve ever had, theirbanter and camaraderie make the night fly by.

DAY // 03ADVENTURE ON EARTH, FOUR SEASONS STYLEThe next morning, the adventurous get up and out early beforeheading back home. With the resort’s experts behind you, thepossibilities for exploring nature in motion are limitless. Drive upinto the mountains of the Santa Fe Ski Basin and enjoy a leisurelyhike among aspen trees on the Aspen Vista Trail. Then head backdown to town and give your body a treat by taking a yoga or Pilatesclass. If you’d prefer to play golf rather than hike the mountains,you’ll find plenty of award-winning courses nearby. You couldalso spend the day fly-fishing in the mountains. A trip back to thespa before your flight will help work out any tired muscles. Bliss!

Try not to miss that flight back home on purpose. �

Global Tech

�

SA

NTA

FE

Ted Turner Expeditions (TTX) in NewMexico offers unique adventures tailoredto deliver insightful and exhilaratingexperiences. Turner’s ranch teams withwildlife, including the popular JornadaBat Cave—a complex of two massivelava tubes that serve as a temporaryhome to an estimated 1.6 million bats.

SVx44

While You’re taking care of Business, Who’s taking care of Your Home?

Take Back Your Weekends Home Preservation Stewardship provides essential preventive maintenance to preserve the value and lifespan of your home. Never worry about home care again. We’ll provide:

• Seasonal maintenance visits • 260 annual tasks and inspections• Tracking, managing, and reporting of all home maintenance• Database of all your home appliances • Home repairs, refinishing, & remodeling• On-call for 24/7 emergency service

PRESERVATION

STEWARDSHIP CA Lic. #782552

HPS Palo Alto Inc.Serving the Peninsula since 19951178 Los Altos Avenue, Los Altos, CA 94022888.844.0007 | www.homepreservation.com

“I think I must have died and gone to heaven. HPS is amazing! Your guys Daniel, Melvin, and Mauricio are terrific—hard working, professional, eager to please, and very knowledgeable. I am so thankful for the service.” – Sue Brauner, Woodside

DN: When Google entered yourspace a few years ago, some weresaying Box was in big trouble. But you rolled with the punches,brought Box public, and continuedto grow. Is future growth tied tobeating the competition? AL: I think our growth is going to comefrom two areas going forward. We have54,000 customers, so you can imaginehow much upselling and growth oppor-tunities there are there. We have a lot ofcustomers who have just a few thousandemployees of a 100,000-person com-pany using Box. We should go into all ofthose companies and help them scale outBox throughout their business. The nextcouple of years is about getting more andmore of our customers to leverage ourplatform, solve more use cases with Box,and power the future of their business.

DN: In some of those cases, some ofyour customers’ individual depart-ments are using competitors to Box.AL: Sure, we have a lot of organizationswhere Marketing is using one thing, Salessomething else, and IT will be using athird thing. What IT teams are trying todo is figure out what solution will workacross the most organizations and whatsolution they can deploy while reducingsecurity risk and getting everyone on thesame platform so there is one source oftruth for all their data. We’re seeing ahuge push in that direction and that’s ourstrategy. I think a lot of growth in 2016and beyond is going to come from cus-tomers able to standardize on Box acrosstheir entire business. Another source ofgrowth for us is where Box replaceslegacy systems as well.

DN: Bill Gates had a vision of a computer on every desk, and Google started out wanting to be the library for the world’s informa-tion. When you and Dylan Smithfounded the company in 2005, didyou have any grand vision or was it more about just launching a software company? AL: The original vision was that wedidn’t think you should store any of yourinformation in an on-premise environ-ment—that it should all be in the cloud.We didn’t know if that was going to be inour cloud or someone else’s cloud, but weknew that from a technology standpoint,the future was about working with best-of-breed players to manage, collaborate,and share all of your most important in-formation.

