Varadh

Blog

  • Transparency at Startups: My Experience at Opendoor

    When on vacation a few weeks ago I was reflecting on what are some things I love about Opendoor and Transparency as a value rose to the top. Transparency has always seemed like one of those things that’s a no-brainer to follow and I’m grateful to see the steps we’ve taken at Opendoor to put… Read more

  • BCC Protection

      At Opendoor, there’s a healthy default towards transparency. While we are a Slack-heavy company, we still use email a good amount–especially for communicating with external parties. However, email and transparency aren’t something that goes hand-in-hand, unless you’re Stripe I II. Luckily, BCC can be used to build openness and keeping relevant internal parties in the… Read more

  • DBX’s S-1: Bottom’s Up SaaS

    DBX’s S-1: Bottom’s Up SaaS

    The first companies that come to mind as one thinks about users as the gateway into an organization are Dropbox and Slack. While their individual mechanics are different, they’re very good at getting users to join orgs that then pay. In addition to building a 10x better product, they have the strong brand & community… Read more

  • Keyboard Shortcuts: The Blue Bubbles of Apps & Websites

      iMessage is a default messaging service on top of SMS on the iPhone where your messages to a sender appear in blue bubbles as long as the other person has an iPhone (yes, even if you don’t sign into your iCloud). If you message a sender who doesn’t have one, DISASTER occurs–your messages are now… Read more

  • Catching Up Doesn’t Have To Suck

    ​One of the hardest things for me to do is playing catch up.   This doesn’t refer to something new that I am curious about or want to become good at–it’s about catching up on things that I used to be good at or something I have lost momentum on. I have always felt a… Read more

  • Product of the Week: Wells Fargo Card-Free ATM

    A few weeks ago, I saw an interesting billboard by Wells Fargo near one of the first few exit ramps of the freeway after crossing into San Francisco via the Bay Bridge. The billboard illustrated  Wells Fargo’s latest consumer experience/offering – Card Free ATM Access. I was excited because this was one of those product ideas… Read more