Project and content management for Contemporary Authors volumes
WORK TITLE: The Right–and Wrong–Stuff
WORK NOTES:
P
SEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE: 1963?
WEBSITE: http://cartercast.com/
CITY:
STATE: IL
COUNTRY: United States
NATIONALITY:
http://www.kellogg.northwestern.edu/faculty/directory/cast_carter.aspx; PHONE: 847-467-0832
RESEARCHER NOTES:
LC control no.: n 2017060170
LCCN Permalink: https://lccn.loc.gov/n2017060170
HEADING: Cast, Carter
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100 1_ |a Cast, Carter
670 __ |a The right–and wrong–stuff, 2017: |b ECIP t.p. (Carter Cast) data view screen (professor at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management; Cast was the chief executive officer at Walmart.com.; former director of marketing in the Frito-Lay division)
PERSONAL
Born c. 1963; children.
EDUCATION:Stanford University, B.A., 1985; Northwestern University, Kellogg School of Management, M.B.A., 1992.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer, educator, marketing specialist, and venture capitalist. PepsiCo, international food service division, 1986-90, Frito-Lay division, director of marketing, 1992-97; Electronic Arts, Inc., Redwood City, CA, vice president of product marketing and marketing communications; Blue Nile, Seattle, WA, founding chief marketing officer; Walmart, vice president of marketing, 2000-02, senior vice president of marketing, merchandising, creative, and site, 2002-05, president of Walmart.com, 2005, CEO of Walmart.com, 2006-09; Netshops.com, president and CEO, 2009-ca. 2011; Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, clinical professor in the Kellogg School of Management, 2011–; Pritzker Group Venture Capital, Chicago, IL, venture partner, 2012–.
Work-related activities include serving on the boards of Kellogg Company, SMS Assist, and the Family Action Network.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
A marketing and management specialist and educator, Carter Cast worked for several large corporations before entering academia and the field of venture capitalism. He has a special interest in technology and, among his many accomplishments, has served as the founding chief marketing officer of Blue Nile, which would become the leading seller of diamonds and fine jewelry on the Internet. Cast is the author of The Right—and Wrong—Stuff: How Brilliant Careers Are Made and Unmade, which teaches people how to keep on track in their careers and avoid sabotaging themselves. In the process, Cast points out how people often fail because they really do not understand or manage their own weaknesses and vulnerabilities.
“The fact is that one-half to two-thirds of of managers and leaders will experience career derailment,” Cast writes in the introduction to The Right—and Wrong—Stuff. He goes on to point out that more than half of managers and leaders end up getting demoted or fired at some point in their careers, preventing them from reaching their true potentials. Cast identifies five common reasons why these managers and leaders are either fired or demoted. He goes on to describe these reasons via archetypes.
The first of these archetypes he denotes as the “Captain Fantastic.” These are people who are marked by large egos and sharp and less than cordial interactions with coworkers. The “Solo Flyer” does well until promoted to a managerial position, at which time the person finds it hard to build effective teams. “Version 1.0” is an archetype that likes routine but is resistant to change. Another archetype, which Cast calls the “One-Trick Pony,” is very good at one aspect of the career but fails to develop other qualities that could further a career. The final archetype, “The Whirling Dervish,” is creative and has numerous ideas but typically lacks planning and organizational skills.
The first part of the book delves into these five archetypes in detail. Cast then goes on in the second part to elucidate how to accelerate a career. Cast ends The Right—and Wrong—Stuff with tips on how to conduct a serious self-evaluation to avoid the pitfalls associated with the five archetypes. He also discusses motivation, noting that, contrary to popular opinion, money is less of a motivation to succeed than finding meaning and real value in the workplace. “This relatable career manual should inspire plenty of whitecollar professionals to work on serious self-accounting,” wrote a reviewer for Publishers Weekly. A Kirkus Reviews contributor called The Right—and Wrong—Stuff “solid, positively delivered advice for job seekers and job holders everywhere.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Kirkus Reviews, September 15, 2017, review of The Right—and Wrong—Stuff: How Brilliant Careers Are Made and Unmade.
