Matt Blumberg 
Startup CEO [PDF ebook] 
A Field Guide to Scaling Up Your Business (Techstars)

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 Every Way, 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

Matt Blumberg founded Return Path in 1999, grew it to 500 employees and $100 million in revenues, and sold it to Validity in 2019. Matt is chair of Path Forward, a nonprofit that helps mothers and caregivers reenter the workforce. He is creating his next startup and writing a companion volume to Startup CEO.