Nice clean copy with no highlighting or writing. We take pride in our accurate descriptions. Satisfaction Guaranteed. Nice clean copy with no highlighting or writing. We take pride in our accurate descriptions. Satisfaction Guaranteed. See less

FREE delivery April 2 - 11 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35

Or fastest delivery April 2 - 9

$$11.70 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details

Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.

Enhancements you chose aren't available for this seller. Details

${cardName} not available for the seller you chose

${cardName} unavailable for quantities greater than ${maxQuantity}.

Sold by Jenson Books Inc and Fulfilled by Amazon.

Other sellers on Amazon

New & Used (117) from $2.07 + $3.98 shipping

Why should people read "Behind the Cloud"?Merchant Video

Image Unavailable

Image not available for
Color:

To view this video download Flash Player

3 VIDEOS

Follow the authors

Behind the Cloud: The Untold Story of How Salesforce.com Went from Idea to Billion-Dollar Company-and Revolutionized an Industry 1st Edition

by Marc Benioff (Author), Carlye Adler (Author)

4.4 972 ratings

See all formats and editions

{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"$11.70","priceAmount":11.70,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"11","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"70","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"5jS6VNxiCtAleGnNS9BeFL2RVR%2B32RJyV8krsmr%2F45lUJKna2uFCoy9lVT46fvTJWqP01iYblKaDTLDkyYAS%2B7dJb9WCapYTJqHLHkZoSKCHmg1NRHZBI3Q1heqI7ReSirwQrKsj2gVBJZQ9Xqrc3OATfffVb6Xw%2Bsj0OswuxgDt556TulNrAA%3D%3D","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}, {"displayPrice":"$7.98","priceAmount":7.98,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"7","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"98","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"5jS6VNxiCtAleGnNS9BeFL2RVR%2B32RJyYo4DDi%2BO33z58PVSFUiC6MyeKN9dFqVc57swjAmRzvuw9gWpTT6qFkTFhObjYmGb%2BVh2%2Br553veuQ5Y1Eg2uSFEMhBcimIOFuSigR4SVeVZZgZe3%2BosM%2Bc67gB4T2jL24CbUFNvzqyhJZ%2BRpD82Qhmop60VPZvLH","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"USED","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":1}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world's fastest growing software company in less than a decade? For the first time, Marc Benioff, the visionary founder, chairman and CEO of salesforce.com, tells how he and his team created and used new business, technology, and philanthropic models tailored to this time of extraordinary change. Showing how salesforce.com not only survived the dotcom implosion of 2001, but went on to define itself as the leader of the cloud computing revolution and spark a $46-billion dollar industry, Benioff's story will help business leaders and entrepreneurs stand out, innovate better, and grow faster in any economic climate.

In Behind the Cloud, Benioff shares the strategies that have inspired employees, turned customers into evangelists, leveraged an ecosystem of partners, and allowed innovation to flourish.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

How did salesforce.com grow from a start-up in a rented apartment into the world's fastest growing software company in less than a decade?

For the first time, Marc Benioff, the visionary founder, chairman, and CEO of salesforce.com, tells how he and his team created and used new business, technology, and philanthropic models tailored to this time of extraordinary change. Showing how salesforce.com not only survived the dot-com implosion of 2001, but also went on to define itself as the leader of the cloud computing revolution and spark a 46 billion-dollar industry, Benioff's story will help business leaders and entrepreneurs stand out, innovate better, and grow faster in any economic climate.

In Behind the Cloud, Benioff shares the strategies that have inspired employees, turned customers into evangelists, leveraged an ecosystem of partners, and allowed innovation to flourish. Benioff shows how salesforce.com pioneered a simple idea (delivering business applications as a service over the Internet) to change the way all businesses use software applications and, ultimately, change the way the software industry works.

With Marc Benioff's candid, unconventional advice and unusual call-out lessons from the Salesforce.com Playbook including Benioff's proprietary management tool, V2MOM any business can go against the grain, rapidly change the game, and learn how to achieve lasting success.

