Meg Whitman may be the most powerful woman in corporate America, leading big companies like eBay and HP, serving on numerous boards, including Procter & Gamble and Dropbox, and making a splash in politics by running for governor of California in 2010. Her next chapter is equally exciting: as CEO of Quibi, a new mobile short-form video streaming service that launched on April 6 (opens in new tab), Whitman continues to redefine the nature of business innovation. Here, she discusses her career transition, what she has learned from past jobs, and what it means to launch her latest venture in the midst of a global pandemic.

Marie Claire: You are the former CEO of HP and eBay; what lessons did you learn from those experiences to launch Quibi?

Meg Whitman: The biggest lesson I've learned from my career, and it's carried over to Quibi, is getting the right people in the right jobs at the right time with the right attitude. As a leader, that is paramount and essential for startups. Shaping a company's culture early on is critical.

Culture is the second thing: when I joined HP, I thought culture was important; by the time I left HP, I had come to believe that culture might be the only thing that actually matters in the long run. We articulated our mission and values early on and have tried to live them. We are not perfect; we are not perfect.

The third is having the right strategy and the right business plan. We must identify the needs of our customers and create what we believe will satisfy those needs. It may be a need that the customer is unaware of.

MC: Quibi is a short video with high production value. How did you come up with the idea?

MW: My partner is Jeffrey Katzenberg. He and I have been friends for 30 years. We used to work together and we call that time the Jurassic period. He had this idea for years and he called me when I retired from HP. This was really Jeffrey's idea and we built on it. We wrote the business plan, developed the content strategy, the technology strategy, the marketing strategy, the advertising strategy. We are truly partners.

MC: Was there a moment when you and Jeffrey thought about pivoting the direction of the company?

MW: We knew we had to raise a significant amount of capital. It really costs a lot of money to produce premium quality content. Initially, we wanted to roll it out on a variety of screens, not just phones, but Roku TV, Apple TV, Xbox, PlayStation, etc. We thought that from 7:00 in the morning to 7:00 at night, consumers' needs were really not being met and that on-the-go viewing would be super important. If so, cell phones were the device we wanted to focus on and the differentiator for us. It was an important decision

Interestingly, we are entering a very different environment. But what I see is that people still have in-between moments in their day, like 10 minutes before the next Zoom call. If you are at home with your kids, homeschooling them, working at home, cooking dinner, cleaning the house, etc., you don't have time to be here for an hour-long show. I love Quibi, it's a great show and I'm sure you'll enjoy it as much as I did. (Open in new tab)

MC: Was there ever a moment when you questioned that business plan or were you unwavering in your mission?

MW: We are both firm believers in our own way. Both Jeffrey and I have done things in our careers that many people have said were impossible or unwise. When Jeffrey started DreamWorks, people said, 'There's no way you can start another Hollywood studio. When I went to eBay, no one had ever heard of e-commerce. Whenever we do something new, there are always many doubters. We learn from our doubters. We were convinced from the beginning that this was a big idea and that it would fill a need that consumers did not necessarily recognize. So we are not afraid. We are focused and we want this to be great, but we are not turning a blind eye to the feedback we have received. Once we launch, we will have a lot of data on what people are watching, how long they are watching, how many Quibis they are watching per day. We find that out and adjust accordingly.

MC: How does the startup culture compare to your other career?

MW: Startups vary and are not for everyone. What I look for in someone who wants to come to a startup is flexibility, tolerance for ambiguity, and adaptability, which is probably why I was able to adapt so quickly to telecommuting (thanks to COVID-19). You also need people who can envision what the final game will look like; in August 2018, Jeffery and I just looked at each other. There was not a single concept or commissioned content. There was not a single line of code written. We needed people who weren't afraid to build from nothing. We had to build from scratch.

MC: What was the significance of Quibi launching at an unprecedented time, a coronavirus pandemic?

MW: We thought about whether it was the right thing to launch now, but in the end we decided it was. Our thinking is this: we are not doctors, we are not people trying to solve problems in the government, we are not mask or test manufacturers. We are entertainers, and maybe, just maybe, we can bring a little joy, a little cheer, a little smile to people who are going through a remarkably difficult time. We originally planned to offer a 14-day free trial, but have decided to start a 90-day free trial.

MC: Has the pandemic affected your content development?

MW: The good news is that we have completed many shows and post-production can be done at home. We have enough content to get through the fall. We're in good shape. The challenges are the day-to-day necessities, such as new shows like NBC Sports by ESPN; working closely with NBC, ESPN, polygon, TMZ, E., and Telemundo. Some from the studio, some from home. We are quite confident. I must say that the entrepreneurial spirit and adaptability of our partners to such a topical commodity is amazing.

MC: I can't wait to see Survive. (Opens in a new tab) What shows did you miss on Quibi?

MW: I love Survive. I think it's one of our best. Most Dangerous Game with Liam Hemsworth and Christoph Waltz is also great. I also love "I Promise," a documentary about LeBron James' school in Akron, Ohio. It's a wonderful, very realistic and heartwarming piece about the difficulties children face. For everyday essentials, I love Rachel Hollis; I also love When The Street Lights Go On.

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