DN: Even 10 years ago, before youstarted Box, it was not that obviousyou were going to be able to do that to the extent you can today. AL: We will look back on the client serverarchitecture and laugh at how ridiculous aconcept it was to have hundreds of thou-sands of companies all around the worldindividually have so much redundant

SVx48

We knew thatfrom a technology

standpoint, thefuture was about

working withbest-of-breed

players to man-age, collaborate,

and share all of your most

important information.

effort around installing software and up-grading systems, and having to invest intheir own backup and fault-tolerance andbusiness continuity technology—all com-pletely undifferentiated. We’re going tolook back and it will look like a completeaberration of where technology was reallysupposed to be going.

DN: Is Box a cool place to work? AL: I like to think so. We have our owndefinition of cool. I think what we’re try-ing to do is take what is typically thoughtof as a non-cool thing and make it fun andexciting. We sell software to enterprises.I can’t think of anything less cool thanthat. But the way we do it, the people wehave doing it, our strategy, and the designof the product, all resemble more of aconsumer Internet company that hap-pens to be 100% focused on the enter-prise market. That’s our differentiation.We tend to be the most consumer-ori-ented company that anyone in the enter-prise industry has ever worked for, andthe most enterprise-oriented companyfor which anyone in the consumer worldhas worked. We have this great blend ofpeople who came from Google, Facebook,Oracle, and Sun Microsystems, and wemash everyone together. What you getout is this very unique culture that youdon’t get in a consumer or enterprisecompany. When you go to an enterprisecompany you tend to see a lot of homo-geneity in the sense that they all workedat Oracle or SAP or IBM. At the consumercompanies, same thing—they all workedat Google, Excite, and Facebook. What we have is this great mashup ofboth of those personalities and types of experiences.

DN: When I first interviewed youback in 2009, you were very clearthat user interface was a high pri-ority for Box. You were hardlyalone in that, but it wasn’t nearlyas prominent an idea as it’s become. AL: The challenge was most people didn’tknow what we meant when we talked

about that. They would say, ‘What do youmean? SharePoint has a user interface?’What was less clear was that in a worldwhere enterprise employees have a choiceabout what software they use, they aregoing to choose solutions that are thesimplest, most elegant, and easiest to use.Nobody who had sold enterprise previ-ously realized how that change was goingto play out. Everyone thought that as longas the software worked, it would be usedbecause the employee has no alternative.We foresaw a world where employeeswould have choice.

DN: Like BYOD, Bring Your Own Device to work.AL: BYOD came out of nowhere and ac-celerated things. We thought it was goingto happen on the software side, but it alsohappened on the device side. Things havereally changed. We would be in RFPsthree to five years ago where testing thesoftware wasn’t even part of the process.You would buy technology literally basedon answers to a spreadsheet—which is acompletely ridiculous concept. Youwould never buy a phone based on whichone had all the right checkboxes; you playwith it, you feel it in your hand, and yousee what software it has. Now, five yearslater, we have not done an RFP that doesn’t include actual users testing andplaying around with software first in the enterprise.

DN: Box went public about a yearago and the stock price zoomed over 65% the first day, then cameback to earth, and as of this writingis selling below the initial public offering. How would you evaluatethe whole thing? AL: For us, we’ve been pretty happyabout it. With the stock price there isnear-term volatility that if you pay atten-tion to it will drive you crazy. But thereare the overall benefits of being public,that for us, especially the space we playin, lets us be more transparent with customers because our books are open,

versus when you work with a small privatestartup, where you don’t know how muchcash they have or how viable they are.

DN: I guess you have the glass-half-full perspective. You look at Delland they’re really happy aboutgoing private and not having toshare all those details.AL: Sure, but Dell also benefitted from 25years of being public. They just got to apoint where he (founder Michael Dell) feltso undervalued relative to what they weredoing and the disconnect was so strongthat it made more sense to go private. Forus, there is always volatility in a stock.We’re more focused on the long termanyway. In the near term we get clearbenefits of being public with the greatervisibility and transparency for customers.And from a recruiting standpoint, it helpsbecause compared to private valuationswhere you don’t know how real they are,at least with us you know you can trade itif you decide to sell your stock. That’safter 10 years of being private, so it’smuch more appropriate for us to be apublic company now.

