President-Elect Obama's First Big Mistake
Its great to see President-elect Obama aggressively taking on the economy prior to his taking office. Unfortunately, the economic advisory team that he has put together looks more like a semester's worth of great guest speakers for an MBA class than an economic advisory team that can truly help him.
There are a lot of great minds on the list:
Robert Rubin, Larry Summers, Laura Tyson, who served as Clinton's top economic adviser; former Fed Vice Chairman Roger Ferguson; Time Warner Inc. Chairman Richard Parsons; former Securities and Exchange Commission chairman William Donaldson and Xerox Corp. Chief Executive Officer Anne Mulcahy.
Google Inc. CEO Eric Schmidt, Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm and Roel Campos, an ex-SEC commissioner, and Warren Buffett are also on the advisory board.
Notice anything missing?
Not a single entrepreneur. Yes Warren Buffett started a business, but he will be the first to tell you that he "doesn't do start ups". Which means there isn't a single person advising PE Obama that we know of that knows what it's like to start and run a business in this or any economic climate. That's a huge problem.
If we are going to solve our current economic problems, our president needs to get first hand information on the impact his proposed policies will have on real Joe the Plumbers. People who are 1-person companies living job to job, hoping they get paid on time. We need to know what the impact of his policies will be on the individually owned Chrysler Dealership in Iowa. The bodega in Manhattan. The mobile phone software startup out of Carnegie Mellon. The event planner in Dallas. The barbershop in L.A. The restaurant in Boston.
Entrepreneurs that start and run small businesses will be the propellant in this economy. PE Obama needs to have the counsel of those who will take the real risk inherent in creating companies and jobs. Those who put their money and lives on the line with their business.
Without it, the rules of unintended consequences of any economic policy could hit you in the mouth in ways you never expected. Things like forcing companies from being taxpayers to the underground cash economy, or forcing new hires to be independent contractors to avoid having to pay their insurance or higher matching social security amounts. Your current group has no one with 100% of their net worth on the line. I promise you that the possibility of losing it all will provide a completely different perspective than any of the "knowledge" the esteemed, learned members of his current advisory team offer.
PE Obama, I'm always available to help, but my recommendation would be to randomly go through the new incorporation filings and ask for volunteers to give feedback. Ask the people who are actually starting new businesses what they need.
Entrepreneurs will lead us out of this mess. Talk to them.
Loading comments…
Want to reply to a comment? Hint: Click "Reply" at the bottom of the comment; after being approved your comment will appear directly underneath the comment you replied to
Mark:
I think it is safe to say that Google's Schmidt can speak pretty well for we of the techno-geek entrepreneurial community. He missed you because you are Call It Crisis Cuban and he is No Drama Obama. You don't have to have a White House invite to change things, Mark. You want to make a difference? You get the digital mavericks together and form a support group to advise the advisors, and hand off your meeting's findings to Schmidt. Also, take the call when it comes from 1600 P.A. I'm sure that, should the reach out come, you will be happy to take the call.
This wasn't a mistake. Until Obama gets the banks lending again, and stablizes the markets, your brand of entrepreneurship will be limited to a very few guys like you with the deep pockets to ride through this. The rest of the entrepreneurs are waiting for the sign at Wachovia to read "Wells Fargo."
Technically Eric Schmidt wasn't one of the founders of Sun Microsystems; it was a year old by the time he joined, but it was still very definitely a startup that he helped build into a much larger company. And Google was about three years old when he joined it, respectably large but well before it went public.
Mark,
Your suggestion is contrary to how the most recent big success entrepreneurs succeeded, including yourself.
I dont remember the Founders of Apple., Microsoft, even Broadcast.com (remember that lucky break you had?) relying on Small Business Administration loans, or any other Government financial aid in getting started.
While most (well paying) jobs have been created by small companies in US for last 20 years - except for the State protected (ie auto industry, defense industry, government jobs) - none of the 'good jobs' in Silicon Valley were significantly helped by Federal Government action (except perhaps those at Microsoft, protected by the soft Anti-Trust settlement under Bush Admin).
So, please, Mark, why not just band bunch of guys/gals who have already cashed in some chips, like you, and form a well financed, well publicized special interest group to advocate in the media for what entrepreneurs need - and not advocate being part of innumerable 'policy' meetings within Government.
You know that you can get a lot more done 'outside' a large organization, such as: Intel, Microsoft, Sun - than inside. Note the impact CraigsList has had on large newspapes, large classified sites like eBay.
The Muzer
Having had a bellyful of entrepreneurs and their entrepreneurship in the past eight years, I yearn for the wisdom of Academia. Perhaps then we will think of both Main Street and Side Street and what ails them.
http://www.counterpunch.org/whitney11142008.html
The guys who are looting the treasury are not likely to fix it. What about Peter Schiff? Or Nouriel Roubini?
The people who have been telling us that this was coming for 3 years or more. The more I think about it the more I think impeachment is in order as there is no time to waste.
http://georgewashington2.blogspot.com/2008/11/leading-economist-warns-of-food-riots.html
roubini and zuckerman are above this. (but i think obama's team will find the way like some of them helped bill do after George HW Bush took down the economy and gave it away to megacapital.)
