George A. Santino retired as a partner at Microsoft, but before that he did just about everything — from fast-food restaurant management to shoe repair to product testing. He interviewed at Microsoft four times before getting hired. In his new autobiography, Get Back Up, Santino details how life knocked him down and all the ways he [...]
One of the really cool things I’ve been able to do over the years in this job is speak with people who played a role in shaping the software industry. Those are invariably fascinating conversations, so I had very high expectations when I was invited to speak with George A. Santino, who retired as partner [...]
The 100th running of the Indianapolis 500 is coming up soon and in the days leading up to the race, the world’s best drivers will be competing in time trials to determine who will start in the coveted pole position. Why is it so important to start in first place? After all, the winner of [...]
You’ve heard you are what you eat, well we believe that you are what you read. Teach a CEO presents lessons from our bookshelf on how you can improve and grow your venture. We have taken nuggets from our library and provide them for entrepreneurs and business owners. Entrepreneurship is more than a job. It is an [...]
Radio interview on Intrepid Now with Todd Schnick. Discussion guide from my conversation with George A. Santino: 1. Just because you start with nothing, doesn’t mean you’ll end up with nothing. 2. It doesn’t matter where you start, just as long as you do start. What really matters is where you finish. 3. Even when faced [...]
When someone makes more money than you. That’s a very simple definition of income inequality. But is that a bad thing? We’ve been hearing a lot about income inequality this election cycle, from politicians on both sides of the aisle. They talk about how unfair it is that the CEO of the company makes 100 [...]
Many dream of career heights but get tripped up along the way. How to keep climbing: Aspire. “Get Back Up” author George Santino rose through the ranks of Microsoft (MSFT) before retiring as a partner in 2012. It was a long way from the South Philly projects where he grew up the son of an [...]
The first time I sent my résumé to Microsoft, I got the standard, "Thanks, but no thanks," form letter within just a few days. So I gave them a call. I just wanted to know why I'd been rejected. When I spoke to the human resources contact at Microsoft whom I'd sent my application to, [...]
One of my first startup investments was my most successful. Not because I made any money—in fact I lost the entire investment—but because I learned so much about what I should and shouldn’t do. Read More
Nobody ever handed George A. Santino anything. His family was on welfare. He can tell you, firsthand, what government cheese tastes like and the ends of bologna when bologna itself is too expensive to feed a family of nine. Read More
