BIOGRAPHY:
Lawrence Ellison is the co-founder of the giant corporation Oracle, one of the richest people in the world. He lives on his own Hawaiian island, does not hide his love for luxury, but does not advertise his charity work. Larry taught Silicon Valley that you can never stop growing, even if your business is a tech giant and a leader in its field. How he turned from an obnoxious child into a cult figure and why he almost lost everything – in the material of “The Secret”.
Childhood And Youth:
When Larry was just under a year old, his biological mother, an emigrant from Odessa with Jewish roots, gave her son to relatives in Chicago. His new family was a contrast: a soft mother, Lilian, and a tough, distant father, Louis, a Russian emigrant. Ellison Sr. chose his surname in honor of the point of arrival in the States – Ellis Island – a filtration point for emigrants. He made a fortune in real estate, but lost it all due to the Great Depression.
Larry was a difficult child and caused a lot of trouble for his new family. “It was not easy to live with such a child. Walk into his room and it would be like being hit by a tornado,” recalled his childhood friend Dennis Coleman.
During his school years, Ellison was smart, but inattentive, and was fond of playing basketball and partying. And he showed no academic interest. After high school, the future “oracle” entered the University of Illinois, but dropped out in his second year when his adoptive mother, the only person from whom the boy found support, died. Despite the short period of study, Larry managed to receive an award as the science student of the year.
Recovering from the loss, Ellison enrolled at the University of Chicago, but dropped out after his first semester at age 22 to leave the city forever.
He invested all his savings in a turquoise Ford Thunderbir convertible and drove it to California. He only had money with him for fast food and gasoline. And the modest knowledge of programming that he acquired during his studies. In California, the future billionaire changed many jobs, simultaneously improving his programming skills.
“Oracle”
In the early 70s, Ellison ended up at Ampex, where he began working on huge databases. Larry’s first significant development was the CIA’s data management system, code-named Oracle. Having completed his first big project in 1977, he quit and, together with his colleagues at Ampex, founded his own software development company – Software Development Laboratories.
The first development was immediately a non-standard marketing move: Ellison’s company released the second version of the Oracle DBMS to the market. Despite the fact that the first version of Oracle never existed. This move was meant to make customers believe that they were dealing with a proven product and an experienced company. And Larry made the right decision – a buyer was immediately found, and not just anyone, but the US Air Force.
In the early 70s, the very idea of a database as a way to store and access information was revolutionary. This allowed the company to double its revenue every year for several years in a row.
By the fifth version of the product, in 1986, the company’s turnover was already $55 million. Ellison decided to take advantage of the moment and brought Oracle to an IPO. In total, the company raised $31.5 million. A year later, Larry appeared in the Forbes ranking for the first time. By the same year, Oracle’s flagship product had helped it become the world’s largest database management company. The corporation’s products were used by users from 55 countries..
The company was taking off, and its founder was swimming in money. And he wasn’t shy about it. He drove his red Ferrari, violating traffic rules, signed all his correspondence with a pen with green ink – the color of the treasured bucks, and enjoyed unexpected popularity. The employees of his company also lived in grand style – the corporate parking lot was filled entirely with Porsches and BMWs, noted American journalist and writer Brian Burrow.
For several years the company lost ground, but still managed to survive. Ellison managed to choose the right course and get the company out of trouble with the seventh version of its database.
“The computer industry is the only industry that is more fashion-driven than women’s fashion,” Ellison said . Already in 1995, he introduced a new killer feature – a strategy for distributing Oracle software over the Internet.
After that, until the mid-2000s, Oracle and Ellison were mired in wars with competitors. Ellison set two important goals for his sales people: 100% sales growth and the destruction of the next enemy. The victims were chosen personally by Ellison.
In particular, Microsoft turned out to be one of the sworn competitors. To defeat him, Ellison was ready to do almost anything. According to some reports, when a rival company was involved in a major antitrust trial, private detectives hired by Ellison were able to find evidence of bribery of public organizations by Gates. Ellison turned over all the materials to the court and called it a “service to the public.”
Over five years of acquisitions, the corporation spent $40 billion (from 2005 to 2010). But this amount paid off. During the same period, the company’s key financial indicators doubled: revenue – from $11.8 billion to $26.8 billion, net profit – from $2.9 billion to $6.1 billion. By 2013, Ellison was able to lead the company to a record net profit in $11 billion
Larry stepped down as CEO at the company’s peak in 2014, at age 70. He remained with Oracle as executive chairman and chief technology officer.
