More than 50 Direct Reports: Why tech billionaires rely on radically flat structures

The most successful tech entrepreneurs share one principle: radical direct leadership. 40 to 100 direct reports. Investor and guest author Levin Bunz finds this impressive, but also warns: Not every CEO can do this.

Levin Bunz is an investor in successful technology companies such as Canva and Finn. He supports founders in building high-performing teams and scalable organizations. Bunz has previously worked closely with Oliver Samwer at Global Founders Capital and Rocket Internet and has experienced firsthand how radical direct leadership and extremely flat structures can unleash speed and leverage in organizations.

Here, he describes how three of the most successful tech founders work with an extremely high number of direct reports. And none of them fail as micromanagers ? No. But not everyone has the ability to work like that.

Jensen Huang, Oliver Samwer, and Nik Storonsky. Three founders who could hardly be more different. Yet they share one principle: radical direct leadership. Each of them built their own company on extremely broad leadership structures with between 40 and over 100 direct reports.

All three have built billion-dollar companies by creating organizations where information flows with virtually no friction – thanks to extremely flat hierarchies. This gives them maximum control and allows them to act extremely quickly. Speed ​​beats convenience. Execution beats structure. Nvidia, Revolut , and Rocket Internet are prototypes of companies that are precisely tailored to their founders.

Oliver Samwer lives a high-speed life. Dozens of decisions every day. Over 100 direct reports across Rocket, GFC, and affiliated companies. No scheduled meetings, no ritualized coordination. Instead: a quick call or email, anytime. From my time as one of the 100, I can say: His corporate culture was demanding, often uncomfortable, but ultimately extremely successful.

Jensen Huang leads Nvidia with around 55 direct reports. He relies on large, open forums to strategically align executives. He cut management levels, thereby accelerating implementation. The result: arguably the flattest organizational chart ever seen at a four-trillion-dollar company.

Nik Storonsky manages Revolut with approximately 40 direct reports. His company is organized like a private equity portfolio. Each product line has its own General Manager, a de facto mini-CEO. Storonsky closely monitors their development and impact – through personal meetings and the internal Revolut People tool.

Should all founders copy this model? In fact, it's not a question of desire, but of ability. Radical direct leadership is feasible only for a few. It requires sustained attention, total availability, and an extraordinary level of mental capacity. The sheer volume of information and decisions would force most founders to burnout.

Levin Bunz

Other of the most successful founder-CEOs of our time pursue a similar approach of direct access to their company, but have found different ways to structure information flows and strategic control.

Mark Zuckerberg leads Meta through a "core army" of 25-30 people who are more closely integrated, while the number of direct reports remains smaller. The common pattern: the company is managed through a rather compact C-level, while the direct line to the VP level remains deliberately open and intensive. Steve Jobs worked this way, as did Walt Disney, and Elon Musk continues to do so today. Brian Chesky of Airbnb, who is considered the inspiration for the term "founder mode," also practices this model.

So the lesson for founders is not: “Do it exactly like Huang, Samwer, or Storonsky.” The lesson is: Design your organization to fit your work style.

Those who quickly consolidate and distribute information can react more quickly and implement decisions with maximum impact. The extent and form of this effective approach depends on the founder-CEO. Personalized organizational design is the recipe for success.