DN: You moved to Silicon Valley in2005 to start Box. Does any one thingstand out for you about what makesSilicon Valley a special place? AL: I continue to be incredibly excitedand optimistic about what the Valley isproducing. The Valley’s become the cen-ter of innovation for so many industries.We have a board member, Padma War-rior, who just became CEO of an electricvehicle company (NextEV). Whether it’selectric vehicles, transportation, health-care or life sciences, or all the stuff hap-pening in genomics, it’s all happeninghere. There are companies developingmeat without ever harming an animal,basically recreating the entire process ofhow meat is created. This stuff is incredi-ble. It’s not like just crushing up plantsand making it taste like meat; it is reallylike meat, just not from an animal.

We are literally at the start of 100

years of innovation and transformationand I think you’ll see a disproportionateamount of it happen in the Valley. All ofthe talk of unicorns and bubbles—we’relooking at the trees not the forest. Whenyou look at the forest you can see we’re atthe very beginning of an all-new econ-omy that will be digital, all on the Inter-net, and computer-driven with smarttechnology and services. If you’re goingto think about where that’s all going to becreated and where the majority of that in-novation is going to stem from, we thinkit’s going to start in the Valley.

The exciting thing is that once busi-nesses outside the Valley start to collabo-rate more and work more with the Valley,that’s where I think you’re going to seehuge acceleration and exponentialchange. So, for example, take the rumorof Ford and Google working together. I see that happening more rapidly in theyears ahead—non-Valley companiespartnering, acquiring, integrating withSilicon Valley software companies.

DN: We always hear about theseother regions becoming the next Silicon Valley. Your thoughts? AL: They always fail because the expectations are wrong. You’re not goingto recreate Silicon Valley. With the net-work effects and cycle between venturecapital, big tech, universities, and start-ups, the Valley has a three-, four-, five-decade advantage. It’s like saying weshould put the New York Stock Exchangein another state—it’s too late for that.

There is going to be the potential for various hubs around the world thatmake sense in the context of that region. I do think that if you were Detroit, you’dwant to think heavily about whether youcan retain the future of transportationand not cede that to Silicon Valley. Ifyou’re on the East Coast, like aroundBoston, are you going to be able to retainlife sciences? And don’t start social net-works in Detroit or Boston; figure outhow you integrate with the expertise andskills of your region.

DN: When you talk about these regions collaborating, it brings usback to Box’s core value propositionand collaboration.AL: We’re able to see this firsthand be-cause our customers are primarily nottechnology companies. We work withsome of the coolest tech companies—Uber, AirBnB, Twitter, and LinkedIn—and we get to power a lot of the collab-oration in the tech industry. But also weget to power the collaboration at compa-nies like GE, Eli Lilly, Caterpillar, andToyota. We want to be an enabler to allthese Fortune 500 businesses who wantto be much more software and digitallyoriented in their strategy.

In 2016. you’ll see us more as a plat-form company, not just an applicationthat lets you share files. We’re going totruly be a platform that transforms howcompanies are building their own collab-orative applications and experiences. �

SVx51

The exciting thingis that once busi-nesses outsidethe Valley start tocollaborate moreand work morewith the Valley,that’s where I think you’regoing to see hugeacceleration andexponentialchange.

Roger Stoller pictured with one of his Flow Seriespieces in bronze, graniteand steel. Stoller’s monu-mental Coastal Helix(opposite page) stands onthe Pacific Coast Highway in Carlsbad.

FOLLOWING HIS INNER

MUSEPortola Valley productdesigner Roger Stoller

finds success and fulfillment as a sculptor.

