May 23, 2011, 2:11 PM — Name: Keith Taylor
Age: 49
Time with Equinix: 12 years
Education: Bishops University, Quebec
Company headquarters: Redwood Shores, California
Revenue: Just over $1.2 billion last year; guidance for $1.5 billion this year
Number of countries: 12
Number of employees total: 2,321, including 400 from a recent acquisition, with plans to hire another 400 this year
Number CFO oversees: 170, not all direct
About the company: Equinix offers a global infrastructure platform, including state-of-the-art data centers, for mission-critical business operations across a range of industries. The company's website is http://www.equinix.com
1. Where did you start in finance and what experiences led you to the job you have today?
I started in finance in Toronto. Coming out of university, I worked for an accounting firm that at the time was called Ernst & Winnie. That led me to go to one of my customers, Becton Dickinson, a medical device company in New Jersey. I went there originally in the accounting and tax field, and then I had the opportunity to go to their headquarters in New Jersey as an analyst. Ultimately, the real opportunity was when I came out to Silicon Valley and worked for a company called International Wireless Communications. That ultimately put me on a track to be a CFO. The reasons for that were because all of our interests were outside the U.S. -- we were in Asia and we were in South America. So it was a unique structure. Those were tough places to do business for an American firm. That also introduced me to the company I work for today -- the people I was close to at IWC introduced me to the founders of Equinix.
2. Who was an influential boss for you and what lessons did they teach you about management and leadership?
I've had a couple of very interesting bosses, but one that I thought was influential was Phil Koen -- a very intelligent, highly thoughtful guy. He left us to become CEO of Savvis. I learned a lot from him. One [lesson] was stylistic, but others were analytical skills and sheer smarts. It put me on a road, not to emulate him because we all have our strengths and weaknesses, but he put me on the road to understanding that personal relationships are important and how you interact with people can make a difference in how you get things done. I also look to the chairman [Peter Van Camp] of my company today and my CEO [Stephen M. Smith]. They influence me in how I behave and how I react. I've been very lucky to have bosses that really want to see me do well in life. I get good feedback on a very regular basis.
3. What are the biggest challenges facing CFOs today?
As I think about our business, it's not just CFOs, but for companies that are our size, it's the globalization, the sheer scale of managing companies on a worldwide basis, and global growth. Something else I think is challenging and why CFOs have a crappy job sometimes is the regulatory environment. The buck stops with us. We can make ourselves anti-competitive globally because our competitors don't have to deal with the same regulations.
4. What is a good day at work like for you?
I'm one of those few people, and you could even ask my wife, I actually like work and I'm not a workaholic. I have a pretty nice balance in my life. I like coming to work and making a difference. When I know that we've positioned ourselves to create value for our customers and they can see that, then that's a good day for me. I am a customer-focused CFO. It's hard to put into words sometimes, but you know when you win a big deal and you go, 'man, they're going to use us all over the world!' And then just the fact that we're growing, that we're scaling the business. I take a lot of satisfaction in working with the people around me to create what we have today.
5. How would you characterize your management style?
I'm relatively open. I'm what I'd call a forward, straight-talking individual. I'm very customer-friendly. I wear my emotions, unfortunately, on my sleeve. I'm not a yeller, not a screamer, but people can certainly tell when I'm not happy. You can see it in my expression and in my body language. We're a pretty easy company to work with. We won't take a deal to the nth degree where it becomes confrontational ... Sometimes both parties should walk away feeling good about a deal [even if it doesn't work out].
6. What strengths/qualities do you look for in job candidates?
