Conversations with Mike Milken

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Ep. 75: Economic Justice, with Vista Equity Partners’ Robert F. Smith Jul 02, 2020

Show notes

“The Wall Street Journal last week reported that 41% of the African American businesses have stopped transacting and stopped conducting business and have closed up, which is a true tragedy. They don't have the banking systems, which limited their ability to actually process the Payroll Protection Program loans through the CARES Act.”

With the pandemic revealing greater inequities in existing economic systems, Robert F. Smith is determined to make a difference. He authorized one of Vista Equity Partners’ portfolio companies, Finastra, to process more than 86,000 PPP loans to bolster small businesses in struggling communities. Named by Forbes as one of the “100 Greatest Living Business Minds,” he is also a noted philanthropist: Last year, he famously paid off the student loans of the entire graduating class of the historically black Morehouse College.

“Seventy percent of African American wealth is actually consumed by student debt; if you alleviate that problem, that creates a massive wealth lift for the entire community,” he tells Mike. “Restore, repair and regenerate these communities filled with Americans that need the opportunity and access to the American Dream.”

Ep. 74: Lifelines, with IMF’s Kristalina Georgieva Jul 01, 2020

Show notes

“Our policy engagement is very strong everywhere, but … the same way people with preconditions are more vulnerable to the virus, weakened economies are more vulnerable to the economic shock we experience today. So, they need more of our help.”

For struggling economies around the world, the IMF is a lifeline. Since 1944, it has promoted financial stability and sustainable growth to its 189 member countries with zero percent loans and reserves of more than one trillion dollars. As the Fund’s Managing Director, Kristina Georgieva’s mission is to bolster developing economies hit hard by the pandemic while seeking ways to increase equity and security for citizens of all nations.

“Every single day, 400,000 children are born on this planet; they don't choose their race, they don't choose whether they are born in a rich family or a poor family,” she tells Mike. “It's kind of a lottery at the start, but it needn't be a lottery for the future. There has to be clear thinking around equality of opportunity, access to education, to financing, to jobs, so we actually tap into the potential of all these people.”

Ep. 73: Big Gaming, with Activision Blizzard’s Bobby Kotick Jun 30, 2020

Show notes

“Each day you have to answer a series of questions so that you can electronically access the office. If you don't, we'll either send you to one of our testing labs or to a telemedicine doctor. … We have these huge UV chambers. You put all your outerwear, your phones, your shoes, and we can actually UV disinfect, almost anything.”

As CEO of one of Fortune’s "100 Best Companies to Work For," Activision Blizzard’s Bobby Kotick will do whatever is necessary to keep his workforce healthy. After all, his 9,200 employees comprise the world’s most successful standalone interactive entertainment company, with such franchises as Call of Duty, Overwatch and World of Warcraft. With nearly 500 million active monthly players around the world, the company also finds itself as an accelerator of social change.

“We have a unique way to break down these racial and cultural barriers and really engage people through the lens of a game,” he tells Mike. “It's very different than what you might see in a social network, because the way we connect and engage people is all through joy and fun.”

Ep. 72: Positive Energy, with Chevron’s Mike Wirth Jun 29, 2020

Show notes

“It can feel like the world is a colder and riskier place, [but] we've been through these things before, and we generally know that society comes through. We learn lessons. We become stronger over time and create opportunities for personal growth and societal learning that can continue to make the world a better place.”

Chevron has been weathering the vicissitudes of cultural and industrial shifts around the world since it was founded 141 years ago to provide a substitute for whale oil used in lamp lighting. Today, its more than 48,000 employees around the world have emerged stronger than ever from a market that drove oil prices to less than zero, as well a domestic landscape roiled by a resurgent pandemic and social upheaval.

“One of the things I'm really proud of is the heart that our people have,” he tells Mike. “Our employees have donated money from their own pockets. … The stories on our internal social media site, where employees share what they've done are incredibly heartwarming. … We empower people, we encourage people and they move to action based on what the local needs are very rapidly.”

Ep. 71: Gratitude, with Infosys’ Ravi Kumar S. Jun 26, 2020

Show notes

“Six out of the seven jobs of the future have not been created yet. The future of workplaces and workforces are going to change significantly. The change was gradual, but with the pandemic and in the post‐pandemic era, the changes will be all of a sudden.”

As the world struggles with the vagaries of a pandemic, Ravi Kumar S. is already planning for a transformed workplace. As President of Infosys, his effort begins with finding a new pipeline of formerly underserved workers and then training them for what’s ahead. For him, it’s a way to bring more equity to the workforce and help bring about the kind of world in which he wants his new daughter to grow up.

“I’ve never felt more gratitude for what I have,” he tells Mike. “As humans, we all have to work in striving to bridge the divide between the haves and the have‐nots and strive to raise hope. I've never found myself thinking more about raising hope than I have done so during this crisis.”