Story by Sheryl NonnenbergPortraits by Jack Hutcheson

Stoller’s Tetra Con Brio (above) is the signature work ofart on the terrace of the Music Center at Strathmore ArtsCenter near Washington, D.C. The artwork is symbolic of the dynamic performing arts alive within the Center. For a special sculpture exhibit at Filoli in Woodside,Stoller installed one of his striking Flow Series pieces(below). Stoller’s Coastal Helix (insert photo) reflects theflora and fauna of the surrounding area.

hen Gentry last visited Roger Stoller, in2000, he had recently made the transi-tion from owning a successful industrialdesign firm to being a full-time sculptor.While some people may view such a ca-reer change as tantamount to insanity,Stoller calmly describes it as, “A reallygood move because it came from the in-side.” Stoller’s work holds pride of place

in private and commercial spaces throughout Silicon Valley, fromthe Google campus to SOMA’s new Bio hub.

Sitting recently in his light-filled Ladera living room, which isadorned with maquettes of his sculptures, Stoller was obviouslycontent with the choices he has made. “I loved design work but re-alized that I had to follow the impulse to become an artist,” he said.His decision would impact not only himself but also his family (he isa husband and the father of two daughters), who fully supportedthis new direction. That was a good thing because, as he explainedwith a chuckle, “There really was no Plan B.”

Although Stoller had a unique and well-rounded background(he was personal assistant to Buckminster Fuller and also knewfamed sculptor Isamu Noguchi), there was still a sharp learningcurve toward becoming a full-time sculptor. His undergraduatedegree in product design from the prestigious Art Center College ofDesign in Pasadena prepared him to deal with all the rapid advancesin computer modeling (he does all his preliminary work this way),but not in the nuts and bolts of actually creating a three-dimen-sional work of art. For that, he had to return to school, spendingfour years in the foundry at San Jose State University, learning thebasics of casting bronze and forging steel. It is this combination oftraditional methods and current technology that makes his workunique and, for Stoller, constantly challenging.

“I love the old world quality of sculpting, but also using tech-nology to create the underpinnings of the art,” he says. He is quick topoint out, however, that the inspiration for all his work is a deep loveof nature. When asked his opinion of art that mainly focuses only ontechnology, he responds, “Where is the soul? I like to go back to ex-periences in nature that are interpreted in three dimensions.”

Stoller’s love of nature stems from his childhood and familytrips to Yosemite. Noting that nature is filled with infinite varia-tions, he also cites Fuller and Noguchi’s common outlook that theworld has a “unified complexity.” So, although Stoller’s workmay use complicated software and modern materials like steeland glass, his designs are rooted in basic geometry and the beliefthat “human experience is made richer by intimate contact withnature’s principles.”

W

Stoller’s first commission was a light sculpture for a privatehome. He soon became aware that public art projects would be alucrative and effective means of getting his work more widelyknown. His background as a designer and experience in sales andmarketing were distinct advantages as he began to submit propo-sals for projects all around the United States. By researching onlineabout the history and geography of a location, he is able to make asculpture that is “community specific.” “After all,” explains Stollerof his clients, “it’s their art work, and I want to inspire people.”

Using his signature tetrahedron-based geometrics (a tetrahe-dron is a shape made of four triangles), Stoller has created commis-sions for Alza Corporation in Mountain View, the Music Center atStrathmore in North Bethesda, Maryland, the Stockton Airport,the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana, and the Mitchell Library in Palo Alto. Some pieces have been free-standing and sited onplazas, while others are connected to a wall (like Cloud Forest inMitchell Park) using a complex template system that he developedwith his foundry assistants. Stoller points out that public projectsrequire a tremendous amount of work with no assurance of beingselected. Last year, for example, he submitted 10 proposals butonly one was selected. Fortunately, he continues to do work forprivate clients and is trying to stay closer to home these days be-cause, he feels, “The climate here is ready for fine art.” This pastsummer, he was one of nine artists chosen to participate in theSummer Sculpture Exhibition at the Filoli estate in Woodside.

