$13B and a safeword

 Exposés reveal a toxic culture in Silicon Valley’s $13B nonprofit, involving the safeword “muskrat.” [The Hustle]( Mon, May 14 Brought to you by [The Princeton Review]( fear no Scantron. Silicon Valley’s $13B nonprofit takes another hit: Toxic culture costs them 3 executives On Friday, the [New York Times published]( yet another exposé on the “toxic,” grow-at-all-costs culture at the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, a Mountain View-based nonprofit that’s quietly grown to $13.5B in assets -- larger than both the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations. Over the past decade, huge gifts given by high-profile founders from Mark Zuckerberg ($1.8B in Facebook stock) to Nick Woodman ($500m in pre-IPO GoPro stock) have made SVCF Silicon Valley’s charity of choice. But investigations into the abusive behavior of their top fundraiser have left SVCF in a precarious position. The safeword is “muskrat” In mid-April, the [Chronicle of Philanthropy reported]( that SVCF’s top fundraiser, Mari Ellen Loijens, had been emotionally and sexually abusive to employees. The Chronicle interviewed 19 employees who similarly described their employment under Loijens as “oppressive,” saying she “[screamed] at the top of her lungs” and at one point tried to kiss an employee. Her transgressions became so frequent that Loijens and employees began to use a mutually agreed-upon safe word, “muskrat,” when Loijens had crossed a line. Loijens resigned a day after the Chronicle article, and SVCF CEO Emmett Carson hired a law firm to investigate the allegations because he claims he was unaware of her behavior. But employees don’t buy it, saying Carson actively ignored their complaints. Why didn’t the CEO stop this sooner? In short, because Loijens was really good at her job. For a combined $433k a year in salary and benefits, she oversaw the “donor-advised funds” that make up 83% of the foundation’s assets and had unparalleled knowledge of how to optimize donors’ tax benefits. Sources say that Carson’s “bigger is better” mentality shielded her from criticism, and 65 of SVCF’s near 140 employees have since signed a [letter to the board]( asking for accountability (Carson has been put on paid leave and head of HR Daiva Natochy resigned). Their next moves will be crucial Now, everyone’s watching to see what SVCF will do to right the ship -- especially donors. [Forbes notes]( that, because SVCF’s strategy is so donor-focused, if their billionaire beneficiaries decide to take their money and run, SVCF may be up startup creek without a pivot. The safeword is “you’re fired”  Netflix streamed right past Comcast, and Disney is its only competitor -- for now Last week Netflix’s value hit [$142B]( knocking rival Comcast (worth $141B) down a step on the podium in the race for media’s gold medal. Now, the only media company left for Netflix to beat is Disney. But coming from behind to overtake media leaders (like Fox and Time Warner in 2017) is a Netflix original strategy -- and, at $150B, Disney’s empire is now in striking distance. An underdog that never loses When Netflix started in ’97, media leaders like DVD-giant Blockbuster were already popping the celebratory popcorn. But after introducing streaming in 2007, it took less than [3 years]( for the company to zip past its former rival. Then, Netflix’s huge gamble on original content with House of Cards in 2013 paid off big. By 2016, ’Flix original hits like Orange is the New Black and Stranger Things were successful enough to catapult the company to [130]( new countries simultaneously. Netflix has no plans to chill In the Netflix-Disney race, the momentum is in the ’Flix’s favor. In 2017, Netflix’s return grew by 64% -- while Disney’s and Fox’s both declined. To maintain its lead, Disney plans to roll out its own streaming service in 2019. But before it can finalize that service, Disney will also have to duke it out with Comcast in an expensive [battle]( for 21st Century Fox’s assets. As these 2 old-school media heavyweights wrestle each other, Netflix is prepping to give ’em both the chair, spending $8B on original content and an additional $2B to market that content in 2018. [Can you smell what the ‘Flix is cookin?](  A toe-to-toe battle: Adidas and Skechers duke it out in the courts Mere moments after a US appeals court slammed the gavel in [favor]( of Adidas to affirm that Skechers [knocked off]( the iconic Adidas Stan Smith tennis shoe (yeah, they’re identical), Skechers copied Adidas yet again. This time -- by countersuing. The new Skechers suit hopes to make a buck off a recent [bribery scandal]( where Adidas executive Jim Gatto was indicted for gifting money to players’ families at Adidas-sponsored colleges Kansas and NC State to guarantee they re-signed with the brand as pros. Does Skechers even compete with Adidas? No, but they totally could -- according to Sketchers, at least. While Adidas is ubiquitous among today’s athletic superstars, Skechers is more geared toward retired ballers -- with spokespeople like Joe Montana, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and, on a less relevant note, Kim Kardashian. But Skechers believes it wouldn’t be spending all its time jogging around retired hoop-star heaven if Adidas hadn’t muddied the playing field of premiere high school and college athlete markets with dump trucks full of bribe money. So, for its alleged troubles, their lawsuit [seeks]( “recovery of Adidas’s ill-gotten