This episode of The Knowledge Project interviews Sarah Jones Simmer, CEO of FOUND, about scaling businesses, leadership, and her experiences with cancer. The conversation covers her strategies for scaling Bumble (e.g., building trust, prioritizing analytics, and hiring T-shaped leaders), her cancer diagnosis and its impact on her perspective and work, and her fundraising experience for FOUND. Simmer emphasizes the importance of building trust, prioritizing mission-driven work, and creating psychological safety within teams. A key takeaway is her approach to decision-making: gathering sufficient information before acting with conviction, and her advice on hiring emphasizes finding individuals committed to the mission and demonstrating kindness over niceness. Listeners gain insights into scaling companies, navigating health challenges while maintaining a career, and building strong, trusting teams.