Stoller’s current project is for the El Paso Zoo and is a wall piece:a side view of the head of a giant giraffe, made of beautifully bur-nished steel. Working closely with the zoo’s staff, the decision wasmade to feature the giraffe, because the zoo is home to several ofthe elegant creatures and because they are a favorite of local visi-tors. Using state-of-the-art three-dimensional software, Stollercreated the design so that other zoo animals are also featuredwithin the intricate, lace-like steel re-creation of the head. “It’ssort of a Where’s Waldo approach, with visitors having to lookclosely at the piece to identify the hidden animals,” he shares.

The sculpture, which is fabricated by Nor Cal in Oakland, iscomprised of many pieces and will be assembled, almost like a puz-zle, at the zoo later this spring. Stoller will personally oversee the in-stallation process, as he always does, and make himself available forinput from the community. He has had mainly positive feedbackover the years. “My work,” he notes, “is not very controversial, per-haps because it is based in nature.”

Having found a measure of success in the always-changing artworld, what advice would Stoller give to up-and-coming artists?“You have to be motivated from the inside because it’s not an easycareer,” he replies. After a moment of thought he adds, with asmile, “Do it if you feel you cannot do anything else.” �

For more information about Roger Stoller’s public projects, or to contact him regarding private commissions, please visit www.stollerstudio.com.

Sheryl Nonnenberg is an art researcher/writer who lives in Menlo Park.

Stoller’s Tetra Helix (opposite, above) stands onGoogle’s Mountain View Campus. The artist’sCloud Forest (opposite, below) is located in theentry of Palo Alto’s new state-of-the-art MitchellPark Library. Inspired by the redwood tree,which is the symbol of Palo Alto, the sculptureis an abstracted interpretation of the uniqueexchange between the coastal redwoods andthe Pacific Ocean marine layer. On closer study, one can find images within the lacy steel pat-tern; clouds, birds, seeds, unfurling sprouts,branch bifurcation, and more. The steel curvessubtly “billow” from the walls to join with thehand-brushed finishes in creating uncommonlight reflections. These complex patterns of lightand steel signify the worlds within worlds foundinside the Library. Stoller (this page) in his homestudio where he models his sculptures.

MISSIONDRIVEN

VP of Product at Slack April Underwoodwants you to work faster and smarter.

Story by Amalia McGibbon // Portraits by Jack Hutcheson

SVx60

When April Underwood was nine yearsold, she took one look at the newcomputer her dad had just brought

home and thought, “Finally, a way to organize my baseball cards.”The now 35-year-old VP of Product at Slack has always been inter-ested in creating order out of ambiguity. “I really enjoy jumping inwhen things are not well-defined,” she says, with a thrill in her eyemore befitting a conversation about bungee jumping or politicalrevolution. Which makes the SOMA-based business softwarecompany a good place for her to call home these days. It might looklike ‘just another workplace messaging tool’ to some, but Under-wood sees in Slack the potential to dramatically transform how themodern workplace functions.

Underwood joined Slack in June last year as Head of Platform,and her first two quarters have been productive, to say the least. Shewas quickly promoted to VP of Product, and helped the companylaunch an App Directory with an $80 million dollar developer fund.Slack has been a Silicon Valley darling since its debut in February2014, and now boasts 2 million daily active users and annual recur-ring revenue of $50 million. But this new platform strategy marks animportant evolution for the company, positioning it to become,quite possibly, the central communication and collaboration hub ofthe enterprise.

That Underwood is at the helm of this key strategic initiativeshould come as no surprise, considering the woman’s resume readslike a timeline of key milestones in the digital age (Intel, Traveloc-ity, Apple, Google, and for the last five years, Twitter). But had shealways had her eye on this illustrious path, or was it an accident ofhard work? Underwood may have had a computer as a child, but herhometown of Amarillo, Texas, was a long way from Silicon Valley,and as she puts it, “I didn’t know a single person that worked intechnology until it was me, at 21.”

