In 1998, the thought of launching a startup in San Antonio was ludicrous—but that didn't stop Rackspace's founders from planting their flag in the heart of Texas. Just over two decades later, the scrappy little underdog that no one believed in is a billion-dollar business with more than 6,000 employees worldwide. One of the first ten account managers hired at Rackspace was In 1998, the thought of launching a startup in San Antonio was ludicrous—but that didn't stop Rackspace's founders from planting their flag in the heart of Texas. Just over two decades later, the scrappy little underdog that no one believed in is a billion-dollar business with more than 6,000 employees worldwide. One of the first ten account managers hired at Rackspace was Lorenzo Gomez. He was there when the company became the host for YouTube and saw the decade-long stretch where each month brought one-hundred new hires. The rocket ship growth was exhilarating but exposed Rackspace's early flaws, including avoiding customers at all costs. When the mission shifted to becoming one of the world's greatest service companies, everything changed. Suddenly, Rackspace had a rallying cry—"fanatical support"—and a culture that few companies could match. The Rack We Built is Lorenzo's recollections from those days, told only as he can tell it: through stories packed with style, heart, and humor. With the principles in the book, you can create the type of culture that makes people want to volunteer their best.
The Rack We Built: The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly of Creating Company Culture
In 1998, the thought of launching a startup in San Antonio was ludicrous—but that didn't stop Rackspace's founders from planting their flag in the heart of Texas. Just over two decades later, the scrappy little underdog that no one believed in is a billion-dollar business with more than 6,000 employees worldwide. One of the first ten account managers hired at Rackspace was In 1998, the thought of launching a startup in San Antonio was ludicrous—but that didn't stop Rackspace's founders from planting their flag in the heart of Texas. Just over two decades later, the scrappy little underdog that no one believed in is a billion-dollar business with more than 6,000 employees worldwide. One of the first ten account managers hired at Rackspace was Lorenzo Gomez. He was there when the company became the host for YouTube and saw the decade-long stretch where each month brought one-hundred new hires. The rocket ship growth was exhilarating but exposed Rackspace's early flaws, including avoiding customers at all costs. When the mission shifted to becoming one of the world's greatest service companies, everything changed. Suddenly, Rackspace had a rallying cry—"fanatical support"—and a culture that few companies could match. The Rack We Built is Lorenzo's recollections from those days, told only as he can tell it: through stories packed with style, heart, and humor. With the principles in the book, you can create the type of culture that makes people want to volunteer their best.
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Shannon S –
The Rack We Built gives you the keys to the kingdom. What you choose to do with them, is up to you! Lorenzo has an incredible talent of bringing a unique voice to normally dry business material. He makes it relatable and accessible. He brought tremendous heart to his stories in his last two books and this one is no different. The Rack We Built does a fantastic job of outlining the psychology of corporate culture. It provides undeniable proof that understanding who you are as a business (behind cl The Rack We Built gives you the keys to the kingdom. What you choose to do with them, is up to you! Lorenzo has an incredible talent of bringing a unique voice to normally dry business material. He makes it relatable and accessible. He brought tremendous heart to his stories in his last two books and this one is no different. The Rack We Built does a fantastic job of outlining the psychology of corporate culture. It provides undeniable proof that understanding who you are as a business (behind closed doors) is ultimately a cornerstone to success. Your company culture is your identity – it’s more than your brand. It’s who you are when no one is looking. What are your unspoken rules? Do they align with the ones you state publicly? If they don’t, you have an inauthentic culture. People smell bullshit a mile away and when things don’t align – the cells in the body start to mutate and create a cancer. Lorenzo outlines how to see these devastating roadblocks before they derail you. It’s invaluable advice. We rarely learn as much from our successes as we do from our failures. Lorenzo is not afraid to share his personal stories with the world, so we gain the benefit of wisdom without experiencing the pain. The subtle humor peppered throughout his writing gives the illusion that you are just listening to a friend tell you stories; when in fact, he is sharing a treasure trove of business acumen that you would never get from a business degree. I recommend this book to CEOs and college students alike. It’s important for young adults entering the job market to understand where the pitfalls are – and recognize when someone is doing it right. It’s equally important for CEOs to stop and listen to the people that make the wheels go around. They are the ones that drive your success, whether you want to acknowledge it or not. I spent 25 years in corporate America. I can honestly say that the companies I worked for in that time got it right about 25% of the time. I think that’s a high number considering. When we got it right – it was like nothing else. We won constantly. It was FUN. In every single one of these experiences – culture was the ONE defining difference. It wasn’t financial. It wasn’t in the benefits. It was in the HOW the company chose to operate every day. Culture was the key to finding “nirvana”. That place of balance and high achievement. The Rack We Built gives you the keys to the kingdom. What you choose to do with them, is up to you!
Adam –
Rackspace is a technology company with 80% of employees saying it’s a great place to work (compared to 59% of average US firms). Rackspace’s culture from the very beginning has helped it to achieve rocket ship growth. In this book, Lorenzo (one of the first 100 employees hired at Rackspace) shares his stories and lessons of the culture and company. The stories told throughout this book are packed with style, heart and humour. Through the principles, this book can help you to create a culture wher Rackspace is a technology company with 80% of employees saying it’s a great place to work (compared to 59% of average US firms). Rackspace’s culture from the very beginning has helped it to achieve rocket ship growth. In this book, Lorenzo (one of the first 100 employees hired at Rackspace) shares his stories and lessons of the culture and company. The stories told throughout this book are packed with style, heart and humour. Through the principles, this book can help you to create a culture where individuals and the company thrive.
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