Carvana's Rollercoaster: Lessons from a 100x Journey

Product is really about having a system\'s mindset where you have to understand all of the inputs and all of the outputs and where the leverage is.

• Understand how all parts of the product interact.
• Identify leverage points for maximum impact.
• Use systems thinking in product decisions.

What you say to your team is, here\'s what the rest of the world misunderstands...And then we\'re going to check back in in 30 days and we\'re going to tell you which one is more true.

• Communicate openly with your team about challenges.
• Share your perspective and provide regular updates.
• Build trust through transparency and follow-through.

How can I trust someone\'s judgment without asking them to first put their thoughts in writing and break down a problem?

• Use assignments to assess problem-solving and communication skills.
• Evaluate candidates\' ability to structure thoughts and solutions.
• Request work samples, even from senior candidates.

We are not engineering led. We are customer led...we\'re trying to unlock more and more value for customers.

• Prioritize customer needs over engineering preferences.
• Focus on delivering value and solving customer problems.
• Align engineering with customer-driven goals.

You have to be unapologetic about the fact that you\'re building a business...It is everyone\'s responsibility to care about that.

• Team members should take personal responsibility for outcomes.
• Foster a culture of investment in the company\'s success.
• Hire people who take pride and go the extra mile.

We lean very hard into AI because we think we\'re structurally advantaged...we can have an LLM tell you...that information is knowable in our world.

• Use AI to automate and personalize customer interactions.
• Leverage proprietary data to gain AI advantages.
• Implement AI to reduce friction and improve UX.

We do not win by shipping features, we win by moving metrics...if it doesn\'t drop to the bottom line, you have not contributed anything.

• Prioritize initiatives that impact key business metrics.
• Measure success by business outcomes, not features shipped.
• Align product efforts with overall business goals.

We wanted every car to be free for every customer...But the costs are very high...By taking away free shipping, we actually sold more inventory.

• Free features can harm profitability if costs are high.
• Adding fees can reduce operational strain and boost sales.
• Evaluate feature costs on unit economics before launching.

We went from 90 back to 8, and we forced so much more cross-functional prioritization...this ended up being so huge and putting more effort and speed behind the most important priorities.

• Avoid too many small teams; they dilute focus.
• Consolidate teams for better prioritization.
• Focus resources on top business priorities.

The two I look for are horsepower and give a shit. That's what we look for in the hiring process.

• Prioritize candidates with intrinsic motivation and strong work ethic.
• Assess \"horsepower\" through problem-solving skills and understanding.
• Gauge passion by exploring times they\'ve shown commitment.