Mike Olson

Cofounder, Cloudera

Search every verified Mike Olson interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Mike Olson, co-founder and former CEO of Cloudera, has been speaking publicly about the role and responsibilities of corporate boards of directors, drawing on his experience as a founder and investor. In a December 2023 talk at Monktoberfest, Olson described a board of directors as an "adjunct leadership team" whose primary responsibilities are strategic, while management handles tactics. He advised that founders should seek board members they like and trust, noting that a good board can be a major asset and a bad board a major drag. Olson also emphasized the importance of directors and officers insurance and recommended quarterly meetings as often enough, with the ability to convene the board as needed. In earlier appearances, Olson discussed the evolution of big data, cloud computing, and data privacy. He described Cloudera as the first company focused on big data for the enterprise, adapting technologies from consumer internet companies for use by banks, hospitals, and insurance companies. Olson has argued that the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Europe will be followed by similar privacy legislation in the United States, and that organizations should secure their data, set policies, and monitor compliance regardless of where data is stored. He has also expressed concern about large companies losing sight of their consumers, stating that businesses should aim for mutually beneficial, long-term relationships rather than simply extracting value.