Summary
A Silicon Valley startup called PeriRaden (not its real name) has built a new product in the mobile consumer space. Over the last two years, the founder and CEO Roy Weber funded the startup through personal savings and an angel round of investment. A dozen employees receive varying levels of salary and equity in the new company, which is a common practice for new ventures in Silicon Valley. Roy would like to expand PeriRaden’s operations into the Chinese market. With the support of the board, he plans to open a Chinese office and extend the ownership culture to the new staff in order to better motivate and retain them. Could he transplant Silicon Valley’s model of employee ownership without alienating his American team and complicating emerging operations in China?
To view the related webinar ‘Exporting Innovation: Translating Silicon Valley’s Culture in China,’ please visit the Stanford Center for Professional Development.