A Randall's Ranger heads to VC country.
From The Startup Game by William H. Draper III. Copyright 2011 by the author. Published by Palgrave Macmillan (www.palgrave.com).VENTURE CAPITAL? Sounds risky. I wouldn't do it if I were you."
The man speaking to me, Clarence Randall, former chairman of Inland Steel, was sitting behind a huge, dark wooden desk on the top floor of the new Inland Steel building in the Loop, the heart of downtown Chicago's financial and retail district. I recall that the view was spectacular on that particular sunny afternoon in June 1959.
I knew that it would be difficult to convince Randall to agree with my decision to leave Inland. I had had great opportunities and had been happy at the company for the previous five years. The "Randall's Rangers" management training program was what had initially drawn me to Inland. Each year, the company recruited five or six Rangers from the graduating class of the nation's best schools, with the expectation that they would later go to join the ranks of Inland's top management. Doors were opened for us. After completing my year of training, I was assigned to the sales department and eventually given responsibility for all of South Chicago, arguably the most important district. I was just one of nine salesmen in the entire company and was proud to have a company car and my own territory.
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So why was I leaving? My father had called to say that the money had been raised, the timing was right, and the documents had all been signed. Draper Gaither & Anderson--the first venture capital firm in the West--was about to become a reality.
Conspiratorially leaning forward across his desk, as if the KGB might be listening to our conversation, Randall dropped his voice to nearly a whisper. "I had a friend in the financial business who live in Highland Park," he said, "and he went bankrupt because he gambled in the stock market. He and his family left town and never recovered. You have a secure job and are on your way to the top of a great company. Let your father do his thing, and you do yours. Stay with your business family here in Chicago, and avoid taking a risk on something as dangerous as venture capital."
William H. Draper III is the founder of Sutter Hill Ventures in Palo Alto, Cal., and currently is the general partner of Draper Richards LP (www.draperrichards.com).
Edited by James Kristie. Excerpts reprinted with permission of the publishers. All rights reserved.
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| Author: | Kristie, James |
|---|---|
| Publication: | Directors & Boards |
| Article Type: | Reprint |
| Date: | Mar 22, 2011 |
| Words: | 421 |
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