From the Back Cover

Praise for Behind the Cloud

"Salesforce.com and Google share a vision for how the cloud will revolutionize computing. Behind the Cloud gives us a rare glimpse at the development of one of the most important trends in business today." Eric Schmidt, CEO, Google

"In Behind the Cloud, Marc Benioff takes us through the ups and downs of building one of the most extraordinary businesses of our time and reveals the tactics that gave salesforce.com its amazing edge. This book will show you how to focus your vision, think differently, align your organization and transform your business and your life." Anthony Robbins, author, Awaken the Giant Within and Unlimited Power

"Reading this book, I laughed out loud many times as Marc told his story, a story of great ideas, thunder-stealing pranks, and a world consciousness that is at the heart of salesforce.com." Neil Young

"Reading, but also afterwards, practicing the 111 plays described by Marc Benioff opens the door for entrepreneurial success much better than any MBA program." Klaus Schwab, founder, World Economic Forum, and cofounder, Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship

"Cisco and salesforce.com share a vision of how the network is the platform to transform business. In his book, Benioff outlines how salesforce.com has used cloud computing to disrupt and reshape the enterprise software space. It is clear that we are just beginning to understand the potential of networked business and the future benefits and productivity gains of the next phase of the Internet." John Chambers, chairman and CEO, Cisco

"Behind the Cloud demonstrates what happens when companies act as good citizens. Everyone from employees to shareholders to the community wins. Get ready to be inspired and make a difference." Charles Moore, executive director, Committee EncouragingCorporate Philanthropy

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ 0470521163
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Wiley-Blackwell; 1st edition (October 19, 2009)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780470521168
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0470521168
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.1 x 1.2 x 9.2 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #209,810 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #178 in Business & Organizational Learning
- #387 in Company Business Profiles (Books)
- #629 in Sales & Selling (Books)

Customer Reviews:
4.4 972 ratings

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Upload your video

About the authors

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Carlye Adler
Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.
Carlye Adler is an award winning journalist and coauthor of many books, including four New York Times bestsellers. Her writing has been published in BusinessWeek, FastCompany, Fortune, Forbes, Newsweek, TIME and Wired. She lives in Connecticut with her husband, two daughters, and skateboarding bulldog.
For more information, please visit www.carlyeadler.com or www.caspermediagroup.com
See more on the author's page
Marc R. Benioff
Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.
Marc Benioff is chairman and CEO of salesforce.com. He founded the company in 1999 with a vision to create an on-demand information management service that would replace traditional enterprise software technology. Benioff is regarded as the leader of what he has termed "The End of Software," the now-proven belief that multi-tenant, cloud computing applications democratize information by delivering immediate benefits at reduced risks and costs. He reveals the story of salesforce.com--and offers unconventional tools for any business to achieve lasting success--in the national best-selling book, Behind the Cloud.
Under Benioff's direction, salesforce.com has grown from a groundbreaking idea into a publicly traded company that is the leader in enterprise cloud computing. For its revolutionary approach, salesforce.com has received a Wall Street Journal Technology Innovation Award, been lauded as one of BusinessWeek's Top 100 Most Innovative Companies, named No. 7 on The Wired 40, and selected for the past two years as a Top Ten Disrupter by Forbes. The product has won the Software & Information Industry Association Codie Award for Best CRM for the past six years, and the Codie Award for Best On-Demand Platform in 2007, as well as multiple "Editor's Choice" designations from PC Magazine.
Benioff has been widely recognized for pioneering innovation with honors such as the 2007 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year, the SDForum Visionary Award, and Alumni Entrepreneur of the Year by the University of Southern California (USC) Marshall School of Business. The San Francisco Business Times named him as its 2009 Executive of the Year. Additionally, Benioff has been ranked named No. 7 on the Top 100 Most Influential People in IT survey by eWEEK, one of the Top 10 Greatest IT Chief Executives by VNU, and among the top 10 most visionary CEOs in the technology industry by InternetNews.com. He was appointed by President George W. Bush as the co-chairman of the President's Information Technology Advisory Committee and served from 2003-2005, overseeing the publishing of critical reports on health care information technology, cybersecurity, and computational sciences.
Throughout his career, Benioff has also been committed to using information technology to produce positive social change. In 2000, he launched the Salesforce.com Foundation--now a multimillion-dollar global organization--establishing the "1-1-1 model," whereby the company contributes one percent of profits, one percent of equity, and one percent of employee hours back to the communities it serves. Benioff authored The Business of Changing the World, in which 20 great leaders reveal how businesses can go beyond writing a check and leverage the full scope of their resources to make a difference. Compassionate Capitalism, also authored by Benioff, is the first-ever best-practices guide for corporate philanthropy that illustrates the success of the integrated model. Acknowledging his commitment to building partnerships between business and society to improve the state of the world, the members of the World Economic Forum named Benioff as one of its Young Global Leaders. In 2007 the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy presented Benioff with the coveted Excellence in Corporate Philanthropy Award and a year later welcomed Benioff to its distinguished board of directors. In 2008, for his thought and action leadership in corporate responsibility, CRO Magazine named Benioff CEO of the Year.
Prior to launching salesforce.com, Benioff, a 30-year veteran of the software industry, spent 13 years at Oracle Corporation from 1986-1999. In 1984, he worked as an assembly language programmer in Apple Computer's Macintosh Division. He founded entertainment software company Liberty Software in 1979 when he was 15 years old. Benioff received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Southern California in 1986.
See more on the author's page