Underwood’s breakthrough moment came in college while at apart-time job in ISP tech support when she realized that if shelearned to code, she could create training modules for colleaguesso that they would know what to say in different scenarios—a newrole that would, not coincidentally, relieve her of her customer

SVx61

Slack’s San Francisco office

service responsibilities. (Score!) But this particular hall pass turnedinto a golden ticket, and Underwood realized her future lay in tech-nology and building her own bridges—in zeros and ones—to newopportunities.

Underwood joined Twitter in 2010 as Product Manager on foun-dational products like the Tweet Button and Twitter API. She builtTwitter’s Business Development team from the ground up, strikingstrategic partnerships with the largest companies in consumer weband enterprise. Two years in, she was made Director of Product onAdvertising (Ads API, ads.twitter.com) and Data (Firehose, Gnip)products. She loved the ambitiousness of Twitter and the way it al-lowed her to explore the intersections of platforms and partnerships.

Slack had a similar siren call. Underwood had forbidden herselfto take a new role until at least 3 months after leaving Twitter, butwhen CEO Stewart Butterfield reached out at exactly the 3-monthmark, it was such an obvious fit that she ignored nearly all of theother inbounds. “Another one of my guiding principles is that I liketo join companies where I’ve already fallen in love with the prod-uct.” The litmus test? Moving it into the dock of her phone, which,luckily for all, she did right before Butterfield got in touch.

Named as one of Fast Company’s 100 Most Creative People inBusiness for 2015, Underwood’s vision is clear: she wants to helpcorporate teams work faster and smarter. Slack’s motto is “Be lessbusy,” and it’s founded on an acknowledgement that there aremany tools that mean to simplify, but instead complicate our pro-fessional lives. “There’s a sense that after your workday is done,you have to start your other workday, which is whittling downyour email inbox.”

Consider the status quo of work communication in tech: a de-veloper gets an email notification that a piece of code is broken, andthen has to figure out who else received the email, who should beadded to the chain, etc. “No one knows what anyone else knows,”says Underwood. “It’s communication conducted in silos.” Slack’sgoal is to deliver a messaging experience that mirrors the realworld. Forget email notifications. Underwood wants it to feel likesomeone walked into a room of developers and announced thatcode was broken. “We want people to communicate in a way thatfeels human, and allows them to bring more of themselves towork,” says Underwood. “The source of truth at Slack is how peo-ple behave when they speak in person.”

Underwood thinks the key to being a good product manager isleadership, or ‘following the bow,’ as the one-time lead violinist inher high school orchestra likes to put it. “It’s not about being theperson with the microphone, or the person who makes all the deci-sions,” she says. “It’s about being a member of the team who oth-ers can look to for guidance.”

And, to paraphrase the famous Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers’saying, “she’s doing it all backwards and in high heels.” Well, per-haps not backwards, but Underwood is famous for her great shoes.Sitting across the table from this petite, pretty blonde, I must askher what it’s been like as a woman in an industry known for its gen-

SVx62

der bias. “The truth is, for a long time I didn’t notice it,” she says.Underwood was good at hanging with the boys, and it never oc-curred to her not to assimilate. “That shouldn’t have to be the case,though,” she says. Interestingly, her rise in the ranks has dove-tailed with a growing attention to the bias, and as Underwood saysof her female peers, “It’s as if we’ve all finally admitted we’rewomen for the first time.”

Underwood is making sure that she’s a part of not just the con-versation, but also the solution, with a much-hyped investmentcollective called #Angels (hash-tag optional), consisting of a half-dozen former and current female Twitter executives. While the

fund is not dedicated solely for female entrepreneurs, Underwoodreckons a good 40 – 50% are women-led operations (includingJewelbots). She credits the powerful examples she saw along herjourney—from Marisa Mayer at Google to Michelle Peluso atTravelocity—as modeling what was possible for her as a woman intech, and hopes to pay it forward. She also feels blessed to beworking at a company like Slack, which makes it such a priority (asevidenced by their issuance of a diversity report at an earlier stagethan most companies).

