Scaling a Platform for Device-Agnostic Web Interfaces: Michael Mullany, CEO of Sencha (Part 1)

Michael Mullany is the CEO of Sencha, a leading provider of open-source web application frameworks and tools to major enterprises and developers and a leader in HTML5. Michael has held product and executive marketing roles at influential Silicon Valley startups Netscape, Loudcloud, and VMware. At virtualization leader VMware, he served as the vice president of

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Turning a Services Company to a $30M Product Company: Bridgeline Digital CEO Thomas Massie (Part 7)

Sramana: When it comes to equity strategy things, can get very tricky, very fast. Most entrepreneurs have no clue how to build an equity strategy. Thomas Massie: The first step might be friends and family, followed by angels. I have seen a shift in venture capital which is trending towards less risk and less venture.

Turning a Services Company to a $30M Product Company: Bridgeline Digital CEO Thomas Massie (Part 6)

Sramana: Have you taken any outside financing, or have you grown the company strictly from internal cash flow? Thomas Massie: When we first started the company, I and some investors I was involved with at a previous venture put a few million dollars into a hat. That created the growth capital required to get the

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Turning a Services Company to a $30M Product Company: Bridgeline Digital CEO Thomas Massie (Part 5)

Sramana: You have made a successful from a non-repeatable services business to something that is highly repeatable and scalable. The product now generates the services, and you are obviously the best capable to provide services around your business. Thomas Massie: Absolutely. Nobody knows our product better than us. We are able to tailor every solution

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Turning a Services Company to a $30M Product Company: Bridgeline Digital CEO Thomas Massie (Part 4)

Sramana: How do you compete in deals? What market do you target? Thomas Massie: We offer a mid-market product. Our customers have revenues of a billion dollars or more, but our sweet spot is companies in the $25 million and up revenue range. Sramana: In terms of the competitive landscape, whom do you compete with

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Turning a Services Company to a $30M Product Company: Bridgeline Digital CEO Thomas Massie (Part 3)

Sramana: A services-based business is a good business to bootstrap because customers are paying for all of the services. How long did that mode of doing business go on? Thomas Massie: We were a services company for our first six years. Sramana: What kind of revenue level did you reach in those first six years?

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Turning a Services Company to a $30M Product Company: Bridgeline Digital CEO Thomas Massie (Part 2)

Sramana: By 1999 you had two successful IPOs, and the dot-com market was booming. What had you learned up to that point in your entrepreneurial career? Thomas Massie: I had learned it was important to stick to the basics. You had to stick to core things like market need, and once you had validated market

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Turning a Services Company to a $30M Product Company: Bridgeline Digital CEO Thomas Massie (Part 1)

Thomas Massie is the chairman of the board, president, and chief executive officer of Bridgeline Digital, company that enables its customers to maximize the performance of their mission-critical websites, intranets, and online stores. Prior to BridgeLine he was a member of the board of directors of MapInfo Corp, a publicly developer of location intelligence software

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