Building The Small Business CRM Solution: CircleDog CEO Charlie Crystle (Part 5)

SM: I have done three startups myself, the first of which I started while I was at MIT. I came out here as soon as possible to be a part of this ecosystem.

CC: It is an amazing ecosystem. Every time I am out here I am reminded how isolated we are. >>>

Building The Small Business CRM Solution: CircleDog CEO Charlie Crystle (Part 4)

SM: I know you sold ChiliSoft to Cobalt, but didn’t they get purchased by Sun?

CC: They were purchased by Sun about five months later. Sun had to have known about the purchase ahead of acquiring Cobalt. It is part of their platform now. >>>

Building The Small Business CRM Solution: CircleDog CEO Charlie Crystle (Part 3)

SM: What was the evolution of ChiliSoft?

CC: We started with the store and after a year left that business. The retail level was just too tough at the time. Software was way too hard for most people because it required DOS and Windows 3.1 had a terrible interface. >>>

Building The Small Business CRM Solution: CircleDog CEO Charlie Crystle (Part 2)

SM: You say you see opportunities where others do not, but you also have the guts to pursue them.

CC: I suppose that is true. Success or failure, you have to try. I think that entrepreneurs are naturally optimistic. We see a better place and love solving problems. >>>

Designs of The Week: The Best Interactive Car Websites

By guest authors Charles W. Bush and Kathy Hwang of 3Strand Innovation, a brand, design and business consultancy

The idea for this article started when we scoured the web for the best interactive and engaging website designs. When we were done, we realized many of the good ones were automobile websites. And as the public conversation about the American auto industry is focused on the bailout drama surrounding the Big 3 auto companies, we were pleased to see that Jeep and Ford have made strides in their experience design (if not in their vehicles, at least through their websites). >>>

Building The Small Business CRM Solution: CircleDog CEO Charlie Crystle (Part 1)

Charlie Crystle is passionate about music, nonprofit institutions and entrepreneurism. He has founded several companies including his current effort, CircleDog. His past ventures include ChiliSoft, which was purchased by Sun. He focuses on product usability, economics and policy, all of which are themes which can be found in each of his successful ventures.

SM: Let’s go back to your beginning. Where are you from? What kind of family did you grow up in?

CC: I am from Lancaster, Pennsylvania. My father was a doctor. Lancaster is largely a farming community but the town itself is 60,000 and the county is 450,000, so it is not too small. It is a religiously conservative part of the country. >>>

Accidental Entrepreneur: Cryptography Research President Paul Kocher (Part 7)

SM: With 23 people employed, how do you target revenues?

PK: My goal is $4 million per employee annually. That is what we have been shooting for long-term as we build things. >>>

Accidental Entrepreneur: Cryptography Research President Paul Kocher (Part 6)

SM: What do your IP licensing structures look like?

PK: My favorite is to go to someone who is losing a ton of money. We only get paid if we solve their problem. Customers like that because it is a no-risk proposition for them and they clearly know what their problem is. >>>