John Malone is undoubtedly one of the great capital allocators of our time. First through TCI and later through Liberty and its associated entities, John has created exceptional value for shareholders over the decades. Skilled as an operator and capital allocator, Malone has compounded per-share value through business strategy, execution, and capital allocation decisions.
Deployment of available capital is one of the twin responsibilities of a CEO, yet it often takes a back seat to the CEO’s business-operating role. While John mastered both roles, he stands out as a singular capital allocator, perhaps even on par with the late Henry Singleton, founder of Teledyne. Both men were profiled in Will Thorndike’s classic, The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success.
In the video above, I extract my top ten CEO lessons from Mark Robichaux's book, Cable Cowboy. I hope long-term investors will take those lessons to heart and will nudge their investee company CEOs in the right direction. When a CEO maximizes shareholder value through savvy capital allocation, all stakeholders ultimately benefit.
Here’s a snapshot of the lessons highlighted in my video:
Control the story
Be a capital allocator
Use debt prudently
Talk to your competitors
Invest in your ecosystem
Control your destiny
Minimize taxes
Escape regulation
Embrace frugality
Check in with yourself
Bonus: Buy back your stock
John Malone puts some of these lessons in his own words in the following fireside chat, hosted by the Singleton Foundation in 2023:
