Dave Hitz likes to solve fun problems. He didn’t set out to be a Silicon Valley icon, a business visionary, or even a billionaire. But he became all three. It turns out that business is a mosaic of interesting puzzles like managing risk, developing and reversing strategies, and looking into the future by deconstructing the past. As a founder of NetApp, a data storage firm that began as an idea scribbled on a placemat and now takes in $4 billion a year, Hitz has seen his company go through every major cycle in business—from the Jack–of–All–Trades mentality of a start–up, through the tumultuous period of the IPO and the dot–com bust, and finally to a mature enterprise company. NetApp is one of the fastest–growing computer companies ever, and for six years in a row it has been on Fortune magazine’s list of Best Companies to Work For. Not bad for a high school dropout who began his business career selling his blood for money and typing the names of diseases onto index cards. With colorful examples and anecdotes, How to Castrate a Bull is a story for everyone interested in understanding business, the reasons why companies succeed and fail, and how powerful lessons often come from strange and unexpected places. Dave Hitz co–founded NetApp in 1992 with James Lau and Michael Malcolm. He served as a programmer, marketing evangelist, technical architect, and vice president of engineering. Presently, he is responsible for future strategy and direction for the company. Before his career in Silicon Valley, Dave worked as a cowboy, where he got valuable management experience by herding, branding, and castrating cattle.
How to Castrate a Bull
and over 1.5 million other books are available for Amazon Kindle . Learn more
| |||||||||||||||
 Trade In this Item for up to £0.25
Trade in How to Castrate a Bull: Unexpected Lessons on Risk, Growth, and Success in Business for an Amazon.co.uk gift card of up to £0.25, which you can then spend on millions of items across the site. Trade-in values may vary (terms apply). Special Offer until June 30, 2013: Receive an additional £5 promotional Gift Card, when you trade-in at least £10 worth of books. Learn more
|
Book Description
Product details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
Product Description
Review
NetApp Awarded #1 Best Company to Work For 2009 by Fortune A San Francisco Chronicle Nonfiction Best–Seller, January 30, 2009 "Readers will gain insight into management styles, different ways to make decisions, alternative approaches to managing people, and the value of dissent within a company. They also will learn why it is better to castrate a bull with a dull knife than a sharp knife. And they may get a few chuckles along the way."— ByteandSwitch.com , January 27, 2009 "Hitz spends much of the book discussing what happened after he moved to move Silicon Valley in 1986 and began working at a series of start–ups, and the various business problems he faced and how he approached them. Hitz describes in detail the evolution of NetApp and, of course, does not omit the vendor′s sales pitch. But at various points in the 200–page book Hitz takes a break from talking business to focus on some of the humorous passages referenced in Chapter Zero." — NetworkWorld.com , January 21, 2009
From the Inside Flap
How to Castrate a Bull Dave Hitz didn′t set out to be a Silicon Valley icon, a business visionary, or even a billionaire, but he became all three. Perhaps it′s because he likes to solve fun puzzles. Somewhere along the way, Hitz discovered that business is a mosaic of fascinating puzzles that involve managing risk, developing and reversing strategies, and looking into the future by deconstructing the past. Filled with colorful examples and anecdotes, Dave Hitz′s autobiographical book, How to Castrate a Bull, is a story for anyone interested in understanding business, the reasons why companies succeed and fail, and how powerful lessons often come from strange and unexpected places—even from the open range. Before his career in Silicon Valley, Dave worked as a cowboy, where he got valuable management experience by herding, branding, and castrating cattle. As a founder of NetApp, a data storage and management firm that began as an idea scribbled on a placemat and now takes in $4 billion a year, Dave has seen his company go through every major cycle in business—from the jack–of–all–trades mentality of a start–up, through the tumultuous period of the dot–com boom and bust, and finally to a mature enterprise. NetApp is one of the fastest–growing computer companies ever, and for six years in a row it has been on Fortune magazine′s list of Best Companies to Work For. Not bad for a high school dropout who began his business career selling his blood for money and typing the names of diseases onto index cards. Written for anyone who wants to know what it takes to succeed in today′s volatile marketplace, How to Castrate a Bull relates not only what lessons Dave Hitz has learned in the course of his remarkable life but more important how he learned them.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By D. Goold
Format:Hardcover
A friend of mine in the states recommended this book and I was very skeptical at first but within two pages I was zipping through the pages and nodding in agreement with many of the points. It is very well written and accessible to anyone in case you were worrying about it being a dry, boring subject. It applies to more than just business so be prepared to have a couple of 'a-ha' moments. I plan on giving this as a present and have no worries about it being enjoyed.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Dave Hitz is funny, for an engineer. He also happens to have seen the company he co-founded, NetApp, grow from start up to billions of dollars of business in what must have been a very hectic and energized few years. The stories and lessons included in this books are retold in a casual and informal way, yet they are solid business lessons that I believe will be of use to any starter-up looking to duplicate Hitz's success. The best thing about this book is that it gives advice about serious things without taking itself too seriously. Read it for what it is: a retrospective of a wild Silicon Valley ride that actually went somewhere, written by a plain speaker who was (and still is) there.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
4.6 out of 5 stars
22 reviews
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Funny and Informative Management Book
12 Jan 2009
By David R.
