Aneel Bhusri, MBA '93 and Dave Duffield, Workday: 41st Entrepreneurial Company of the Year

TL;DR

Workday, an HR and finance software company, is the result of a strong and enduring friendship between co-founders Aneel Bhusri and Dave Duffield.

Transcript

So welcome to the annual Stanford GSB Encore Award. And it's always a great event every year. I want to start with a couple of thanks, in particular to the Encore Award Selection Committee for their great choice, and also for their work in putting together tonight's event. And thank you to all the sponsors of this event. And thank you to all of our... Read More

Key Insights

• 🥶 Workday's success is rooted in the strong friendship and partnership between its co-founders, Aneel Bhusri and Dave Duffield.
• 💦 Workday's commitment to creating a positive company culture and being a great place to work has contributed to its success in attracting and retaining top talent.
• 👂 The company's ability to listen to its customers and adapt to their needs has been crucial in building a loyal customer base.
• 🪡 Workday stays ahead of the competition by leveraging advancements in technology and continuously innovating to meet the evolving needs of its customers.

Questions & Answers

Q: How did Aneel Bhusri and Dave Duffield first meet?

Aneel Bhusri was introduced to Dave Duffield by a mutual contact while he was still in business school. They had a three-hour breakfast meeting, which marked the beginning of their friendship and future business partnership.

Q: What were some of the challenges faced by Workday in the early years?

Workday struggled to acquire its first customers, as people were not actively looking for new HR and finance software solutions at the time. However, through perseverance and the support of their network, they were able to secure their first customers and build a successful company.

Q: What is the key to Workday's success?

Workday's success can be attributed to various factors, including the strong friendship and partnership between Aneel Bhusri and Dave Duffield, their dedication to creating a positive company culture, their ability to listen to customers and adapt to their needs, and their commitment to innovation and staying ahead of industry trends.

Q: How does Workday plan to stay ahead of competitors?

Workday's focus is on leveraging advancements in technology, such as machine learning and AI, to provide predictive analytics and better business outcomes for its customers. They also prioritize continuous innovation and regularly engage with their engineering team to think about how they would start Workday from scratch with the technology available today.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Workday is an award-winning entrepreneurial company known for its innovative culture and spirit, as well as its Silicon Valley roots.

• The founders, Aneel Bhusri and Dave Duffield, previously worked together at PeopleSoft and decided to start Workday after Oracle's hostile takeover of PeopleSoft.

• Workday faced initial challenges in acquiring customers, but their partnership, along with the support of their team and customers like Flextronics and Chiquita, helped them become a successful and highly-regarded company in the HR and finance software industry.