Bootstrap: Lessons Learned Building a Successful Company from Scratch

Bootstrap serves as a useful reference for the prospective or newly established entrepreneur and offers valuable lessons for anyone interested in building a self-funded company, regardless of industry. Ken Hess lets the reader step into the shoes of the entrepreneur, and benefit from first hand experiences on what worked well and what failed. Written in narrative form, the book takes the reader through the evolution of a company, from one employee to one hundred, and highlights the fundamental business philosophies that enabled this entrepreneur to achieve success. The book covers topics applicable to any company, such as: how to hire the right employees, developing a functional organizational structure, creating a vision that translates into actionable objectives for every employee, managing the product portfolio, and understanding your customers needs and market trends to stay one step ahead of the competition.

Kenneth L. Hess was founder and President of Banner Blue Software, a bootstrap startup which he built to annual sales of $23 million. Leveraging his twenty-five years of business experience, Ken taught Entrepreneurial Business Management in the Stanford University Continuing Studies Program. With interests that extend beyond management, Ken holds one of the first software patents. Ken is a graduate of Stanford University and received an MBA from the Harvard Business School. Currently, Ken participates in several entrepreneurial ventures, and he serves on the boards of Sensant Corporation and Stanford University's Hoover Institution.