Jeff Jordan was a top executive at eBay during its prime in the 2000’s, and after his most recent stint serving the past 12 years as a partner at venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (nicknamed a16z), he’s starting to think about the next chapter of his career.
He posted the news in a blog post on Friday, explaining he will no longer actively invest in future funds raised at a16z, though he’ll continue to oversee his existing portfolio companies and will continue to sit of the boards of companies including Pinterest, Airbnb, OfferUp, and Instacart.
After eBay, Jordan became CEO of OpenTable, which he took public in 2009. He referred to his executive roles as being an “operator” and his VC roles as “investor,” and said he absolutely adored his time working in the technology start-up world in both roles.
Jordan joined eBay in 1999, led eBay North America from 2000 through 2004, and was President of PayPal from 2004 until his resignation in 2006. In an interview with EcommerceBytes Editor Ina Steiner in 2008, Jordan described what he most liked about working at eBay:
“I thrived on the variety. Nearly every day, we were faced with a new and different challenge that had never been seen before. You can’t say that about most jobs. In the early days, eBay was really at the cutting edge of issues facing the relatively new Internet, so that was always fascinating to feel like pioneers. It was really fun to tackle all of the heady issues with our business brains, but then we ultimately tried to do what we thought was best for the marketplace and the people who were part of it. And, I also loved the people who worked at eBay. The company typically hired very smart people who were committed to their work, but they also knew how to have fun. Some of the best laughs I ever had were in meetings discussing serious topics at eBay.”
In his post on Friday, Jordan said he hopes his decision is a new beginning rather than an ending. “As my spouse has frequently and astutely observed, I’m not the retiring type. I’m ready for my next challenge – bring it on!”
With his connections (his tweet linking to Friday’s blog post received over 260,000 views), it’s not hard to imagine he’ll have his choice of opportunities.
Will Jeff Jordan Return to Ecommerce as an Operator?
Sounds like the opening to Oak Island Mysteries .. “the next morning Alex and the guys gather in the war room. Is the lead cross from the Knights Templar, Was Lot #5 – the garden path built during the Crusades? Will they get to 90ft down in the money pit? Will Garry Drayton act like a grown up when he uses the metal detector?
The company typically hired very smart people who were committed to their work, but they also knew how to have fun. Some of the best laughs I ever had were in meetings discussing serious topics at eBay.”
Yes – about how to steal sellers money … very funny I guess.