Publishers Weekly, July 31, 2017, review of The Right—and Wrong—Stuff, p. 71.
ONLINE
Carter Cast Website, http://cartercast.com (May 5, 2018).
Kellogg Company Website, http://investor.kelloggs.com/ (May 6, 2018), brief author profile.
Kellogg School of Management Website, http://www.kellogg.northwestern.edu/ (May 5, 2018), author faculty profile.
Pritzker Group Website, https://www.pritzkergroup.com/ (May 5, 2018), brief author profile and interview.
Techstars Website, https://www.techstars.com/ (May 5, 2018), author profile.
Carter Cast, a clinical professor at the Kellogg School of Management and also a venture partner at Pritzker Group Venture Capital, has played a pivotal role in building multiple iconic consumer brands. Carter started as a marketing manager at PepsiCo, working for the company's international food service division. He moved to the Frito-Lay division, where he led the development of Tostitos Scoops! Tortilla Chips as well as the development and launch of Tostitos salsas and dips. Upon leaving PepsiCo, Carter joined Electronic Arts, where he served as vice president of product marketing and marketing communications, launching products like The Sims. He left Electronic Arts to become the founding chief marketing officer of Blue Nile, which became the leading seller of diamonds and fine jewelry on the internet. Carter later went to Walmart, where he became the CEO of Walmart.com, leading the division to become the third-highest volume retailer behind Amazon and eBay.
In 2011, Carter joined the faculty of Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, where he teaches entrepreneurship, leadership and marketing and works on Kellogg's leadership initiative. Carter has received the Impact Award from his students each year from 2012-2017. He has presented the end-of-year Nota Bene address to graduating students, and was one of five professors nominated for Professor of the Year in 2015.
In addition to teaching at Kellogg, Carter is a venture partner for Pritzker Group Venture Capital, where he assesses potential investments and advises portfolio companies. Carter sits on the boards of Kellogg Company, SMS Assist and the Family Action Network. Carter is also the author of an award-winning book, The Right (and Wrong) Stuff: How Brilliant Careers are Made - and Unmade, which was released by PublicAffairs, a division of Hachette Book Group, in January, 2018. Business Insider called it "one of 17 must-read books for 2018."
Carter Cast
THE RIGHT (AND WRONG) STUFF
CARTER
RESOURCES
CONTACT
TAKE THE ASSESSMENT ORDER THE BOOK
Meet
Carter
WHAT CARTER BELIEVES
Carter
WHAT CARTER BELIEVES
“I believe that people are trying to do their best. I believe in the restorative power of hot showers. That ‘thank you’ is a perfect prayer, and that my fears are usually built on a house of cards. I believe that acting with authenticity allows me to connect with others, and I’m happiest when I don’t hold on so tight. I believe in the power of subtlety, even though I’m not very subtle. I believe it generally pays to be deliberate and that delivering more value than I’m paid for will never go out of style. I believe William James when he wrote, “My experience is what I agree to attend to.”
And I believe that the final recorded song by the Beatles has the perfect ending: “And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make.”
What People
Are Saying
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“ As a CEO, Cast was relentless in one of the most important aspects of his job -- developing talent. He has an innate skill to uncover those things that we all need to break through on. That skill is paired with an ability to lay out just the right "bread crumbs" to tackle the opportunity. Most remarkable to me -- for all the tough conversations, I had unwavering trust that he was one of my biggest fans, rooting me along at every step of the way.
”
ImageDebbie Kristofferson Former VP of DIgital Creative, Walmart Stores, Inc.
“ When Carter joined our VC operation as a Venture Partner, I was confident his vast operational and managerial experience would benefit our entrepreneurs. What I didn’t realize is the impact his leadership and counsel would have on our founders, our venture team, my partners and myself.”
