Behind the Cloud: The Untold Story of How Salesforce.com Went from Idea to Billion-Dollar Company-and Revolutionized an Industry (Hardcover)

~ Marc Benioff (Author), (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world's fastest growing software company in less than a decade? For the first time, Marc Benioff, the visionary founder, chairman and CEO of salesforce.com, tells how he and his team created and used new business, technology, and philanthropic models tailored to this time of extraordinary change. Showing how salesforce.com not only survived the dotcom implosion of 2001, but went on to define itself as the leader of the cloud computing revolution and spark a $46-billion dollar industry, Benioff's story will help business leaders and entrepreneurs stand out, innovate better, and grow faster in any economic climate.

In Behind the Cloud, Benioff shares the strategies that have inspired employees, turned customers into evangelists, leveraged an ecosystem of partners, and allowed innovation to flourish.

From the Inside Flap

How did salesforce.com grow from a start-up in a rented apartment into the world's fastest growing software company in less than a decade?

For the first time, Marc Benioff, the visionary founder, chairman, and CEO of salesforce.com, tells how he and his team created and used new business, technology, and philanthropic models tailored to this time of extraordinary change. Showing how salesforce.com not only survived the dot-com implosion of 2001, but also went on to define itself as the leader of the cloud computing revolution and spark a 46 billion-dollar industry, Benioff's story will help business leaders and entrepreneurs stand out, innovate better, and grow faster in any economic climate.

In Behind the Cloud, Benioff shares the strategies that have inspired employees, turned customers into evangelists, leveraged an ecosystem of partners, and allowed innovation to flourish. Benioff shows how salesforce.com pioneered a simple idea (delivering business applications as a service over the Internet) to change the way all businesses use software applications and, ultimately, change the way the software industry works.

With Marc Benioff's candid, unconventional advice and unusual call-out lessons from the Salesforce.com Playbook—including Benioff's proprietary management tool, V2MOM—any business can go against the grain, rapidly change the game, and learn how to achieve lasting success.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass (October 19, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470521163
• ISBN-13: 978-0470521168
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #8,230 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Part inspiration and part practical `how to' instruction manual - a fast and fun read, October 13, 2009

By	John Henry "JH" (Danville, CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

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A CEO business book which doesn't follow the tired Gilda Radner formula of `Enough of me talking about me...let's hear what others think about me!'. This is a fun to read book chock-full of no-holds-barred advice on everything a growth company faces. In short easy to read chapters, Benioff writes instructively about everything from fostering an innovative product development and marketing machine, to driving explosive sales in existent and new/emerging markets, to focusing on customers while simultaneously inspiring a culture of employee hyper-success. His chapters on giving back to the community should be standard reading at all business schools today. In short, this is a practical guide on how to grow a successful business without selling your soul to Mephistopheles. The enthusiasm infused in the writing is contagious. For those looking for MBA jargon, four quadrant charts, circles with arrows, new buzzwords, or formulaic bromides on business success brought about by `the cult of the leader', don't pick up this book. Benioff and Adler have penned an easy to read practical, no-nonsense step-by-step `how to' guidebook on building and running a great company. John Henry - Danville, CA

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not The Usual Self-Serving Blather, October 25, 2009

By	Michael Hickins (New York, NY) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

CEOs often feel the need to share their wisdom with the rest of us common mortals, and end up sharing nothing but their own sense of superiority. Marc Benioff, CEO of [...], does a wonderful job of actually sharing teachable moments along the road to creating a very successful company, and arguably a new way of doing business. He also shows how he built his company to be socially responsible from the outset.
Without the pompous cadence of the motivational speaker, Benioff and his co-author, Carlye Adler, actually manage to impart useful information for anyone looking to start their own company while remaining interesting to the casual reader. There's also a lot of information about the prevailing technology culture and insights that help those of us who don't live on the West Coast understand the special brew of technology, entrepreneurship and spirituality that make it what it is.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who is open to the positive side of capitalism and disappointed by what they've experienced thus far. Marc Benioff has done more than create a great company; he's set a great example.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A highly enjoyable and useful book, December 19, 2009

By	Richard Alberg (Stanmore, Middx, GB) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I have founded and run two small, but successful, SaaS businesses and I like to think I have acquired the scar tissue of experience. However reading the book Marc and Carlye have written has been an inspirational learning experience. It describes a journey that as a technology entrepreneur I can empathise with. But it does far more than this. It is jam packed full of ideas and approaches that I can use in my business and it encourages a mindset that I know will help me. Marc's phenomenal track record provides the authenticity that is so often lacking in business books and together the authors have ensured that each bite-sized chapter succinctly and clearly conveys its intended points.