“So, yes we are IDIOTS — and please WRITE THAT DOWN,” insisted CEO Eric Schmidt in an impromptu interview on Friday, referring to Google management between the IPO filing and going pubic.
From Reuters (the whole audio interview, here):
THE IDIOTS RUNNING GOOGLE
Google CEO Eric Schmidt tells reporters:
“(During the 2004 IPO process), between the time we filed and the time we went public, the press was among the most unpleasant I have ever experienced.
“We (Google management) were ‘idiots,’ we were ‘useless’… I thought ‘God.’…It is a terrible feeling of being on the other side of that (press coverage).
“So we looked at (Google’s Web site) traffic and revenue and they were exploding… We had a very, very strong quarter right after the worst possible press about ‘the idiots running the company.’
“I don’t know what that tells you.
Schmidt then paused and begged the reporters to create a new Google press frenzy:
“So, yes we are IDIOTS — and please WRITE THAT DOWN.”
WE HAVE EVERY PROBLEM YOU CAN IMAGINE… QUICKER
Google CEO Eric Schmidt: “We have every known problem that a growth company has — quicker…Write down all the obvious problems, we have every one of them. So we make a list of them (potential problems) and we anticipate them.”
Reporter: Are there any non-obvious problems?
Schmidt: “No. no.”
Reporter: Is it a list of 10-15?
Schmidt: “I would say it is about 20.”