Customer reviews

972 global ratings

How customer reviews and ratings work

Review this product

Write a customer review

Customers say

Customers find the book easy to read and interesting. They find it useful for anyone thinking about business or entering an advancing market. The insights are valuable and inspiring. Readers appreciate the straightforward, practical chapter structure that allows them to pick it up and put it down as needed.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

Select to learn more

Readability Value for money Insight Ease of use Philanthropy Chapter structure

62 customers mention "Readability"62 positive0 negative

Customers find the book easy to read and engaging. They find it a valuable resource for entrepreneurs, well-written with clear language. The text is organized and shows inside information about Salesforce.com. Readers appreciate the thought-through content and how the author skillfully conveys his story.

"...Great book. Very well worded (no siliconite verbiage), co-authored with an excellent writer, Carlye Adler." Read more

"...While there is a lot of content in this book, that is noteworthy at a high level, I would caution new entrepreneurs to seek a more modernized,..." Read more

"...the most interesting part of the book and makes it a must read for any budding entrepreneur...." Read more

"...to get more information on Cloud computing, my mistake... the writing is just ok, the story of the company is interesting, especially their climb to..." Read more

53 customers mention "Value for money"53 positive0 negative

Customers find the book useful for anyone interested in business. They say it's an excellent reference for entrepreneurs entering advancing markets and a road map to doing things right. The book offers valuable insights on both the birth of an industry and the real world's practical guide. Readers appreciate the insightful wisdom distilled into a few words, candid discussions regarding business challenges, and industry observations.

"...This section is a must read for entrepreneurs of for-profit companies, of course, but also for any executive director of any foundation who does not..." Read more

"...Like many success stories, it lists a playbook of strategies, policies, and decisions that the author believes to be the driving forces being their..." Read more

"Really profound, lots of wisdom distilled into a few words...." Read more

"...But Benioff's is the real world's practical guide. A playbook by playbook example. This is where the rubber hits the road!..." Read more

48 customers mention "Insight"48 positive0 negative

Customers find the book insightful and useful. They appreciate the classic mix of inspiration and motivation, as well as plenty of examples. The author mixes each story with clear advice about creating, building, and growing a company. They find the story behind Salesforce and its growth into the company illuminating.

