Startup feeling stuck…? Maybe Dave Hersh’s Reignition would help

Even if it there wasn’t a whole bunch of nostalgia wrapped up in this post, I would still be recommending Reignition, a new book written by Dave Hersh. Part memoir, part collection of case studies, part workbook, this quick read takes stuck founders through a clear path through getting their startups unstuck — and provides cautionary tales for founders who may be unknowingly hurtling their startups headlong into stuck-ness.

Dave’s perspective on startup transformation is unique, timeless, and in high demand from entrepreneurs worldwide who feel stuck. Drawing on his own experience and others’ stories of triumph and failure, Dave shows how companies can recover from a near-death experience and have a profoundly successful second act on a grand stage. Readers will learn how to shed unnecessary weight, adapt their leadership style, find their “best in the world” offering, optimize culture, and patiently navigate toward larger-scale success.

Dave Hersh has a clear and vital message for startup founders, leaders, and stakeholders who find themselves stuck: All hope is not lost, but you must transform to survive. Bolstered by real-life stories of successful turnarounds, interviews with industry experts, and “hard lessons” from Dave’s own experiences, Reignition provides a clear and practical playbook for getting a company through the transition from stuck to great.

But where did all of these insights come from…? Well, that’s where we touch upon the aforementioned nostalgia. (And this is the part where your vision goes all wiggly as we think back.)

Dave Hersh was the CEO of Jive Software, a startup that was among the companies that inspired me to start writing this blog. Because they were a bit of an anomaly for Portland startups at the time. Or at least the world of Portland startups that I had known for the 12 years previous.

While all of the startups I had joined in the ’90s and early 2000s were out in the suburbs, Jive was part of a new generation of companies that were being built in Portland — and were early residents in the Portland State Business Accelerator. They had moved the startup TO Portland when many companies were being lured away. Jive had a young founding team. They were attracting name brand investors. And they were growing on what appeared to be very much a venture scale pace — something that Portland hadn’t really seen much of since the dotcom days.

Dave led the organization through much of that. Including some painful layoffs during the “RIP Good Times” downturn. And helping Jive recover. Until they began to retool for an IPO. And Dave was replaced by a new CEO. All of which, Dave recounts from his perspective in the book.

But that’s not all. He touches on his experience with other forays into the startup world. Like Ripfog. And other companies he worked with or acquired. And other founders who experienced similar times of being stuck. Like Puppet’s Luke Kanies.

And that’s what makes the book so meaningful. And the exercises and suggestions so poignant. This isn’t some suede-elbow-patched-business-school-prof’s assessment of how businesses should be run. This isn’t someone pontificating on ways to get unstuck. This is an author — and other contributors — who have lived through that and figured out how to survive.

But it’s also a cautionary tale. And “read it before it’s too late” sort of thing.

So whether you’re already mired in the gloom of being stuck and flailing or if you’re just hoping to avoid getting mired in the first place, I highly suggest you pick up your copy. Because, like it or not, if you continue to keep your company alive, it’s entirely likely that you will get stuck at some point. Or veer off the intended path. As so many have before. And these insights may very well be the key to helping you get out of it.

For more information or to order a copy, visit Reignition.

[Full disclosure: I received a free advanced copy of the book for review purposes.]

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