Amidst all this self-empowerment, Underwood is quick to ownher weaknesses as well. She remembers late nights and lessonslearned about taking on too much, and delegating, and allowingoneself to be vulnerable. Her advice to newbies in the industry is tonot “fake it till you make it.” “The more transparent you are aboutwhat you don’t know, and what you may need from others, thesmarter and stronger you’ll become.” Time and time again, she re-turns to the importance of communication and transparency, of a“trend towards human” in a digital age, which might help explainjust why Underwood, and Slack, are changing the game. �

“We want people tocommunicate in a waythat feels human, andallows them to bringmore of themselves towork,” says Underwood.

“The source of truth atSlack is how peoplebehave when they speakin person.”

SVx63

Last Look BY CORRINE E. MEHIGAN

Angele Marshall Senior Manager, Stadium Events, Forty Niners Stadium Management Company

A ngele Marshall passionately markets and sells all aspects of Levi’s® Stadium. As she notes, “We promote the stadium in its entirety — the team, the venue, events, and projects—you name it.”Whether it’s the 49ers or Taylor Swift or Super Bowl

50 dominating center stage, Levi’s® Stadium is one hot ticket. Growing up in New Orleans, Marshall remembers being sur-

rounded by good food and great hospitality, all of which laid thegroundwork for her events and marketing career. With a degreefrom Louisiana State University, event marketing was in her bloodfrom day one. “For my first job, I was a sales and marketing managerfor two private event venues on Bourbon Street,” she recalls. Later,while working at a job she loved with the World Series of Poker inLas Vegas, Marshall got the call to join the team at the San Francisco49ers that came with the opportunity to help open Levi’s Stadium.

“Our Events team is one of the most innovative and creative inthe NFL,” says Marshall proudly. “We are constantly thinking of new ways to help our clients maximize the striking new stadiumand utilize groundbreaking technology to impress guests. There areso many cool new things we’re able to offer here that are so cut-ting-edge that I’ve often just learned them myself before presentingto a client,” she notes. “It’s neat to be able to see the client’s reac-tion when you tell them about a feature in the building, like beingable to tweet a photo and watch it show up on our stadium videoboards in real time.”

Technology is definitely key to Levi’s® Stadium with things like electronic tickets, in-seat ordering, social media connectivity,real-time engagement, and the amount of video content you can beexposed to throughout the building. Marshall relates, “Customers’expectations have changed in that it is harder to impress the newgenerations of large event-goers. The key is striking a balance be-tween meeting the demands of today’s tech-savvy guests with thesimple comfort and convenience the more seasoned large event at-tendee expects.

As everyone looks to an exciting Super Bowl 50 in the Bay Area,Marshall has been at the heart of it all along, acting as a residentconsultant on events at the Stadium. “We’ve worked a lot with theSuper Bowl Host Committee to commemorate hosting the SuperBowl 50 here at Levi’s® Stadium: kickoff campaigns, activatingbrand partnerships with their sponsors, giving tours, and just pro-viding overall support to the League where necessary,” she says enthusiastically. “I’m most anticipating the kickoff to Super BowlWeek and seeing everything come to life.”

Her day-to-day equates to sales and bookings for full stadiumevents, managing bid proposals, negotiating contracts, and overallproject management. “My style is all about convenience, comfort,and reliability. I want you to be impressed with the level of atten-tion I give you as my client and feel confident that you will receivethe service you’ve been promised with no stress,” adds Marshall. �

What She’s Wearing Now: Shirt and Jacket: ZaraPants: Banana RepublicFootwear: Dolce VitaJewelry: Mignon Faget “blanche” ring (a New Orleans designer)Wearable Tech: Fitbit (LSU purple, of course)

SVx66

PHO

TO: W

WW

.JACK

HU

TCH

.CO

M

*memberships from $99.95 per month **including taxes and fees, one-way

...or you can keep spending a fortune