Chris Girgenti Managing Partner, Pritzker Group Venture Capital
“ I have known Carter for twenty years and have worked alongside him. He has keen insights and the ability to capitalize on them by putting teams (not just himself) in motion. He creates tremendous organizational movement – all the while maintaining a great sense of humor and projecting an infectious joie de vivre. It’s an amazing and rare talent.
”
ImageJohn Pleasants Former CEO of Ticketmaster, Inc.
“ With a combination of incredible precision and empathy, Carter has an uncanny ability to pinpoint the weaknesses of a management team, or of an individual contributor, and provide a digestible roadmap for improvement. Given our business is all about helping entrepreneurs achieve greatness, Carter is the most valuable, and least replaceable person, on our team at Pritzker Group.
”
ImageAdam Koopersmith Partner, Pritzker Group Venture Capital
Carter’s Derailment Characteristics and how he overcame them.
CARTER’S DERAILMENT CHARACTERISTICS Mischievous
Let’s throw a grenade in the meeting and see what happens
Easily bored
Likely to make decisions without consulting the boss
Leisurely
Tends to question the competence of senior management
Can be stubborn and resistant with people he doesn’t respect
Puts off tasks he doesn’t want to do
CARTER LEARNED TO SELF MONITOR THESE TRAITS Mischievous
Learned to self-monitor and shut up, especially in charged situations.
Learned to resist the urge to automatically speak his mind. “If it doesn’t further the conversation, be quiet.”
Realized that a good part of his job was to help make his boss successful.
Leisurely
Learned to be less judgmental: Matthew 7:3 became one of his mantras: “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?”
Realized he had to be more flexible with his agenda and horse trade his priorities with others’ priorities
Prioritized his boss’s agenda above his own. Checked in more with his boss to make sure he was delivering on the boss’s priorities.
About Carter
Carter started as a marketing manager at PepsiCo, working for the company’s international food service division. Then he moved to the Frito Lay division, where he led the development of Tostitos Scoops as well as the development and launch of Tostitos salsas and dips. Upon leaving PepsiCo, Carter joined Electronic Arts, where he served as vice president of product marketing and marketing communications at Electronic Arts, launching products like The Sims. He left Electronic Arts to become the founding chief marketing officer of Blue Nile, which became the leading seller of diamonds and fine jewelry on the internet. Carter later went to Walmart, where he became the CEO of Walmart.com, leading the division to become the third highest volume retailer behind Amazon and eBay.
In 2011, Carter joined the faculty of Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, where he is a clinical professor, teaching entrepreneurship, leadership and marketing and working on Kellogg’s leadership initiative. He is an award-winning professor, having received the Impact Award by his students each year from 2012-2017. He has been asked to give the end-of-year Nota Bene address multiple times to graduating students and was one of five professors nominated for Professor of the Year in 2015. In addition to teaching at Kellogg, Carter is a venture partner for Pritzker Group Venture Capital, where he assesses potential investments and advises portfolio companies. Carter sits on the board of SMS Assist, the Family Action Network, Kellogg Company, and is also a member of the advisory board of Northwestern University’s Kellogg Innovation Network.
Carter is also the author of a book, The Right (and Wrong) Stuff: How Brilliant Careers are Made – and Unmade, which will be released by PublicAffairs, a division of Hachette Book Group, on January 9, 2018.
Book
Author
Resources
Contact
Sitemap
©2017 Carter Cast. All Rights Reserved. Built by Clique Studios. Headshots by Andrew Collings Photography.
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PREVIOUSNEXTVC TEAM
Linkedin Carter CastVenture PartnerStory Bio
What in the world of tech do you find to be the most interesting?
“The exhilaration and challenges of scaling–seeing startups go from “something with great potential” to realizing that potential.”
What is your motivation for helping entrepreneurs build companies?
“I was on the other side as an entrepreneur and so appreciated the people who supported our team (at Blue Nile, Walmart.com, etc.) and made a difference. I would be thrilled to be helpful like that.”
How did you get into tech?
“My big sister went to this crazy startup in the mid-90s and it sounded like a lot of fun, so I went into tech too…Her company sold books online. Can you imagine?”
