CEO Doug McMillan's decision to raise worker pay by 90% was key to Walmart's resurgence. This investment in people lowered turnover, improved service, and attracted new customers, ultimately quadrupling the stock price and proving a vital strategy against competitors like Amazon.

After losing clients due to HR budget cuts, Artist successfully pivoted from selling to central L&D teams to selling to sales enablement departments. These teams have budgets directly tied to revenue outcomes, making them a more resilient and motivated customer base, even without a fundamental product change.

After nearly failing, OpenGov adopted a frugal culture and discovered it grew faster. Less spending reduces system noise and inefficiency. A leaner, more focused sales team, for instance, can become more motivated and effective, leading to better results.

David Risher's turnaround plan started by reducing rider prices and increasing driver pay. The subsequent layoff of 26% of staff was a necessary consequence to fund these core customer-obsessed changes, rather than being the primary goal itself. This reordering of priorities put the customer experience first.

Instead of replacing leaders at each growth stage, the Uber Eats management team was built like an "organism" with complementary strengths and was kept largely intact from launch to a $20 billion run rate. This proves a cohesive team that can learn together is more valuable than constantly hiring for "scale experience."

To avoid distracting from its core business, Bolt tests new ventures like scooters and food delivery using a standardized playbook. A small team of 5-10 people is given a modest budget and a six-month timeline to build an MVP and show traction. If successful, they get more funding; if not, the project is shut down.

To conserve cash, especially in a downturn, founders can pay key employees 10-30% below market rate in salary. The key is to compensate for this deficit by offering double or triple the industry standard in equity. This strategy attracts top talent aligned with long-term success while keeping the company's cash burn rate low.

When COVID-19 invalidated its revenue plan, Nextdoor's GM used a pre-existing worst-case scenario to pivot the product strategy. The focus shifted from subscriptions to features that provided immediate cash flow to local businesses (e.g., gift cards), enabling a quick, board-aligned response to the crisis.

Bolt's philosophy of hiring entrepreneurial 'smart generalists' was key to its resilience and ability to pivot. When the company needed to shift focus from ride-hailing to food delivery overnight during COVID, its adaptable talent pool was a critical asset. An organization of specialists would have been unable to make such a drastic change so quickly.