The following is a portion of a quarterly letter put out by Meg Ryan, CEO of Ebay. Ebay has show phenominal growth since it first started and is one of the few profitable Internet companies. This is something to read and think about with regards to how a *successful* company has grown. The complete letter can be seen at:
http://calculus.ebay.com/aw/announce.shtml
on the announcement dated 10/19/00 at 15:37:02 PDT. Long range planning is not an option for a successful organization.
************************
The fundamental principles by which we govern and build this company for the future remain unchanged.
First: Profitablity We have delivered profitability and have always held to the principle that the true measure of success is building a consumer brand and a great company while retaining the discipline of the bottom line.
Second: Singularity of Focus We have only one focus to build the worlds largest trading platform. This is a proven business concept and the greatest value we can provide our shareholders, employees and community of users lies in remaining true to this vision. We will not be distracted by fashionable and unrelated ventures.
Third: Execution We are relentless in measuring success based on what we deliver. This principle of accountability and results permeates the organization. Our results this quarter with record revenue growth, record profits and record user acquistion is testament to this drive.
And lastly: Leadership We remain focused on maintaining and extending our leadership. The growth of our platform is continually reinforced by its reach and success. We have built a profitable company that is generating over $5 Billion of economic activity in just 5 years with only 1,500 employees. We are not resting on this success. With an enormous addressable market, we recently set out new goals to be $3 billion in revenue in 2005. The best is yet to come!