"This book provided a very positive, insightful story behind Salesforce and its growth into the company that it is today (well, if today were 2009)...." Read more

"...This is the most interesting part of the book and makes it a must read for any budding entrepreneur...." Read more

"Really profound, lots of wisdom distilled into a few words...." Read more

"...computing, my mistake... the writing is just ok, the story of the company is interesting, especially their climb to stardom...." Read more

8 customers mention "Ease of use"8 positive0 negative

Customers find the book easy to use. They say it's a straightforward account of how Benioff founded and part practical how-to instruction manual.

"...the style of the book are also particularly pleasing and make for an easy and exciting read...." Read more

"...It is a very easy and enjoyable book to read...." Read more

"An easy and interesting read. The book is written for new entrepreneurs but anyone who works for a company can appreciate the advice...." Read more

"Practical, straightforward play-by-play account of how Benioff founded and led Salesforce.com into the phenomenon it is today: What he and his team..." Read more

6 customers mention "Philanthropy"6 positive0 negative

Customers find the philanthropy chapter in the book engaging. They appreciate the Corporate Philanthropy Playbook and how it measures success through revenue and philanthropying. The generous nature of the company is described as adding value for others and enabling growth, profit, and spiritual direction.

"...There is one section of the book I especially like: The Corporate Philanthropy Playbook...." Read more

"...to build something when you know it will leave a legacy and add value for others due to the generous nature of the endeavor...." Read more

"...I was particularly struck by the Philanthropy chapter - my cofounder and I liked the 1-1-1 model..." Read more

"...their plans for building a global enterprise that measures its success in revenue and philanthropy ." Read more

4 customers mention "Chapter structure"4 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's chapter structure. They find the chapters short and practical, with great insights into Salesforce's history. The book is broken down into many "plays" so readers can focus on the ones they want to.

"...I liked the short chapter structure - it allows you to pick it up and put it down when you need to - taking lessons when you have the time...." Read more

"I like how everything is structured in plays...." Read more

"...Short and practical chapters, great insight into the history of Salesforce. My whole summary (in Czech) at [...]" Read more

"Easy to read but very insightful and useful. Broken down into many 'plays' so that you can focus on the ones you want to. Inspiring and funny...." Read more

Reviews with images

See all photos

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews. Please reload the page.

Marylene Delbourg-Delphis
Inspirational and useful for entrepreneurs
Reviewed in the United States on October 17, 2009
Verified Purchase

salesforce (with a lowercase as was the mania at the turn of the century) is, of course, a major industry success, but also the symbol of a timely, intelligent strategy adjustment at a time of crisis and craziness, the [...] bust. Great ideas and products that are useful to people always manage to weather bad storms. Sure, Marc Benioff, the CEO founder of the company must have freaked out at the 2001 meltdown, but he lost neither his cool nor his faith on his "End of software" motto (a striking way to impose the then novel software as a service -- SaaS -- model). His obstinacy paid off: The company went public in June 2004.

Not all entrepreneurs have Marc's chutzpah, but his 111 recommendations to entrepreneurs will all be extremely precious to anyone. Sure, you may not dispatch a commando unit on bicycle to circle the Los Angeles Convention Center at a Microsoft launch event and instead settle for less spectacular tactics, but the message is clear: if you are an underdog, you can't be too subtle either, and you have to find a way to force the big guys into adopting your message. Regardless of who they are. Frankly, when Tom Siebel from Siebel Systems started to talk about software-as-a-service after he acquired Upshot, most of us smiled at the recollection that only two years before, Siebel had been repeating that SaaS was the type of stuff for [...] kids. "Don't fear competition: welcome it and leverage it," Marc concludes - provided, though, that you keep it under tight control.

And you do so by maintaining an all-out high energy level. High energy (sometimes high voltage) is the tone of the book. It has a lot to do with Marc's personal style. But guess what? Low-energy doesn't work. So find what your own high-energy level can be, and make sure that your employees and your customers turn into fervent evangelists of the company anywhere in the world. Meanwhile, enjoy dozens of great anecdotes.

