Claire's Business Model Interview Question

Claire Vo believes that organizations should operate with a startup mindset even as they grow larger, focusing on speed without sacrificing quality. She deliberately sets a pace that's "one click faster" than what teams naturally gravitate toward.

When Claire joins larger companies, she's often hired not to teach them how to operate like big companies, but to remind them they can still operate like startups. She actively prevents organizations from defaulting to the pace of their recurring meetings, which she sees as an artificial constraint. Instead of waiting for the next scheduled meeting to make decisions, she pushes for real timelines based on what's actually needed.

Her approach to accelerating pace is remarkably practical: "If you think something needs to be done this year, it needs to be done this half. If you think it needs to be done this half, it needs to be done this quarter." This one-click-faster mentality creates momentum that ripples through the organization. She also holds herself to a high personal service level agreement, ensuring she's never the bottleneck for decisions or approvals.

For maintaining quality while moving quickly, Claire focuses on two dimensions: talent bar and product bar. She believes in defining specific, measurable expectations for roles rather than vague descriptions. She normalizes direct feedback, citing Brené Brown's "clear is kind" philosophy—avoiding feedback isn't kindness, it's setting people up for failure. When people aren't meeting expectations, she addresses it quickly and directly, which she sees as essential for maintaining a high-performing team.

Claire's philosophy extends to her personal motto: "Fast beats right." She consistently finds that making a decision and executing with conviction outperforms endlessly deliberating to find the perfect solution. This bias toward action, combined with high standards and clear expectations, creates an environment where teams can move quickly while still delivering excellent results.