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
Management books, even those written (or mostly written) by industry luminaries, can offer informative looks into the exclusive world of the corporate executive. But they also tend to be very, very dry.
This book, of the other hand, is a funny and enlightening romp through the early days of a Silicon Valley startup written by one of the founders, but written in a light and clear fashion that even my parents would understand. In fact, I bought a copy for them too.
The book covers both the creation and evolution of a technology company as well as a brief outline of the author's life and influences that contributed to his development and growth as an entrepreneur and manager.
It is full of insightful and humorous tales of success and failure, both personal and professional, of the author and the company he founded. It is worth the price just to learn how his company got to be so successful, but the extras (including the funny sidebars and Interludes) make it worth so much more. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has always wished someone would make a management book fun to read. This is it!
This book, of the other hand, is a funny and enlightening romp through the early days of a Silicon Valley startup written by one of the founders, but written in a light and clear fashion that even my parents would understand. In fact, I bought a copy for them too.
The book covers both the creation and evolution of a technology company as well as a brief outline of the author's life and influences that contributed to his development and growth as an entrepreneur and manager.
It is full of insightful and humorous tales of success and failure, both personal and professional, of the author and the company he founded. It is worth the price just to learn how his company got to be so successful, but the extras (including the funny sidebars and Interludes) make it worth so much more. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has always wished someone would make a management book fun to read. This is it!
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
No bull! It's a fun easy read to learn some big important lessons
19 Jan 2009
By Marian Reiss
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Kindle Edition
This is a really fantastic book! It's such a fun and easy read! Dave Hitz really simplified big ideas into very valuable, understandable lessons. I think that anyone on any level, can apply some of these golden nuggets to their job, no matter where you are on the org chart.
As a 4 year NetAppee, it's also been fun to learn the history and trivia and backtrack to how we got to where we are today. When I got to NetApp, we had 3,000 employees and hundreds of millions in revenue, and the largest company I had ever worked for before was 300 and in the red, so it's always been a mystery to me what happens between start-up and a mature company. This book helped make sense of that process.
Some of the advice that I especially found valuable:
* Always start with the conclusion
* The first lesson on hypergrowth is "everything is always broken" - is a good thing.
* The greatest magic is not one human mind, it is multiple minds working together.
* The importance of culture and the struggle to map it and apply it
* The definition of consensus and how to make it work
The book is peppered with lots of cool anecdotes and stories that are both entertaining and to which we can all relate, no matter which organization you're part of. Dave has a talent for distilling ideas that took years to learn into easy-to-grasp simple take-aways.
Read Enjoy Learn
~Marian
As a 4 year NetAppee, it's also been fun to learn the history and trivia and backtrack to how we got to where we are today. When I got to NetApp, we had 3,000 employees and hundreds of millions in revenue, and the largest company I had ever worked for before was 300 and in the red, so it's always been a mystery to me what happens between start-up and a mature company. This book helped make sense of that process.
Some of the advice that I especially found valuable:
* Always start with the conclusion
* The first lesson on hypergrowth is "everything is always broken" - is a good thing.
* The greatest magic is not one human mind, it is multiple minds working together.
* The importance of culture and the struggle to map it and apply it
* The definition of consensus and how to make it work
The book is peppered with lots of cool anecdotes and stories that are both entertaining and to which we can all relate, no matter which organization you're part of. Dave has a talent for distilling ideas that took years to learn into easy-to-grasp simple take-aways.
Read Enjoy Learn
~Marian
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
If you are starting a company, read this book.
19 Jan 2009
By John T. McArthur
- Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
This book, by NetApp's founder, Dave Hitz, provides direct, honest, thoughtful business advice, applicable to business founders and leaders throughout the growth cycle of a business. He puts special emphasis on hard choices and decision-making processes, with an understanding that comes from a life-time of risk taking. If you are a first time entrepreneur, read this book. If you are entering a growth phase for your company, read this book. If you failed at your first venture and want to understand why, read this book. And if you want a few good laughs, read this book.
›
Go to Amazon.com to see all 22 reviews
4.6 out of 5 stars
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