There is one section of the book I especially like: The Corporate Philanthropy Playbook. This section is a must read for entrepreneurs of for-profit companies, of course, but also for any executive director of any foundation who does not want a foundation to stagnate or simply "survive": "Innovative nonprofits have historically achieved true sustainability by embracing a revenue-generating business model."

Great book. Very well worded (no siliconite verbiage), co-authored with an excellent writer, Carlye Adler.

Read more

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Report
Brian Bowden
A positive take on entrepreneurship with some caveats
Reviewed in the United States on May 1, 2021
Verified Purchase
This book provided a very positive, insightful story behind Salesforce and its growth into the company that it is today (well, if today were 2009). Like many success stories, it lists a playbook of strategies, policies, and decisions that the author believes to be the driving forces being their success.

The problem with such playbooks is that they are often heavily influenced by survivorship bias. An entrepreneur succeeds at something, believes they know why they succeeded, and then use that insight to pass on advice to others. Unfortunately, much of what works for one company during a specific time period often does not work for most others. While there is a lot of content in this book, that is noteworthy at a high level, I would caution new entrepreneurs to seek a more modernized, realistic guide more fitting for 2021. One such book is “Lean Startup,” which is also written by the founder of a software company, but it is also much more open about dealing with major struggles.

As an entrepreneur myself in the startup space for the past 10 years, I can vouch for the fact that grit in the face of uncertainty and coping with financial struggle is by far the most difficult challenge that normal entrepreneurs face. This book will not help you in this area of your development. Salesforce was very fortunate with its early profitability, but most startups will need to spend a great deal of energy staying afloat, learning to survive before they can thrive.

Read more

6 people found this helpful

Helpful

Report
Nona
For entrepreneurs and information industry professionals
Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2013
Verified Purchase
SaaS. Software as a Service. This comes as an disruptive technology when the enterprises were spending megabucks on software to roll out to maximize their efficiency. The initial software licenses and the hardware, in order to host the solution, was compounded by the efforts spent in adapting the software to the specific needs of the buyer. At a time like this, Marc Benioff was bold enough to pursue his vision of "No Software". Technically incorrect, the idea was to host the application and provide access to enterprises to use the hosted application to remove the hardware costs from the equation. If this was not enough, they were going to charge the customer a monthly subscription fees similar to a pay-as-you-go mode.

We all know how the vision turned out. I am talking about the company founded by Marc Benioff. salesforce.com. But do we know what were driving factors and deciding events behind the success story of salesforce.com. This is what the author and founder of salesforce.com, Marc Benioff, tells in this book. With a dream to change the world and limited resources, salesforce.com innovated to become a market pioneer and also leader. Humble beginning with respect to resources(both manpower and capital), they set out for a David-versus-Goliath battle against Siebel. Instead of building ground up, they capitulated on the successful and time-proven technologies available. When it comes to attract attention to their product, they came out with out-of-box ideas. All these are interesting and also inspiring to read.

Starting from basics and turning successful was just one of the hurdles. But when salesforce.com became successful, the company as a whole has to adapt without changing their core values. Sometimes after defeating Goliath, David turns into Goliath. Instead of transforming into the undesirable giant, salesforce.com assimilates some of the good characteristics of Goliath as part of the adaptation process. When salesforce.com files for IPO, there are other challenges they face. They create a new market which did not exist before. Being the first means there are no written set of rules. This is the most interesting part of the book and makes it a must read for any budding entrepreneur. Disruptive technologies also has lot of challenges in addition to creating and capturing the market.

This books is recommended for two types of people. The first type are entrepreneurs(even if you are already one or you hope to be one in the future) and the second type are people associated with information industry. For the first type, there are a lot of lessons to be learnt from Marc Benioff's experience while for the second type, it is a history lesson.

