Ceo: Building a $400 Million Company from the Ground Up [Paperback]

Sandra L. Kurtzig (Author), Tom Parker (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 1994

Sandy Kurtzig's personal story of how she founded ASK Computers - with entrepreneurial advice for men and women at all organizational levels. The text tells of how Kurtzig transformed a $2000 investment and a bedroom office in her house into a $400 million software giant in 18 years. This edition features a new introduction in which Kurtzig draws on her own experiences to provide insight into the sources of entrepreneurial success - leadership, vision, strategic thinking and the ability to make decisions and take risks. It also includes a new concluding chapter that brings the story up to 1993, describing Kurtzig's return to ASK in 1989 to engineer a successful turnaround, more than doubling revenues to $432 million by 1993. Kurtzig's product revolutionized business by enabling her clients to implement "just in time" inventory control. She was the first woman to take a high-technology firm public.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The founder of the software company ASK Computer Systems recounts her entrepreneurial success.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Since 1984, Harvard Business School Press has been dedicated to publishing the most contemporary management thinking, written by authors and practitioners who are leading the way. Whether readers are seeking big-picture strategic thinking or tactical problem solving, advice in managing global corporations or for developing personal careers, HBS Press helps fuel the fire of innovative thought. HBS Press has earned a reputation as the springboard of thought for both established and emerging business leaders.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Harvard Business Review Press (May 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0875845428
• ISBN-13: 978-0875845425
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,062,908 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, detailed advice, August 7, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Ceo: Building a $400 Million Company from the Ground Up (Paperback)

This book is full of great advice for anyone starting a software company. It is also an interesting story. The negative reviews on this site to the effect that Sandra Kurtzig is some sort of vain egomaniac are just plain wrong. The book is NOT just for women. Its for anyone starting a high tech business.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Don't waste your money!, May 13, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Ceo: Building a $400 Million Company from the Ground Up (Paperback)

I'm CFO of a fairly new e-commerce company and all I can say is that I've wasted several hours of my life that I will never get back after reading her book. She continually and erroneously predicts the demise of the Internet, keep in mind this book was published in 1994! She also has a technique she refers to as the flinch test as a means of pricing her software, she says, "I told them that the price was 50 k" if they didn't flinch "per module" if they didn't flinch "per year." It's bad enough that she employed these tactics but she even had the audacity to publish this! I don't know about you, but I would be furious if was one of her customers. I would suggest "CEO Logic : How to Think and Act Like a Chief Executive" it's much more relevant and up to date.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tremendous insights, highly relevant to any business owner, April 24, 2004

By 

"context5" (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ceo: Building a $400 Million Company from the Ground Up (Paperback)

I loved this book because it shows what it takes to start up and manage a business in a new niche -- forging relationships with early adopters and establishing alliances with industry giants. Sandra Kurtzig's personal story demonstrates how entrepreneurs succeed not by the quality of their product alone. Everyday decisions about employees, customers, alliances, board members, investments -- and the negotiations and timing of them -- contribute as much if not more to an organization's fate. The importance of listening to customers, seeking education and advice from others outside your business, and trusting your intuition are all lessons to be learned. Some earlier Amazon reviewers dissed this book because ASK declined in later years. These reviewers are missing the point. When Kurtzig stepped away from running day-to-day operations in 1985, after her father died and she desired a better work/life balance (as many people do after a close family member passes away), she faced a critical juncture in her business and perhaps mishandled planning her succession and exit strategy. Burnout is something about which all entrepreneurs need to be aware. I was inspired by her decision to return to ASK in 1989 and would be very interested in reading an addendum to the story.