“It's my job for Oracle – the number two software company in the world – to become the number one software company in the world,” says Ellison. “My job, is to build better than the competition, sell those products in the marketplace, and eventually supplant Microsoft and move from being number two to number one.”
Ellison didn’t get to the top of his game by being complacent. Once he had set his goals – and ambitious ones at that – Ellison did whatever it took to achieve them. “I think I'm very goal-oriented,” he says. “I’d like to win the America's Cup. I'd like Oracle to be the No. 1 software company in the world. I still think it's possible to beat Microsoft, believe it or not, for us to be a more important company than Microsoft.”
It is this kind of optimistic determination and enthusiasm that made Oracle into the successful company it has become today. “Microsoft is already the most powerful company on earth, but you ain't seen nothing yet,” says Ellison. Although it is a goal he has been chasing for years, nothing has been able to distract Ellison from his mission.
1990 proved to be a difficult year for the company. Facing bankruptcy, Ellison was forced to make difficult decisions for the sake of his company. “If your cash is about you run out you have to cut your cash flow,” he says. “CEOs have to make those decisions and live with them however painful they might be. You have to act and act now, and act in the best interests of the company as a whole, even if that means that some people in the company who are your friends have to work somewhere else.”
Ellison explains that this similar ambition and ability to make difficult decisions is a characteristic he looks for when hiring his staff. He doesn’t want his staff to read inspirational fiction like “The Prince.” Instead, Ellison wants his staff familiar with the likes of Churchill. “Amazing that the morale of a country rested on one person’s shoulders,” says Ellison of Churchill during WWII. “I’m inspired by great people doing great things.”
In the business world, Ellison looks to General Electric as an example of the ruthlessness that is needed in order to succeed. “I greatly admire GE – their utterly ruthlessly focused management…OK, we may make a few mistakes along the way but we're not going to waste any time. Make a decision and let's go. They take risks, they make decisions, they’re incredibly disciplined and focused.”
From sailing in America’s Cup to pioneering a new database program, it is Ellison’s grit and hardnosed determination that have taken him to the top. “It is my job to go out into the marketplace and win,” he says. And, Ellison is unabashed about his ability to do just that. “We compare our products to the competitors' products,” he says. “We don't lie about this, we just say, ‘We can do this; they can't.’’
Lesson #2: Be Ruthless
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