profits.” You can’t take the Skech out of Skechers Bribery attempt aside, Adidas called the suit “frivolous and nonsensical” compared to Skechers unabashedly ripping off Adidas’ style for years. In fact, the ruling that ordered Skechers to stop selling their Stan Smith knockoff granted them permission to continue selling their Cross Court shoe -- one that apes Adidas’ three stripes trademark. You kind of have to respect their tenacity. [All Day I Dream About Skechers](  Brands are shouting over each other for the #1 spot on your smart speaker To buy groceries, Americans aren’t heading to the store or even the internet -- they’re just turning to Alexa. Today, consumers purchase $2B of goods from their smart speakers, but in 4 years that number is expected to [skyrocket]( to $40B. As more and more homes gravitate toward smart, e-commerce enabled speakers, struggling consumer brands are fighting to ensure that Alexa knows about them so they can make their way into smart-pantries. According to Alexa if you’re not first, you don’t exist “Alexa, order some tea.” - Got it. Ordering Celestial Seasonings Sleepytime Tea. Because Celestial Seasonings was first, but every other tea brand lost. See, with Alexa, unless you ask for a specific brand, the brands listed first in the Amazon store (or in your history) are added to the cart by default -- meaning that, unless brands are in good standing with Amazon’s algorithm, they might not make it to your cart. As fewer shoppers buy in-store, big brands have [taken]( a hit (this year Hershey has dropped 18%, General Mills 28%, and P&G 20%). Some brands with name recognition (like Kleenex or Cheetos) may benefit, but the vast majority will lose. Apps are the new Super Bowl beer displays Brands that used to pay for prime real estate in grocery stores now pay for Prime real estate on Alexa -- mostly by creating branded apps. To keep their mayonnaise moving, Hellmann’s created an Alexa app called “[Hellmann’s Best Recipes]( that integrates with Amazon -- and ensures customers order the right mayo. [“Alexa, I’m hungry”](   monday morning review When you move fast, you break things… And last week, we broke something. In our Deals, Deals, Deals segment, we forget to share some sweet, sweet deals from our sponsors (never fear, we’re sharing them below so you don’t miss out on any of those choice coups). We’re working hard to bring you more cool stuff as fast as possible, but we’re still a small team and when you’re redlining the rod, sometimes a screw comes loose. We’re lucky to have advertisers who understand the struggle of being a scrappy startup and have stuck with us from our days as a 7-person outfit working out of a living room to now -- a 19-person outfit working out of a slightly larger living room. Cheers to the ride-or-dies, and cheers to a great pit crew that’s constantly tuning our machine so we never break the same thing twice. -- Kolby “Earnhardt Jr. Jr.” Hatch deals deals deals “Boy do I have a treat for you. This week, we’re benching TWO sets of the internet’s hottest deals. That’s right, you’re getting 2 hot and ready deal rundowns in 1 week: Monday and Wednesday. Our mistake is your sweet, sweet gain.” - Whoop C. Daisy from Dover, DE SPONSORED - [$5 off your first Uber Eats order]( - can be used to cover the delivery fee. Download the app and enter code THEHUSTLE5 before you order - [20% off KetoFIRE Caffeine Free]( from Ancient Nutrition. Use code HUSTLE20  - [Up to 65% off online boot special]( at Sorel - [Extra 20% off clearance items]( at Nike. Use code: 20SPRING - [Jura automatic coffee machine]( at Amazon for $998.00 (was $1200.00) - [KitchenAid stand mixer]( at Best Buy for $259.99 (was $499.99) - [Bushnell 12x50 binoculars]( at Adorama for $39.99 (was $69.95) This edition of The Hustle was brought to you by When was the last time you took a test? We’re talking a standardized, Scantron, use-the-Pythagorean-Theorem type of test. The answer for most of us? Y-E-A-R-S. And yet, just the thought of filling in those tiny bubbles with a #2 is enough to make us sweat. But sometimes the only thing standing between us and the future we dream of is a 3-4 letter acronym. Great test taking comes down to preparation. And nobody knows “test prep” better than [The Princeton Review](. Don’t call it a comeback -- it’s called EdTech Face it, working professionals don’t have time to study like hungover 20-year-olds. Skip the handmade flashcards and color-coded notes. Get with the times -- tech is taking over everything, including learning. With best-in-class online private tutoring, test prep, and admission products, [The Princeton Review]( has modernized the way they educate by becoming one of the nation’s leading EdTech companies. MCAT, LSAT, GRE, GMAT; if there’s an acronym standing between you and your dreams, [The Princeton Review]( can help. We’re livin’ in the future, folks.  0 [SHARE THE HUSTLE]( REFERRALS [ YOUR UNIQUE URL Zack Crockett NEWS WRITER Wes Schlagenhauf NEWS WRITER Conor Grant NEWS WRITER Kolby Hatch AD WRITER [Lindsey “Sponsored by Heelys” Quinn]( MANAGING EDITOR Ida Klein Public Appearances Coordinator [SUBSCRIBE]( [JOBS]( [ADVERTISE]( [EVENTS]( [SHOP]( [Join our Facebook community →]( You opted in by signing up, attending an event, or through divine intervention. [771 CLEMENTINA STREET, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103, UNITED STATES]( • [415.506.7210](tel:+1-415-506-7210) Never wanna hear from us again? Break our hearts and [unsubscribe](