Eyeing An IPO, HubSpot ...

Marketing software company HubSpot has brought on a new leader today—Akamai CFO JD Sherman . Sherman has been chief financial officer at Akamai for over 6 years. Prior to Akamai, Sherman served as the chief financial executive of IBM’s $21 billion Systems and Technology Group. Over the course of 15 years at IBM, Sherman held senior executive positions in Finance, including Vice President, Finance and Planning, zSeries Server Division, and Assistant Controller of IBM Corporate Financial Strategy and Budgets. He also served as CFO for semiconductor company CommQuest, which was acquired by IBM in March of 1998 for $200 million. For background, HubSpot’s marketing software customers manage websites and generate leads. HubSpot, which just raised a massive $32 million from Sequoia Capital, Google Ventures, Salesforce and others, has been on a bit of an acquisition spree and just bought Performable and OneForty. Sherman’s addition represents more than just a talent win. His experience leading two public companies in the technology space could help HubSpot navigate a future in the public markets. The company says: We have been growing at record pace and want to build a company that can be successful in the public markets. HubSpot CEO and co-founder Brian Halligan explained: “We always thought HubSpot could be a large, publicly traded company anchoring the software industry in Boston. Hiring a COO with public company experience is the next step on that path…We are on the same fast growth path of all the successful SaaS companies, and need to start preparing for an IPO. I know JD brings the right experience to our management team.”

Sprint Sold 1.8 Million...

Sprint Nextel this morning released its earnings for the fourth quarter of 2011 as well as the full-year results. The company reported a net loss of $1.3 billion for the quarter, and $2.9 billion for the whole of 2011. The company reported total net subscriber additions of 1.6 million during the quarter, the best quarterly result in six years and bringing total subscribers to the highest level in Sprint’s history. Now serving roughly 55 million customers, the company said it is seeing “strong iPhone sales”, selling 1.8 million of the popular smartphone in Q4, of which 40 percent was to new customers. However, the iPhone launch also had a negative impact on its balance sheet, due to increased equipment net subsidies and sales expenses, the company said. From the press release: Strong revenue growth and cost management partially offset the impact of increased equipment net subsidies and sales expense associated with the successful launch of the iPhone. Forty percent of Sprint’s 1.8 million iPhone sales in the fourth quarter were to new customers. Based on internal estimates, including incremental costs associated with iPhone sales, the combined impact of iPhone and Network Vision costs reduced fourth quarter Adjusted OIBDA margin, which was 10.8 percent, by approximately 8.8 percentage points. Based on internal estimates, Sprint Nextel says the combined impact of iPhone and Network Vision costs reduced fourth quarter Adjusted OIBDA of $842 million by approximately $684 million. In case you were wondering: OIBDA is operating income (or loss) before depreciation and amortization. Adjusted OIBDA excludes severance, exit costs, and other special items.

Netflix To Debut Origin...

Netflix is launching a new original series next month called Lilyhammer , which will kick off the company’s foray into original programming for 2012. The series will star The Sopranos actor and E Street Band guitarist Steven Van Zandt in a “fish out of water” story that takes place in Norway. The story follows New York mobster Frank “The Fixer” Tagliano as he enters the federal witness protection program. He moves to Lillehammer – the Norwegian town that hosted the 1994 Winter Olympics. He calls it “Lilyhammer,” however, which is how the show gets its name. The series will include eight episodes in its first season, beginning February 6th in the U.S., Canada and Latin America. All episodes will be available for streaming on connected TVs, tablets, game consoles, computers and mobile phones – but not  on DVDs by mail. We reported in March 2011 that Netflix would be soon bankrolling original content . The company successfully outbid HBO and AMC for the rights to House Of Cards , an adaptation of the successful 1990 British miniseries. The show stars Academy Award winning actor Kevin Spacey, and is being produced David Fincher ( Fight Club, The Social Network ). Netflix confirmed that show will arrive in the U.S. and Canada by “late 2012.” In November, the company announced it would resurrect critics’ and fan fave Arrested Development , with episodes starting in 2013. Netflix had previously said that Lilyhammer would arrive in early 2012 and that at least two seasons have been planned. You can check out the trailer for the series here on YouTube .

10 Tips for Online Mark...

Marin Software recently shared a white paper titled "The Online Marketer's Guide for the Holidays: Ten Tips for a Successful 2011." It aims to put the 2010 holiday season into perspective and offer best practices for the 2011 holiday season.

Cup of Joe: With a Litt...

Just as a little bit of a warning: In this post I totally jump the shark and start singing kumbaya and giving everyone hugs like a dirty hippie. You have been warned. Man, I am happy! Like really happy. Why’s that? I am happy because the business I started 4 years ago is doing pretty good. But, more importantly, so many of my friend’s businesses are doing really well too. As an entrepreneur it feels good to see success both in yourself and in those working along side of you. I was talking about how good this all feels yesterday with my buddy, Alan Bleiweiss. After talking for a bit, Alan and I both decided that a central part of our success is our inclusion in such an amazing community. Both Alan and myself have prospered financially, socially, and yes even spiritually, through being part of such an amazing community. And the truly amazing part of all this, is that it really isn’t that hard . Now, don’t get me wrong, starting a business has been one of the most challenging things I have ever done. But, once I started being active in a community it got a lot easier. How To Prosper From A Community Cultivate Character – On the web we say “content is king”. In a community,  character is king. This simply means that you need to be a nice gal or guy. You don’t need to be funny. You don’t need to be flashy or loud. You just need to be nice. Think about the successful people you know, are they nice? Its just common sense. People like doing business with nice people. People like listening to nice people. People like hanging out with nice people. Be nice in everything you do, and mountains of opportunities will come your way. Be Open – Keep an open mind. Everyone in a community has different ideas. Embrace all of them for what they are, even the bad ones. Accept that you always should be learning. Ask questions and advice. People like helping, give them the chance. Understand and practice humility, because your ego can and will get in the way if you don’t. Give Back – If all you do is take and never give, you are no longer part of the community, you are a leech on its back. Don’t be a leech, leeches are disgusting. Be An Elevator – Demand high standards for yourself and those around you. When you speak to the community do it with purpose and a tone that doesn’t belittle those that are giving you their attention. You owe it to them to elevate the dialog. As you can see its not that hard. In fact, once you join a community and start meeting amazing people, it gets easier. Because that’s what a community is all about, learning from each other and sharing our experiences. It’s through these shared experiences that amazing opportunities and ideas are presented. But before you can take full advantage of a community, you need to join one, so stop reading blogs already and get out there and meet some people! [ photo credit ]