Ep. 70: The Conversation, with the World Bank’s Jingdong Hua Jun 25, 2020

Show notes

“I certainly hope this is a unique moment where we will have profound conversations, not only about our own lessons or our own challenges, but about the future of humanity. … This lockdown gives us the opportunity to have long conversations that otherwise would not have happened.”

Last year, the World Bank Group was busily working on two ambitious goals for its 189 member nations: ending extreme poverty within a generation, and boosting shared prosperity. This year, it has announced it will provide up to $160 billion in financing for COVID-19 over a period of 15 months to help developing countries respond to the health, social and economic impacts of the pandemic.

“We are projecting negative growth for over 150 countries in 2020,” he tells Mike. “And nearly 80% of the world's informal economy workers, 1.6 billion people, due to the lockdown, have lost their jobs, of which of 714 million are women. So this is really an unprecedented crisis.”

Ep. 69: Cashless, with Visa’s Al Kelly Jun 23, 2020

Show notes

“In the last three months we’ve probably have had five years’ worth of acceleration in terms of e‐commerce. … People are realizing that cash is a way that germs get transmitted. Currency is dirty.”

When the pandemic hit in January, Al Kelly made a vow to have zero layoffs at Visa. Fortunately, as one of the world’s foremost purveyors of e-commerce, they soon found that 97% of their 20,000 employees were able to work from home, and they shuttered all but five of their 130 international offices. Now, as they continue to service their 1.1 billion worldwide cardholders, they are partnering with federal, state and foreign governments to distribute much-needed stimulus and relief funds.

“Almost every medical expert I've talked to says there will be a resurgence of COVID‐19 in the fall,” he tells Mike. “We just need to make sure that we can manage through it so that we don't have to go back into lockdown. For our part at Visa, I am in no rush to move our employees back to offices.”

Ep. 68: Outcomes, with Helmsley Charitable Trust’s David Panzirer Jun 18, 2020

Show notes

“The whole premise that where you live dictates your access to specialty care, dictates your outcomes, dictates your access to tools to manage your disease. That's absurd in this day and age. … We have to seize this opportunity to level the playing field and really begin to truly give equal care no matter where you live.

When David Panzirer was named a Trustee of the Helmsley Charitable Trust thirteen years ago, he knew little about being a philanthropist. Today, he helps to direct that fund’s $6 billion dollars toward initiatives that create greater healthcare access – both in rural America and sub-Saharan Africa – while ensuring better long-term outcomes. He is especially passionate about improving the lives of those with type 1 diabetes, a disease that hits very close to home.

“There is no shortcut for diligence,” he tells Mike. “I started out and I wanted a cure for my daughter like anybody else in my position. As a society, we have never cured an autoimmune chronic disease. … We've taken some things and we've turned them into managed diseases. But my point is, it's not easy. If it were easy, we'd be done.”

Ep. 67: Healing, with Children’s National Hospital’s Joelle Simpson Jun 17, 2020

Show notes

“I will be honest in saying that I never imagined the degree of exhaustion and the multitude of issues that have come about with this crisis: on a personal level, on an institutional level, on a community level, on a national level.”

For 150 years, Children’s National Hospital in Washington, DC has been a beacon of pediatric excellence. With Dr. Joelle Simpson as its Medical Director for Emergency Preparedness, they have partnered with philanthropists to provide free drive-through care and COVID-19 testing. Serving her community’s needs is rewarding; in today’s turbulent times, however, it can also be frustrating and overwhelming.

“How do we manage to reassure children that there is a future for them where they are cared for and where they can find safety regardless of their background, their race or the color of their skin?” the Trinidad native asks Mike. “There's a long road to go for healing and for dealing with the deep‐rooted racism that's in our country.”

Ep. 66: Teachable Moment, with IAC’s Barry Diller Jun 16, 2020

Show notes

“Local travel, meaning travel 100 to 600 miles from where you live by car, is fairly robust and is almost back to pre‐COVID levels. … We're not seeing and won't see air travel, certainly not international air travel. … We’re not seeing it yet because people feel unsafe. Travel is probably one of the last to actually get back the robust growth.”

As Chairman and Senior Executive of Expedia Group – which includes a dozen top online booking sites – Barry Diller knows travel trends. As Chairman and Senior Executive of IAC – which includes such websites as OKCupid, Tinder and Match – he knows internet dating habits. As a legendary movie and television producer and executive, he knows what will entertain people. One thing he doesn’t know, however, is how this crisis will resolve.

“There's one faction that says, ‘I want to go back to work. Stop telling me what to do.’ And then the people who are saying, ‘absolutely not. You must social distance,’” he tells Mike. “I think the mess –and it is a mess – of the next couple of months is going to teach us many things. So I don't have the answer, but I do have this, and I think I share this with a lot of people: I've got a lot of questions.”

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