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How software companies die

12 pointsby hanszeirabout 14 years ago

3 comments

rmasonabout 14 years ago
Read that and thought of Ashton Tate which made dBase. The original entrepreneur, George Tate, died of a heart attack. The new CEO, Ed Esber, famously told dBase inventor, Wayne Ratliff, that he wasn't any more important than the guy loading the trucks. Ratliff and a few key developers left. A few years later Esber didn't have a clue what happened to his company which self destructed.<p>Sad thing is Ratliff started his own database company with some fairly innovative technology for the time. But he was an engineer with no company building skills and it didn't go anywhere.
Luytabout 14 years ago
I hope I have the guts to quit when marketing- and sales types take over the company. If they offer me enough money, I might stay, despite the braindeadness.
yuhongabout 14 years ago
This is why executive succession and search is so important to do right, I think.