How do you spend time away from work?
“Playing hide-and-seek, basement hockey, go fish, junior monopoly and changing more than the occasional diaper.”
What is one tactical piece of advice for entrepreneurs that is contrary to popular wisdom?
“Execute half the amount of stuff, but well. Focus.”
What is your favorite book? Why?
“I’ll offer three:
1) Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl for its incredible positive attitude and humanity;
2) The Tao te Ching by Lao Tzu for its timeless insight into how to live
3) Straight Man or Nobody’s Fool by Richard Russo for their idiosyncratic view into small town life”
What is your life philosophy?
“Sir Paul said it well: And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make. (We share the same birthday–so we’re like, you know, brothers.)”
© 2018 Pritzker Group. All rights reserved.
CARTER CAST
Carter Cast joined the Kellogg Company’s Board of Directors in June 2017. Mr. Cast will serve on the Audit Committee and the Social Responsibility and Public Policy Committee.
Mr. Cast is currently a venture partner at Pritzker Group Venture Capital and is on faculty at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, where he is a clinical professor teaching entrepreneurship, innovation and marketing.
Mr. Cast served as CEO of the online retail company, Hayneedle, Inc., from September 2007 until June 2011. Mr. Cast brings vast experience in the digital arena, previously helping to build and then lead Walmart.com, as its CEO. Prior to 2000, he led the launch of the Blue Nile brand, the leading online jewelry retailer and also served as the Chief Marketing Officer at eBay. He also has previously served as the Vice President of Product Marketing and Marketing Communications at Electronic Arts.
Mr. Cast has significant leadership experience as well at other Fortune 500 companies, including PepsiCo where he was a marketing executive, and Frito-Lay where he managed its $1.5 billion tortilla chip category.
Mr. Cast serves on the board of directors of the Family Action Network and SMS Assist, Inc.
Mr. Cast received a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from Stanford University and completed his Master’s in Business Administration from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management with a focus on Strategy and Marketing.
Carter Cast
Pritzker Group
Venture Partner, Pritzker Group Venture Capital
Carter received his early training in the restaurant division of PepsiCo, Inc. (Pizza Hut International and Taco Bell) from 1986-1990 and then at Frito-Lay from 1992-1997, where he became Director of Marketing, managing the $1.5 billion tortilla chip category and launching Tostitos salsas and dips. Carter then served as Vice President of Product Marketing and Marketing Communications at Electronic Arts, launching products like SimCity 3000 and The Sims. He left to become a member of the start-up team for Blue Nile, a Kleiner Perkins- and Trinity Ventures-backed company, which became the leading online retailer of diamonds and fine jewelry, selling in excess of $250 million after seven years in existence. Carter was Blue Nile’s Senior Vice President of Marketing, Merchandising and Site when the company was named one of the 40 best e-commerce sites by Forbes magazine. Carter developed the brand and site identity, as well as the marketing communication and product assortment strategy.
Carter left Blue Nile to be part of the launch team at Walmart.com, a division of Walmart Stores, Inc. He served as the Vice President of Marketing from 2000-2002 and the Senior Vice President of Marketing, Merchandising, Creative and Site from 2002-2005. In 2005 Carter was promoted to President of Walmart.com and to CEO in February of 2006. He led Walmart’s e-commerce division to profitability on its way to becoming the third highest volume e-tail site behind eBay and Amazon.com. Carter left Walmart to join Netshops.com, a privately-held ecommerce company funded by Sequoia Capital and Insight Venture Partners, as President and CEO. In 2009, Netshops rebranded and redesigned its site, becoming Hayneedle. Internet Retailer named it as one of America’s Hot 100 Retail sites in December of 2009.
In 2011, Carter joined the faculty of Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, where he is a clinical professor teaching entrepreneurship and marketing. In addition to teaching, Carter joined Pritzker Group Venture Capital in 2012, where he is a Venture Partner, advising Pritzker Group’s portfolio companies. Carter sits on the board of SMS Assist and is also a member of the advisory board of Northwestern University’s Kellogg Innovation Network. Carter graduated from Stanford University in 1985 and the Kellogg School of Management in 1992.
