Interlude - Index of

50 | Beginnings
Dan was happy to take over, but he also recognized Mike’s
skills. Mike had built a product and a company with eight people
and very little money. If he could somehow take a productive
role, the company would be stronger, so Dan asked Mike
to stay on as senior vice president of strategy. Valentine hated
the idea. His advice to Dan: “Get the corpse out of the building
before it starts to smell.” Dan felt the potential reward outweighed
the risk, but in the end, Valentine was right. Mike left
about six months later and started yet another company, which
also went public. Like I said, the man was a genius.
Thus ended one of the most stressful periods of my life.
This chapter was hard to write, because it dredged up raw and
painful memories. I was torn by conflicting emotions: loyalty
to Mike, loyalty to NetApp, a desire to escape by quitting, but
an even stronger desire to stay because NetApp was my baby.
There were times I woke up in the middle of the night shaking.
As bad as it was for me, I can only imagine how much worse it
must have been for Mike. As you might guess, he and I don’t talk
much anymore, although I still have immense respect for him.
One time, though, Mike did ask for my help. We met for
lunch, and he started describing a very complex legal situation.
I listened to his story, and it slowly dawned on me that it
would strengthen his position if he could show that he hadn’t
been the best CEO ever. I interrupted him and said, “Mike—
correct me if I’m wrong, but are you asking me to testify under
oath that I thought you were a shitty CEO?” He broke into a
broad grin and said, “Dave, if there’s one thing I knew I could
count on, it’s your integrity.” I’ve been deposed many times,
but that is the only one I actually enjoyed.
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