High-tech Ventures: The Guide For Entrepreneurial Success [Hardcover]

C. Gordon Bell (Author), John E. Mcnamara (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 22, 1991 | ISBN-10: 0201563215 | ISBN-13: 978-0201563214

High-Tech Ventures is for those who design, build, and market innovative products—people who are creating the high-tech world of the future. More specifically it is for all engineers, engineering managers, entrepreneurs, and intrapreneurs. Although engineers are responsible for identifying products and businesses that might benefit their company, all too often their suggestions are rejected. The products don’t fit within the current business, or they threaten the status quo. Thus, start-up companies are the main arena for innovation.Entrepreneurs who are considering starting up a company, or who are already doing so, can use this book to determine the health of their venture. With High-Tech Ventures they can systematically assess the exact stages of their company’s growth. They can compare their experiences to an ideal model, and sidestep—or eliminate—flaws early enough to save time, money, and even the company itself.High-Tech Ventures provides entrepreneurs with insight into the problems they may face, as well as a formal checklist for measuring success. It is also useful for board members, investors, and service industry personnel who are intimately involved in ventures. Professionals such as attorneys, accountants, technical consultants, and marketing consultants, who support the venture’s infrastructure will also find critical information here.High-Tech Ventures includes revealing case studies from major entrepreneurial players such as Sun Microsystems, Apollo, Prime, Amdahl, Cullinet, etc.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

C. Gordon Bell is most recently chief scientist at Stardent Computer, Concord, Massachusetts. He spent 23 years at Digital Equipment Corporation as vice president of research and development, where he managed the engineering of DEC’s products. John E. McNamara is senior hardware engineer at Stratus Computer Incorporated. He has worked on key research and development teams at MIT’s Lincoln Laboratory and Digital Equipment Corporation. He has received three U. S. patents and is the author of several other publications on computers. C. Gordon Bell is most recently chief scientist at Stardent Computer, Concord, Massachusetts. He spent 23 years at Digital Equipment Corporation as vice president of research and development, where he managed the engineering of DEC146s products. John E. McNamara is senior hardware engineer at Stratus Computer Incorporated. He has worked on key research and development teams at MIT146s Lincoln Laboratory and Digital Equipment Corporation. He has received three U. S. patents and is the author of several other publications on computers.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books (July 22, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0201563215
• ISBN-13: 978-0201563214
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #393,512 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent analysis and review of hi-tech entrepreneurship, July 13, 1999

By 

Dave McClure (Silicon Valley, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: High-tech Ventures: The Guide For Entrepreneurial Success (Hardcover)

Excellent analysis and review of high-tech entrepreneurship and investing, as much from investor and board member point of view as entrepreneur. A reasoned and scientific approach to venture investing and capital financing, and an instructive guide for the entrepreneur from concept development (seed) all the way to mature enterprise / IPO or acquisition. Particular emphasis is placed on describing and modeling the various stages of a high-tech startup. The author introduces the Bell-Mason Diagnostic, a polar graph representing relevant startup metrics & capabilities, which is used to assess the potential of a startup. Note that equal attention is paid to organizational development (people) and market development issues, as well as the sexier topics of finance and technology engineering. Nice to see a balanced presentation that involves more than just a discussion of cash and bits. Only downside is due to the '91 print date, there is no recent commentary on the rash of internet ventures starting around '95 to present day. However, it's still the best book i have read to date on the hi-tech venture. Highly recommended.

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Why don't the VCs read this book?, November 25, 2000

By 

J. G. Heiser (Sunninghill, Berks) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: High-tech Ventures: The Guide For Entrepreneurial Success (Hardcover)

Having worked for 4 pre-IPO companies, I've seen a lot of inexperienced entrepeneurs make a lot of ill-advised decisions. Even worse, I've watched their backers blithely sit back and believe that they will become rich on the strength of some new buzzword.

It takes a good plan and better execution to turn a startup into a real company--two things that seem to be lacking in most new ventures.

Gordon Bell has created a complete model for the stages of a startup firm. VCs, executives, and ESPECIALLY potential new hires should use these models to estimate the success factor of a startup. I think the 6 characteristics of a successful high-tech CEO are priceless. Of the duds that I've worked for, none of the CEOs could meet these stringent requirements. Are there many people who do? No. Do most startups fail? Yes. I urge anyone looking to join a startup to get this book, and even if you don't feel inclined to read it through, at least see what Bell has to say about the CEO, and then use his criteria to evaluate the leader at the team you are considering joining.

Another one of his observations that rings true to my experience is the danger of 'multiple agendas.' There is something in the nature of an entrepeneur that seems to make it almost impossible to focus on a single product or niche market, at least until it some measure of market success is achieved. I've fought this battle many times, and I've never understood why the VCs and the Board don't reign in their eager young entrepeneurs. I've concluded that it is because they are often ignorant themselves. Being able to spend somebody else's money doesn't automatically confer wisdom.

This book is almost 10 years old, but many of the author's predictions came true. I think he over-estimated the advantages of Japan, but perhaps American business actually learned something from Japan and applied it. If American management had not done that, perhaps Bell's predictions of Japanese economic superiority would have come to pass also.

I did think that it was interesting to read an engineer's perspective on marketing. An intelligent and experienced person often has wise things to say, even about disciplines where they have no formal educational background. I would strongly urge both marketing and engineering people to approach this text with an open mind.

Overall, this is a wise and perceptive book. It provides a good persective on the high-tech startup phenomenom and anyone who wishes to better understand the internal dynamics of a startup would find this an interesting and rewarding read.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Better read this book before taking your plan to an investor, April 13, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: High-tech Ventures: The Guide For Entrepreneurial Success (Hardcover)

This is a great book for understanding what to do at each stage of a new business. The discussion on "when the CEO gets fired" may be unnerving but its a milestone that often shocks a fledgling organization. Its blunt, down-to-earth style is a good tonic for startups suffering from too much hype and reality distortion. Whether the "several hundred billion dollar computer industry is largely intelligent by 1990 standards" - its prediction for 1999 - is questionable. Its workstation examples may be a bit dated, but the lessons to be learned are fundamental for anyone wanting to run a venture-funded business.