Netflix: Wicked Hard Decisions with Gibson Biddle, former VP of Product at Netflix

Wed, Oct 28 · 5:30–8:00 PM · Embark Coworking, Bend
$20 first 25 tickets · $25 early bird through Oct 25 · $35 after · food, drinks and three curated introductions included

Every company has a few decisions that could have sunk it. Netflix had more than most, and it made some of them badly. In the AI era, good judgment matters even more when making tough decisions about people, product, and the business.

Gibson Biddle joined Netflix in 2005 as VP of Product, during the years the company moved from DVDs by mail to streaming. On October 28, he's walking the Bend community through five of the hardest calls in Netflix's 30-year history and asking the room one question each time: what would you do?

This is inside baseball. You'll see how Netflix actually weighed strategy, data, intuition and culture when the answer wasn't obvious, and how much it learned from the calls it got wrong on the way to becoming the streaming giant it is today. In the AI era, when anyone can generate a plan, judgment is what's scarce. This is a night about judgment.

Gib has spoken at What the Tech, Bend? twice before, to about 60 people each time. This time we have room for 100.

What to Expect

Five "what would you do?" case studies: real decisions about people, product and the business, with the context Netflix had at the time.

You vote, live: Gib runs the talk on Slido. Answer from your phone and watch the room's answers land on his slides in real time. Bring a charged phone.

Curated introductions before and after the talk: the day of the event, we email you three people to meet and why, so you walk in knowing who to find during drinks and who to keep talking to afterward.

Food and drinks from the moment doors open.

Run of Show

5:30 PM Doors open. Food, drinks and your first curated introductions
6:00 PM "Netflix: Wicked Hard Decisions" with Gibson Biddle
7:00 PM Q&A with Gib
7:10 PM Round two of curated introductions, plus more food, drinks and conversation
8:00 PM Doors close

The Curation is the Differentiator

We use a matching algorithm that reads what each attendee puts on the attendee list (who you are, what you're offering, what you're seeking) to surface the three most valuable connections for each person in the room. No awkward cold networking. Just better conversations with the right people.

What past attendees said about it:

• "I really liked the advance notice of who I should seek out, and why. It gave rise to a very focused conversation…"
• "My really great outcomes came from reconnecting with two folks… I have meetings set with them now."

After you buy, add yourself to the attendee list, with your name linked to your LinkedIn profile. The link is in your confirmation email. Your three introductions land in your inbox the day of the event, and the more specific you are about what you're offering and seeking, the better they get.

Why Attend

• See how one of the most successful companies of the last 30 years made its hardest calls, and how it recovered from the wrong ones
• Test your own judgment against the room, live, on five real decisions
• A decision-making lens you can use on your own people, product and business decisions the next morning
• Walk away with three targeted introductions to the people most relevant to what you're working on
• Ask your questions directly to a former Netflix VP of Product who's taught at Stanford and INSEAD

Who Should Attend

Founders, CEOs, product and engineering leaders, operators, marketers, investors, advisors and anyone who makes decisions where the answer isn't obvious. You don't need to work in tech or media. If you've ever had to choose between two good options, or two bad ones, this is your room.

About Gibson Biddle

Gib joined Netflix in 2005 as VP of Product. In 2010, he joined Chegg, the textbook rental and homework help company that went public in 2014. Since semi-retiring a dozen years ago, Gib has:

• Taught entrepreneurship at both Stanford and INSEAD
• Hosted 50 talks, workshops, and executive events annually
• Helped Life360, NerdWallet, and Metromile go public as both an "Executive in Residence" and board member

Today, Gib lives in Bend and skis his age in days each winter. In the last ten years, he has also thru-hiked six thousand miles with his wife, Kristen Hege.

Tickets

$20 first 25 tickets
$25 early bird through Sunday, October 25
$35 regular from October 25

Bring someone new. Buy a "You + a first-timer" pair for $40 during early bird or $55 after, and bring someone who hasn't been to a WTT event yet. They get their own three curated introductions. Limited to 20 pairs.

Includes food and drinks. 100 seats. All sales are final, but tickets are transferable anytime. If you can't make it, send your ticket to a friend or colleague. If we sell out, join the waitlist on Ticket Tailor and we'll email you if a seat opens.

Got a question for Gib? A week before the talk, we'll email everyone with a ticket. Reply with the hard decision you'd most like him to weigh in on, and we'll pass the best ones to him before he takes the stage.

Need a break on ticket price?

Whether you're between jobs, a student or have your own good reason, we've got you covered. Contact John McMahon at jpmcmahon@gmail.com to learn about our flex ticket program.

Venue

Embark Coworking, 2843 NW Lolo Dr, Bend, OR 97703, in NorthWest Crossing. Thanks to Embark, our venue partner, for opening its doors to the Bend tech community.

Know Before You Go

Parking: in the lot on the north side of the building, with street parking nearby if the lot fills
Entrance: on the north side of the building
Arrive early: the first round of introductions happens before the talk, so aim to be there by 5:45.
Bring: a charged phone for live voting.

Want to Support the Room?

Presented by… your company?

Sponsoring this event puts your company in the room with senior operators, founders, investors and fractional leaders actively shaping Central Oregon’s tech future.

Our sponsors don't buy ads. They become part of the community.

That means recognition at the event and across WTT communications, tickets for your team, and curated introductions to the people in the room most relevant to you—not a logo nobody remembers.

Want in? Let's talk: jpmcmahon@gmail.com

About What the Tech, Bend?

What the Tech, Bend? is Central Oregon's premier tech community — 1,000 members strong, with an average of 15+ years of professional experience. We host curated events that bring together the region's most experienced builders, operators, and advisors. Bend is the mountain town where serious work happens in an unserious setting.

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Five wicked hard decisions, one former Netflix VP of Product, and 100 people in Bend deciding what they would have done.