Print Marked Items
Cast , Carter: THE RIGHT--AND
WRONG--STUFF
Kirkus Reviews.
(Sept. 15, 2017):
COPYRIGHT 2017 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Full Text:
Cast , Carter THE RIGHT--AND WRONG--STUFF PublicAffairs (Adult Nonfiction) $26.00 11, 28 ISBN:
978-1-61039-709-4
Choose wisely, grasshopper: in the workaday world, jobs and needs are changing, and everything rides on
whether you forecast those changes correctly--and whether you listen.At some point or another, writes
venture capitalist and business professor Cast (Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern Univ.), more
than half of all workers will be fired, demoted, or sidelined. There are many reasons: some workers are
abrasive, some feckless, some overspecialized, some disorganized, some incapable of learning new skills.
Organizing such failings into office archetypes such as "Captain Fantastic" and "The Whirling Dervish,"
Cast counsels that traits such as learning agility and active listening are more valuable than ever. "So try
hard to stay flexible," he writes, "try not to be too judgmental, and don't become locked into your positions."
By his account, some of that flexibility includes the recognition that professional skills require overhaul
every five years or so, meaning that workers who are not on top of refreshing what they know how to do
may find themselves part of that dispensable half. Some of Cast's recommendations seem obvious and a
little squishy ("the best way I know to capture knowledge is by journaling"), and he seems to be a fan of the
dreaded 360-degree review, but there's plenty of hard-nosed and useful advice, too--e.g., "never miss a good
chance to shut up, watch, listen, and learn." The best of the author's counsel is quite specific, coming from
industry leaders in various sectors: when the head of LinkedIn gives advice on job-skill refreshment and the
former CEO of Twitter recommends that you dabble in new technology relevant to your work, pay attention.
Cast closes with the thought that what motivates us most in work is not primarily money but meaning:
"achievement, affiliation, power, autonomy, and purpose." Solid, positively delivered advice for job seekers
and job holders everywhere.
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"Cast , Carter: THE RIGHT--AND WRONG--STUFF." Kirkus Reviews, 15 Sept. 2017. General OneFile,
http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A504217476/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=9299abe3.
Accessed 26 Apr. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A504217476
The Right--and Wrong--Stuff: How
Brilliant Careers Are Made and Unmade
Publishers Weekly.
264.31 (July 31, 2017): p71.
COPYRIGHT 2017 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
The Right--and Wrong--Stuff: How Brilliant Careers Are Made and Unmade
Carter Cast. PublicAffairs, $28 (288p)
ISBN 978-1-61039-709-4
The source of most career problems boils down to personal blind spots, argues Cast, a professor at
Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management, in this accessible guide. Asking why some careers flourish
and others stagnate or implode, he identifies five archetypes that personify common, and mistaken, mindsets.
These memorably named archetypes are as follows: Captain Fantastic, Solo Flier, Version 1.0, OneTrick
Pony, and Whirling Dervish. Cast provides detailed descriptions of each, and readers are likely to find
that some of these hit uncomfortably close to home. However, Cast does not put the entire onus for
misguided career-planning on individual employees. Partly at fault, he says, is the focus-on-the-positives
development process adopted by so many organizations for their workers. In his telling, management is not
being honest about workforce competencies and skills or the lack thereof, and therefore does not foster real
improvement. Cast ends by providing a helpful guide to the kind of rigorous self-evaluation that can help
readers avoid common pitfalls. This relatable career manual should inspire plenty of whitecollar
professionals to work on serious self-accounting, take responsibility for their own mistakes, and form
support teams of friends, managers, and mentors. (Jan. 2018)
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"The Right--and Wrong--Stuff: How Brilliant Careers Are Made and Unmade." Publishers Weekly, 31 July
2017, p. 71. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A499863445/ITOF?
u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=950a2b7b. Accessed 26 Apr. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A499863445