HBR's 10 Must Reads on Entrepreneurship and Startups

by Harvard Business Review, Steve Blank, Marc Andreessen

The best entrepreneurs balance brilliant business ideas with a rigorous commitment to serving their customers' needs.

If you read nothing else on entrepreneurship and startups, read these 10 articles by experts in the field. We've combed through hundreds of articles in the Harvard Business Review archive and selected the most important ones to help you build your company for enduring success.

Leading experts and practitioners such as Clayton Christensen, Marc Andreessen, and Reid Hoffman provide the insights and advice that will inspire you

Understand what makes entrepreneurial leaders tickKnow what matters in a great business planAdopt lean startup practices such as business model experimentationBe prepared for the race for scale in Silicon ValleyBetter understand the world of venture capital--and know what you'll get along with VC fundingTake an alternative approach to buy an existing business and run it as CEO

This collection of articles includes "Hiring an Entrepreneurial Leader," by Timothy Butler; "How to Write a Great Business Plan," by William A. Sahlman; "Why the Lean Start-Up Changes Everything," by Steve Blank; "The President of SRI Ventures on Bringing Siri to Life," by Norman Winarsky; "In Search of the Next Big Thing," an interview with Marc Andreessen by Adi Ignatius; "Six Myths About Venture Capitalists," by Diane Mulcahy; "Chobani's Founder on Growing a Start-Up Without Outside Investors," by Hamdi Ulukaya; "Network Effects Aren’t Enough," by Andrei Hagiu and Simon Rothman; "Blitzscaling," an interview with Reid Hoffman by Tim Sullivan; "Buying Your Way into Entrepreneurship," by Richard S. Ruback and Royce Yudkoff; and "The Founder's Dilemma," by Noam Wasserman.

Genres: Business, Entrepreneurship, Startup, Audiobook, Nonfiction, Management

191 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 23, 2018

Reviews

[Simona · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5 ⭐⭐⭐

A pretty solid collection of articles on entrepreneurship and startups.

My favorite articles were these:

- Why The Lean Start-Up Changes Everything by Steve Blank.
✅ (Loved all about the lean startup methodology: constantly testing a new hypothesis about a product/business, gathering early & frequent customer feedback, showcasing MVPs, favoring agile development vs. waterfall product development).

- Chobani's Founder on Growing a Start-Up Without Outside Investors by Hamdi Ulukaya.
✅ (A good insight on how to leverage debt for growth & keep a 100% stake in the equity).

- Blitzscaling interview with Reid Hoffman by Tim Sullivan.
✅ (Blitzscaling - moving super fast in 3 domains: growing revenue, growing customer base, and scaling the entire organization. Some negatives: big potential for multiple risks, toll on organizational happiness, and even failure).

- The Founder's Dilemma by Noam Wasserman.
✅ (Power vs. legacy in venture deals).

Other articles were also great; however, they provided a more general understanding of entrepreneurship and startups. For example, what to look for when hiring an entrepreneurial leader, myths about venture capitalists, how to write a good business plan (and why it shouldn't be a priority as most business plans & financial forecasts are pure imagination), and other general ideas.

Overall, it's a pretty solid book, as it introduces you to multiple concepts and gives ideas on what to read/research next.

[Lavdim Halimi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this: "Nevertheless, most business plans pour far too much ink on the numbers—and far too little on the information that really matters. Why? William Sahlman suggests that a great business plan is one that focuses on a series of questions. These questions relate to the four factors critical to the success of every new venture: the people, the opportunity, the context, and the possibilities for both risk and reward. The questions about people revolve around three issues: What do they know? Whom do they know? And, How well are they known? As for the opportunity, the plan should focus on two questions: Is the market for the venture’s product or service large or rapidly growing (or preferably both)? and Is the industry structurally attractive? Then, in addition to demonstrating an understanding of the context in which their venture will operate, entrepreneurs should make clear how...."

[Austin Carroll Keeley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some excellent essays in here that are helpful to the novice entrepreneur or the student. I also appreciated the clear contrast between articles (example: juxtaposing an interview with Marc Andreessen with “Six Myths About VCs” or “Lean Start Up Changes Everything” with “How to Write a Great Business Plan”). In the end, it presents a cursory introduction to entrepreneurs and is an entry point for deeper study and practice.

Great case on Chobani. Enjoyed the overview of quagmires faced by platforms in “Network Effects are not Enough”. “Founder’s Dilemma” is insightful. “Buying Your Way into Entrepreneurship” outlines the path I am most likely to take if I go entrepreneurial.

[Ryan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Surprisingly weak for a publication of Harvard Business Review's caliber. I've been reading a wide variety of business books that specifically focus on entrepreneurship this year, and this doesn't offer anything I couldn't learn more effectively elsewhere (like from Steve Blank). Or that I haven't heard already. The book was very, very dry. And that's coming from someone who thinks reading books about the United States Congress is fun.

[Carlos Aragón · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is 6 out of 10 amazing articles that definitely give you a bigger scope of the entrepreneur world. Different articles explain the processes and the difficulties to grow the startup.

I have read couple books about startups and plenty content I had already read knew about it; however, there are couple of articles that gave new reading and learning horizons.

If you like the entrepreneur world I definitely embrace you to read this book.

[Ben · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ten articles (two interviews with the bonus of the book) about entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship as well as information on startups, venture capitalists, angel investors, founders/CEOs, etc. As an outsider/layman I found it all informative and interesting and lots of new information that can be used for later years (in attempts to open my own business some day perhaps, who knows?).

[Chris Sheffield · Rating 3 out of 5]

Expected HBR articles and essays to be informative and eye-opening. I was very bored and let down with the majority of what I digested. A few decent essays saved this review from a 2-star rating.

Personally I've read better things online about entrepreneurship and startups which is very disappointing.

3/5 is a fair score.

[Eugene · Rating 3 out of 5]

2 essays out of 10 are very good, and 2 more were alright. The rest are not bad and not super good either from the perspective of new principles.
This is ok book for people who already read a lot on a subject, and will be either good or very bad for people who are just starting to work on foundation.

[Fardan Khalid · Rating 5 out of 5]

Information packed short articles on various aspects of success and failures of start-ups. Closely related to experiences that can be helpful for people looking to take the enterpreneurial route. Highly recommended.

[Fernando Vargas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very different articles, all of them mindblowing and lots of lessons in each. Some lessons contradict each other, which is wonderful for critical thinking and getting what you need for your specific situation

[A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most of the articles in this book are pretty good

[Yusuf · Rating 3 out of 5]

Many articles in the book are so old and saying nothing interesting.

[Amy Young · Rating 2 out of 5]

On the new decades doorstep, know that most of these articles are from 2013. Some still hold relevance, but in startups fast-changing landscape, best to keep pace with podcasts instead.

[Alexander Von kaldenberg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Should have read before I started fundraising and building a company 😅. That being said it’s an easy quick read and some good tips. Great airport pickup...which is what it was.

[Chloe · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Mason]

I don't think I'm quite in the right place for this one yet. Hopefully, in the future I will be able to revisit and give an accurate accounting.

[Sam Cullen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this little book. I don’t know much about the startup world so most of this was new to me, but I could see the short articles not being useful to someone with experience

[Nala Pierożańska · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good summary of Lean Startup concept in 10 pages or so, capturing its essence, while the original is 200+ page bloat.

[Jordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection of essays is basically dated at this point. Although it's easy to read and somewhat informative, you are probably better served reading nfx and paul graham articles.

[Victor Volpe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good collection of articles. Many of them inspiring. Some o of them actionable. All of them relevant somewhat.