Tough “superboss”
In the battlefield of Silicon Valley, you have to be bloodthirsty enough to build a successful business. Larry Ellison, since the founding of Oracle, has tried all methods of dealing with competitors: the private investigator who dug into Microsoft’s dirty laundry is a prime example of this.
When hiring, Ellison told his recruiters to ask applicants, “Are you the smartest person you know?” If the candidate answered affirmatively, he was hired. If it was negative, the recruiters asked who was the smartest and tried to hire that person.
“When I founded Oracle, I just wanted to create an environment where I would enjoy working,” Ellison says . One of his business rules is: do not hire people with whom it is impossible to have lunch together several times a week.
By all accounts, the businessman is a poor listener and talker, and his brash and unapologetic approach to business sometimes alienates both employees and clients. Ellison was often criticized for his obsession with secrecy and for keeping a tight rein on his employees. When a businessman was once asked why he was so tough, he replied:
At the same time, Ellison once inspired Silicon Valley (as Elon Musk now inspires many) with a simple truth: no matter how big a company you become, you can survive in the market only by reinventing yourself. According to the billionaire, during his career he became addicted to winning. He explained his motivation to work hard and hard this way: “What drives me is the constant testing of limits.”
As CEO, Ellison received huge fees. He achieved his status as one of the richest people on the planet by setting the standard for high pay for top managers. Larry Ellison was the highest-paid executive of the 2000s, with total compensation of $1.84 billion.
Fact . As of October 2021, the value of Larry Ellison’s assets is $119.8 billion. At the same time, he owns 3 million Tesla shares.
Philanthropist:
The billionaire is called a “closed philanthropist.” He doesn’t like to talk much about his charity work, but he is focused on medical research and green energy. In 2010, he signed the Giving Pledge, promising to donate 95% of his wealth before his death. It is known that the billionaire has repeatedly made generous charitable donations. For example, in May 2016, Larry Ellison donated $200 million to the cancer treatment center at the University of Southern California.
“Good motives are never enough,” the businessman wrote on his charity’s website. “Charities must strive to create lasting change, not settle for average results.”
In September 2020, Ellison abruptly closed his fund. The billionaire made this radical decision to focus on the fight against Covid-19. Larry brought a team of Oracle engineers to work with Agus, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the National Institutes of Health and other federal agencies to create a database of all coronavirus cases in the US.
Spender:
Larry Ellison is a licensed pilot who has a whole collection of expensive airliners. He bought a private jet Gulfstream G650 in 2015 for $75 million. The aircraft can carry 14 passengers and is registered to Wing and a Prayer Inc., a company owned by Ellison. The billionaire also owns a Bombardier Global Express, which he bought in 2000, a Cessna 525 Citation, another 2008 Bombardier Global Express, a 2013 Bombardier Challenger and several military aircraft.
The billionaire lives in Hawaii. In 2012, he bought 98% of the local island of Lanai. The purchase cost the billionaire $300–500 million. Ellison also acquired Lanai’s main carrier, Island Air. On the island, he creates an ideal model of the future: developing industrial and resort areas, rebuilding an airport, introducing solar power plants and electric cars.
The businessman does not skimp on his hobbies. For many years he has been involved in yacht racing – and this pleasure is not cheap. In 2010, he sold one of his yachts, Rising Sun, for $300 million.
Lovelace:
Larry was married four times. He is currently divorced. A busy personal life earned Ellison the status of an international playboy and the main womanizer of Silicon Valley. He has been involved in sexual harassment lawsuits. But even this negative experience did not quench his appetite for young women.
After the billionaire appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show and talked about his love affairs, Oracle’s phone lines were flooded with calls from women. The company joked that the new answering machine would read something like this: “Press 1 if you want information about Oracle products. Press 2 if you need information about Oracle services. Press 3 if you want to fill the void in Larry’s life.”
The businessman admits that his list of victories includes two Miss USA. And not surprisingly, Ellison’s favorite phrase in conversation is: “Can I buy you a car?” What woman can resist such an offer? In particular, Ellison was credited with an affair with model Nikita Kan.
Extreme:
Billionaires quickly get bored with simple hobbies, so they go on adventures and create extreme conditions that only a tycoon can afford. Allison is a sailing fan and sponsor of one of the largest sailing competitions in the United States. The billionaire became interested in yachting in his youth and sought to get rich just in order to buy himself a fashionable and expensive yacht. On his path to success, Ellison never gave up and invested more than $100 million to win the America’s Cup twice, one of the most prestigious regattas in the world.
“It would be against aviation regulations, so I didn’t do it. But if I had decided to take part in this adventure, I would have used one of my fighters.”