為什麼這麼多執行長(CEO)都是工程師：英語精讀講義

There's one similarity between

有一個共同點，存在於

Amazon and Blue Origin CEO Jeff Bezos,

亞馬遜和藍色起源的CEO傑夫·貝佐斯、

Apple's Tim Cook,

蘋果的提姆·庫克、

Alphabet's Sundar Pichai,

Alphabet的桑德爾·皮查伊、

AMD's Lisa Su,

AMD的蘇姿丰、

General Motors' Mary Barra,

通用汽車的瑪麗·芭拉、

and Nvidia's Jensen Huang.

和輝達的黃仁勳之間。

These days, the heads of some of the most successful companies in the world have one thing in common. 片語搭配

如今，一些世界上最成功公司的掌舵人都有一個共同點。

They're engineers.

他們都是工程師。

For those who aspire to be CEO of a company one day,

對於那些渴望有朝一日成為公司CEO的人來說，

getting an MBA,

獲得一個MBA，

a master of business administration degree,

即企業管理碩士學位，

used to be the way to go. 講解

曾經是一條必經之路。

But that's not so true anymore.

但現在情況不完全如此了。

Harvard Business Review used to publish

《哈佛商業評論》過去常會發布

an annual list of the top 100 best-performing CEOs.

一份年度表現最佳的100位CEO榜單。

In 2018,

在2018年，

they found that for a second year in a row, 片語搭配

他們發現連續第二年，

there were more CEOs with an engineering degree than an MBA,

擁有工程學位的CEO數量超過了擁有MBA學位的，

34 compared to 32.

為34人對32人。

Some had both.

有些人兩者兼具。

Getting an MBA can come with a hefty price tag. 片語搭配

攻讀MBA可能需要付出高昂的代價。

Top graduate schools such as the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton

頂尖的研究所，如賓州大學華頓商學院

or Harvard Business School will set you back over $200,000. 片語動詞

或哈佛商學院，會讓你花費超過20萬美元。

Now, some CEOs are telling you to save your money.

現在，一些CEO告訴你省下這筆錢。

Elon Musk went so far as to say, 片語搭配

伊隆·馬斯克甚至曾表示，

"I think there might be too many MBAs running companies,"

「我認為可能有太多MBA在管理公司了，」

in an interview with the Wall Street Journal.

這是他在接受《華爾街日報》採訪時說的。

He thinks those with business degrees spend too much time in board

他認為那些擁有商科學位的人在董事會上花太多時間

meetings pouring over PowerPoints and finances

開會、鑽研PPT和財務報表，

when their focus should be on the product.

而他們的注意力本該放在產品上。

The thinking being that if the product is good, 表達脈絡

他的想法是，只要產品足夠好，

the profits will follow.

利潤自然會滾滾而來。

In the case of Musk,

以馬斯克為例，

that means building great electric cars at Tesla

那意味著在特斯拉製造優秀的電動車，

or great reusable rockets at SpaceX.

或在SpaceX製造優秀的可回收火箭。

That's where being an engineer is helpful.

這就是身為工程師的優勢所在。

Engineers can design, build, create, and improve their product

工程師可以設計、構建、創造並改進他們的產品，

because of their background in math, science, and technology.

因為他們具備數學、科學和技術的背景。

And they can help solve challenging technical problems

他們可以幫助解決極具挑戰性的技術問題，

that might otherwise scuttle their dreams. 慣用語

這些問題否則可能會毀掉他們的夢想。

Technically,

嚴格來說，

Musk has a degree in physics and economics,

馬斯克擁有物理學和經濟學學位，

not engineering.

而不是工程學。

He's a self-taught engineer who read books

他是一位靠讀書自學的工程師，

to learn about rocket science.

從而學到了火箭科學知識。

When engineering consultant Sandy Munro interviewed him

當工程顧問桑迪·門羅採訪他

for his YouTube channel Munro Live,

為其YouTube頻道「Munro Live」製作節目時，

he said it's Musk's knowledge that stands out. 片語動詞

他說馬斯克的脫穎而出在於他的知識儲備。

I was blown away. 慣用語

「我簡直驚呆了。

I've seen dozens of CEOs.

