You’re only a startup CEO once. Do it well with Startup CEO, a "master class in building a business."
- Dick Costolo, Former CEO, Twitter
Being a startup CEO is a job like no other: it’s difficult, risky, stressful, lonely, and often learned through trial and error. As a startup CEO seeing things for the first time, you’re likely to make mistakes, fail, get things wrong, and feel like you don’t have any control over outcomes.
Author Matt Blumberg has been there, and in Startup CEO he shares his experience, mistakes, and lessons learned as he guided Return Path from a handful of employees and no revenues to over $100 million in revenues and 500 employees.
Startup CEO is not a memoir of Return Path's 20-year journey but a thoughtful CEO-focused book that provides first-time CEOs with advice, tools, and approaches for the situations that startup CEOs will face.
You'll learn:
- How to tell your story to new hires, investors, and customers for greater alignment
- How to create a values-based culture for speed and engagement
- How to create business and personal operating systems so that you can balance your life and grow your company at the same time
- How to develop, lead, and leverage your board of directors for greater impact
- How to ensure that your company is bought, not sold, when you exit
Startup CEO is the field guide every CEO needs throughout the growth of their company.
Table of Contents
Foreword xi
Acknowledgments xiii
About the Author xvii
Introduction xix
Chapter 1: The Importance of Authentic Leadership in Changing Times 1
Part One: Storytelling 11
Chapter 2: Dream the Possible Dream 13
Chapter 3: Defining and Testing the Story 21
Chapter 4: Telling the Story to Your Investors 31
Chapter 5: Telling the Story to Your Team 39
Chapter 6: Revising the Story 49
Chapter 7: Bringing the Story to Life 59
Part Two: Building the Company’s Human Capital 69
Chapter 8: Fielding a Great Team 71
Chapter 9: The CEO as Functional Supervisor 83
Chapter 10: Crafting Your Company’s Culture 89
Chapter 11: The Hiring Challenge 99
Chapter 12: Every Day in EveryWay,We Get a Little Better 113
Chapter 13: Compensation 125
Chapter 14: Promoting 133
Chapter 15: Rewarding: “It’s the Little Things” That Matter 141
Chapter 16: Managing Remote Offices and Employees 147
Chapter 17: Firing: When It’s Not Working 153
Part Three: Execution 161
Chapter 18: Creating a Company Operating System 163
Chapter 19: Creating Your Operating Plan and Setting Goals 167
Chapter 20: Making Sure There’s Enough Money in the Bank 177
Chapter 21: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of Financing 185
Chapter 22: When and How to Raise Money 195
Chapter 23: Forecasting and Budgeting 201
Chapter 24: Collecting Data 209
Chapter 25: Managing in Tough Times 215
Chapter 26: Meeting Routines 223
Chapter 27: Driving Alignment 233
Chapter 28: Have You Learned Your Lesson? 239
Chapter 29: Going Global 247
Chapter 30: The Role of M&A 255
Chapter 31: Competition 265
Chapter 32: Failure 269
Part Four: Building and Leading a Board of Directors 277
Chapter 33: The Value of a Good Board 279
Chapter 34: Building Your Board 283
Chapter 35: Board Meeting Materials 293
Chapter 36: Running Effective Board Meetings 297
Chapter 37: Non-Board Meeting Time 305
Chapter 38: Decision Making and the Board 309
Chapter 39:Working with the Board on Your Compensation and Review 315
Chapter 40: Serving on Other Boards 321
Part Five: Managing Yourself So You Can Manage Others 329
Chapter 41: Creating a Personal Operating System 331
Chapter 42:Working with an Executive Assistant 339
Chapter 43:Working with a Coach 345
Chapter 44: The Importance of Peer Groups 351
Chapter 45: Staying Fresh 355
Chapter 46: Your Family 367
Chapter 47: Traveling 375
Chapter 48: Taking Stock of the Year 379
Part Six: Selling Your Company 385
Chapter 49: A Note on Exits 387
Chapter 50: Preparing Yourself for an Exit 391
Chapter 51: Preparing Your Company for an Exit 397
Chapter 52: The Sale Process 403
Chapter 53: Transition and Integration 415
Chapter 54: Thinking about Your Next Step 419
Conclusion 425
Bibliography 429
What’s Next? 433
Index 435