Read more

8 people found this helpful

Helpful

Report
Matt Mullenweg
I wish I had read his earlier
Reviewed in the United States on November 8, 2024
Verified Purchase
Really profound, lots of wisdom distilled into a few words. Though the environment has changed drastically, the core lessons are still just as relevant today.

Read more

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Report

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English

De kaft van het boek was vies en ik krijg het niet schoon
Beschadigde kaft
Reviewed in the Netherlands on July 29, 2023
Verified Purchase

Read more

De kaft van het boek was vies en ik krijg het niet schoon

Beschadigde kaft

Reviewed in the Netherlands on July 29, 2023

Images in this review

Report
Translate review to English
Bruno
Nice design and awesome content
Reviewed in Germany on November 7, 2022
Verified Purchase
Great book - I was looking for a book about Marketing and Saas, and this book provided me with great insihgt. In these pages, Marc Benioff, one of the founders of Salesforce, tells his experience as an entrepreneur, who used to have a corporate life, and then decides to start a Saas company looking for something more rewarding. In his journey as an entrepreneur, he implemented a number of several innovative marketing strategies that every person interested in building a company should know. Totally recommended!

Read more

Bruno

Nice design and awesome content

Reviewed in Germany on November 7, 2022
Great book - I was looking for a book about Marketing and Saas, and this book provided me with great insihgt. In these pages, Marc Benioff, one of the founders of Salesforce, tells his experience as an entrepreneur, who used to have a corporate life, and then decides to start a Saas company looking for something more rewarding. In his journey as an entrepreneur, he implemented a number of several innovative marketing strategies that every person interested in building a company should know. Totally recommended!

Images in this review

Report
Leonardo Oliveira
ótima leitura profissional
Reviewed in Brazil on May 5, 2020
Verified Purchase
recomendável para quem quiser entender e aprender sobre o mundo SaaS

Read more
Report
Translate review to English
praveen
Must read for every entrepreneur
Reviewed in India on October 28, 2018
Verified Purchase
Though someone of the points author talks about don't apply to current generation but overall it's a must read for every entrepreneur

Read more
Report
Julia Sandler
A billionaire who has lost touch with reality
Reviewed in Australia on May 9, 2024
Verified Purchase
This book is targeted at entrepreneurs who have raised multiple millions - a small group.

Benioff chastises startups who try to copy larger companies’ launch events with low budgets. Of course, Salesforce’s launch event only cost $600k!

Read more
Report

See more reviews

Follow the authors

Behind the Cloud: The Untold Story of How Salesforce.com Went from Idea to Billion-Dollar Company-and Revolutionized an Industry 1st Edition

Purchase options and add-ons

Frequently bought together

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

From the Back Cover

About the Author

Product details

Videos

Videos for this product

Videos for this product

Videos for this product

About the authors

Carlye Adler

Marc R. Benioff

Customer reviews

Review this product

Customers say

Select to learn more

Images in this review

Reviews with images

Eating while packing the book

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews. Please reload the page.

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspirational and useful for entrepreneurs

4.0 out of 5 stars A positive take on entrepreneurship with some caveats

5.0 out of 5 stars For entrepreneurs and information industry professionals

5.0 out of 5 stars I wish I had read his earlier

Top reviews from other countries

1.0 out of 5 stars Beschadigde kaft

Beschadigde kaft

Images in this review

5.0 out of 5 stars Nice design and awesome content

Nice design and awesome content

Images in this review

5.0 out of 5 stars ótima leitura profissional

5.0 out of 5 stars Must read for every entrepreneur

2.0 out of 5 stars A billionaire who has lost touch with reality

Inspirational and useful for entrepreneurs

A positive take on entrepreneurship with some caveats

For entrepreneurs and information industry professionals

I wish I had read his earlier

Beschadigde kaft

Nice design and awesome content

ótima leitura profissional

Must read for every entrepreneur

A billionaire who has lost touch with reality