我見過幾十位CEO。

I've never seen a CEO ever

我從未見過任何一位CEO

or a president that knew more about the product.

或者總裁，比他更了解產品。」

That technical know-how that comes with an engineering background 用詞

這種工程背景帶來的技術儲備

goes a long way toward building better products. 片語搭配

在打造更卓越產品的過程中大有裨益。

Just ask Satya Nadella,

問問薩蒂亞·納德拉就知道了，

the engineer at Microsoft who rose to become CEO.

這位微軟的工程師一路晉升成了CEO。

When he took over the top job in 2014, 片語動詞

2014年他接任掌舵人時，

he had to figure out a way to make Microsoft relevant 片語搭配

他必須想辦法讓微軟保持競爭力，

as it faced an onslaught from Apple. 慣用語

因為當時公司正面臨蘋果的猛烈衝擊。

We now need to make Microsoft thrive.

「我們現在需要讓微軟重新繁榮。」

The software company struggled to thrive under the leadership of his predecessor,

在其前任領導下，這家軟體公司曾難以實現繁榮，

Steve Ballmer.

即史蒂夫·鮑爾默。

Its products were far from revolutionary. 片語搭配

其產品遠談不上革命性。

The Surface was a response to the iPad,

Surface是對iPad的回應，

the Windows Phone an answer to the iPhone.

Windows Phone是對iPhone的應對。

Ballmer has a degree in mathematics and economics

鮑爾默擁有數學和經濟學學位，

from Harvard, which helped balance the books, 慣用語

畢業於哈佛，這幫他平衡了公司的財務，

but didn't do much when it comes to innovation. 片語搭配

但在創新方面卻建樹不多。

When Nadella took over,

當納德拉接手後，

he transformed Microsoft,

他對微軟進行了轉型，

moving its software to non-Windows devices,

將其軟體推向非Windows設備，

for example,

例如，

bringing Microsoft Word to the iPad and the iPhone.

將Microsoft Word引入iPad和iPhone。

He also expanded its cloud business,

他還擴大了其雲端業務，

Azure, which has become the biggest rival to Amazon's AWS.

即Azure，它已成為亞馬遜AWS的最大競爭對手。

In his first email to employees as CEO,

在作為CEO發給員工的第一封郵件中，

Nadella wrote, "Our industry does not respect tradition. 表達脈絡

納德拉寫道：「我們的行業不尊重傳統。

It only respects innovation."

它只尊重創新。」

That innovative spirit of engineering saved Microsoft.

工程師的創新精神拯救了微軟。

But it's not easy.

但這並不容易。

It requires risky moves and not accepting failure.

它需要冒險舉動，並且不接受失敗。

As American inventor Thomas Edison famously said,

正如美國發明家湯瑪斯·愛迪生的名言：

"I have not failed. 表達脈絡

「我沒有失敗。

I've only found 10,000 ways that won't work."

我只是找到了一萬種行不通的方法。」

James Dyson, the British engineer,

英國工程師詹姆斯·戴森，

knows a thing or two about not giving up. 講解

對永不言棄有著深刻的體會。

He became frustrated when a vacuum he had at home kept losing suction.

當他家裡的一台吸塵器總是失去吸力時，他感到很沮喪。

So he decided to build a better vacuum himself.

所以他決定自己造一台更好的吸塵器。

He spent 15 years tinkering with over 5,000 different prototypes

他花了15年時間，搗鼓了5000多個不同的原型機，

to come up with the perfect bagless design. 片語動詞

才想出了完美的無集塵袋設計。

I'd like to give you a little demonstration.

「我想給你們做個小示範。」

The payoff for his perseverance

他這份堅持的回報，

was a multi-billion-dollar company that bears his name. 片語搭配

是一家以他名字命名的價值數十億美元的公司。

In order to be successful,

為了取得成功，

Dyson was invested in the fine details of his company.