Cuban is actually correct. If you don't have advisors who've incubated, grown and prospered through various economic conditions then you don't have the perspective to know what to expect in this current economic crisis.
Cuban suggestion that letting the inmates who caused the riot continue to run the joint is turning logic on its head.
What is needed is a few Roosevelt guards not more Bush cons.
YES.
One of the projects that needs to be worked on, starting with the second quarter of 2009, is an Innovation Bank. This would invite investment in start-ups and idea factories that will, in turn, energize the new Edisons, McCoys, Fermis Carvers, Gateses and Jobses who will take this economy to heights only dimly envisioned right now. Lee Iacocca has fulminated about this matter of encouraging innovation. Let him be the one direct the Innovation Bank's establishment, along with Bill Gates, Ron Popeil (Yes, the President of Ronco) and Steve Jobs.
That bank already exists, and it's called Venture Caps.
It should not come as a surprise to Mr. Cuban that he was disappointed with the make up of President Elect Obama's advisory group. One must remember they (Congress and the Bush Administration) crafted the massive No Child Left Behind legislation without the input of one practicing public school teacher.
Entrepreneurs....You mean like joe, the plumber? Give me a break, all us middle class people that have lost well paying jobs, are the real voices of reason. Create good paying jobs, so hard working Americans can earn a decent living. Fools that beat around the bush about the ailments of the American economy are really advocating the remnants of a failed "trickle-down" theory of Reaganomics. The backbone of the U.S. economy is, and always has been, the average wage earner, when you weaken his or her's buying power; well ......this is the result. It's time to junk this global economy talk, and concentrate on healing our Nation's economy. Global BS is simply code for the ultra-rich to get even more richer, it is time to take a look at our history and realize that the laws and rules that once governed our land worked pretty well......tariffs, breaking up monopolies, Legal immigrants, strict oversight of Wall street, FAIR TRADE are just some avenues to get America back on track. Greed, has replaced America's motto of "honest days pay, for an honest days work",
Charlie,
You are so very right about greed replacing "honest day's pay", etc!
But listen to me - there is an economic trend in the world called "Made in China", baby! And no one can reverse it anymore, from what we know - ever heard of it? So the good paying jobs days are gone, over with, no more to be, baby, finito! And the reality is - small entrepreneurs that can make things work for less money without hiring a secretary and a human resource manager are gonna drive this economy in the next few decades. That is what the article above is all about.
Please everybody RELAX, you too Mark..............give the man some room. Do whatever you need to do to relax. We have to hang in for the long haul. O is just starting to learn how bad it really is. We have no clue. The conservative agenda has crippled our country both domestically and internationally. Your grand children will be dealing with the damage brought forth by the present administration. We need patience and understanding if O is going to succeed.
You may not agree with Cuban but he is smart and does not have a hidden agenda. I would wager that he voted for Obama
Pfui. Like saying Obama needs some toddlers on his Health Team to make sure children's medical issues are properly represented. A team like this that doesn't ask for, and listen to, the voices of entrepreneurs as well as others when shaping policy -- well, that's not what we voted for and I don't think that's what we're going to get. We need experienced people who see the big picture, not people who are sweating every day to birth their business.
Perhaps Mr. Cuban could advise President Elect Obama how NOT to fire a Head Coach/GM?
Perhaps you could sign up to become a part of his team or otherwise contribute your ideas at change.gov. That's what I dd.
Maybe PE Obama isn't done adding to his team. Perhaps he's thinking of any number of entrepreneurs to add or replace on the list. Good idea Mark. Maybe next time you should be more suggestive than saying somebody has already made a mistake. Your career has been full of them hasn't it? Call him up, I imagine he'd take your call and enjoy some chat-n-think on the subject. But don't be bitter and cruel in your efforts of being a big-time blogger.
Ease up. Yes, it's too soon to say who is missing but it's not to soon to make a suggestion as to who might be included.
Beyond that, there is a segment of the populous who is hardly ever discussed: the unincorporated-self-employed and Cuban mentions them; The 'event planner,' the one person "company." These folks are getting slammed in every single way: taxes, health insurance, job security, and no access to unemployment benefits. They vote and they are pissed off even in the "good" times. They are everywhere in the country but ever present in the rural non farm areas. They vote against their self-interest because their self interest doesn't make it to the table. They are part of the cash economy now and Cuban is right they will be more so as the economy slows.
The guy with the pick-up who gravels your driveway won't be asked to sit on a transition team, but somebody who knows he's there should be. He voted against Obama because Republicans have brainwashed him into thinking Democrats will give the tax money he's squeezing out of his ass to the poor. He already feels poor. Give him some relief--in taxes or healthcare costs, make sure he knows it and he'll come home to Jesus. Obama will win that last part of the Democrat electorate he couldn't capture.Eight years will be in the bag--the Republicans have jerked these guys around for far to long.
I think this is an excellent suggestion. I would love to volunteer.
You must be logged in to comment. Log in or connect with