戴森全心投入到公司的細枝末節中。

Engineers aren't afraid to get involved in the day-to-day business, 片語動詞

工程師不怕參與日常的業務營運，

especially when it comes to hiring.

尤其是在招募方面。

Amazon is notorious for tough interviews.

亞馬遜以苛刻的面試而聞名。

Bezos, who has a degree in electrical engineering and computer science,

擁有電機工程和計算機科學學位的貝佐斯，

used to meet every candidate himself during Amazon's early days.

在亞馬遜早期階段，總是親自面試每一位求職者。

He would ask quirky questions like, 文法

他會問一些古怪的問題，比如：

"How many gas stations are there in America?"

「美國有多少個加油站？」

He wasn't after the right answer, 片語動詞

他要的並不是正確答案，

but wanted to see whether the candidate had an analytical approach

而是想看看候選人是否具備分析思維，

in order to come up with an informed response.

從而給出合理的回答。

Bezos once said,

貝佐斯曾說，

"Setting the bar high for hiring was the most important factor 慣用語

「制定高標準的招募門檻，是最重要的因素

for the online retailer's success."

對於這家線上零售商的成功而言。」

It's no surprise that engineers make it to the top of the tech industry, 慣用語

工程師能登頂科技行業也就不足為奇了，

which has seen explosive growth over the years.

畢竟該行業近年來呈現爆炸式增長。

But they're also doing well at non-tech companies.

但他們在非科技公司同樣表現出色。

Like Jeffrey Sprecher,

比如傑弗瑞·斯普雷徹，

the CEO of the holding company that owns the New York Stock Exchange.

擁有紐約證券交易所的控股公司CEO。

He has a degree in chemical engineering.

他擁有化學工程學位。

I've never had a job that had anything to do with chemistry, 片語搭配

「我從未做過任何與化學相關的工作，

but the discipline that I went through there

但我在那裡經歷的學術訓練

taught me about problem-solving

教會了我如何解決問題，

and business is really just that.

而商業說到底也就是解決問題。」

Engineers are very good at solving problems,

工程師非常擅長解決問題，

and that's the key to doing everything from building a bridge across a river 文法

這是做好任何事情的關鍵，無論是建一座跨河大橋，

to designing a rocket to get to Mars.

還是設計一枚飛往火星的火箭。

If you've been inspired to become an engineer

如果你受到了啟發想成為一名工程師，

or simply want to learn more about the world,

或者只是想了解更多關於這個世界的知識，

a good foundation in math and computer science is crucial.

紮實的數學和計算機科學基礎是至關重要的。

A problem-solving website called Brilliant can help put you on the path to success,

一個名為Brilliant的解決問題網站可以幫你走上成功之路，

and it's free to sign up.

並且免費註冊。

Whether you want to practice programming, 文法

無論你是想練習程式設計，

you're struggling with calculus,

還是正為微積分苦惱，

or you're hoping to brush up on your algorithms, 片語動詞

或者是希望能複習一下演算法，

my sponsor Brilliant offers over 60 interactive courses in math,

我的贊助商Brilliant提供了超過60門關於數學、

science, and computer science.

科學和計算機科學的互動課程。

You can learn at your own pace. 片語搭配

你可以按自己的節奏學習。

There are no exams.

這裡沒有考試。

If you make mistakes while practicing,

如果你在練習時犯了錯，

Brilliant explains exactly where you went wrong. 片語動詞

Brilliant會準確地解釋你錯在哪裡。

You can sign up with the link in my description,

你可以透過我影片簡介裡的連結註冊，

and the first 200 people to use my link

前200名使用我連結的人，

will get 20% off the premium subscription,

購買高級會員可享八折優惠，

which gives you unlimited access to all the courses.

讓你能無限制地訪問所有課程。

Thanks for watching Newsthink.

感謝收看Newsthink。

I'm Cindy Pom.

我是Cindy Pom。