
Alisa Cohn's essential playbook transforms founders into CEOs with battle-tested strategies. Praised as "the most complete startup leadership book" by industry experts, it offers the psychological tools that helped countless entrepreneurs navigate the treacherous journey from brilliant idea to sustainable business empire.
Alisa Cohn, acclaimed executive coach and award-winning author of From Start-Up to Grown-Up, is a globally recognized authority in leadership development and organizational scaling.
Drawing from her experience coaching C-suite leaders at startups like Venmo, Etsy, and DraftKings, as well as Fortune 500 giants including Microsoft, Google, and Pfizer, her book combines practical frameworks with real-world insights for navigating business growth.
A Cornell MBA graduate, Cohn serves as executive coach for Cornell’s NYC tech incubator and guest lectures at Harvard and Cornell. Her expertise is regularly featured in Harvard Business Review, Forbes, and The New York Times, and she hosts the From Start-Up to Grown-Up podcast.
Recognized as the #1 Startup Coach in the World by Thinkers50/Marshall Goldsmith, Cohn’s work has earned accolades like the 2022 Independent Press Award and the 2023 American Book Fest Best Book Award for Entrepreneurship. Her free resource, 5 Scripts for Delicate Conversations, is widely used by executives to master high-stakes communication.
From Start-Up to Grown-Up provides actionable strategies for startup founders and CEOs to scale their leadership alongside their business. It focuses on self-management (controlling self-doubt, maximizing strengths), team dynamics (communication, delegation), and company-wide systems (core values, strategic alignment). The book includes real-world examples from companies like Etsy and Venmo, plus 14 scripts for difficult conversations.
This book is ideal for startup founders, CEOs, and entrepreneurs navigating scaling challenges. It’s also valuable for leaders in fast-growing companies seeking frameworks to improve communication, delegation, and organizational culture. Aspiring executives in tech or innovation-driven industries will benefit from its practical leadership tools.
Yes—ranked #1 by Global Guru for startups and winner of the 2023 International Book Awards, it blends Alisa Cohn’s 20+ years of coaching experience with actionable advice. Readers gain tools like creating a “personal operating manual” and scripts for critical conversations, making it a practical guide for leadership growth.
A personal operating manual clarifies how a leader works best, detailing communication preferences (e.g., email vs. calls), decision-making style, and feedback expectations. Cohn recommends founders and employees create these manuals during onboarding to align workflows and reduce friction.
Cohn prioritizes three layers: self-management (identifying triggers, leveraging motivators), team leadership (delegation, feedback), and company strategy (core values, board relationships). Her approach is grounded in coaching startups like DraftKings and The Wirecutter, emphasizing adaptability and practical systems.
“Growth of your company begins with growth within you.”
This underscores Cohn’s thesis that effective leadership starts with self-mastery before scaling teams or strategies.
The book’s appendix provides scripts for scenarios like correcting underperformance or addressing co-founder disputes. Cohn emphasizes clarity, empathy, and forward-focused dialogue, illustrated by examples from her coaching clients.
Some reviewers note the book leans heavily on early-stage startup challenges, offering fewer tools for mature enterprises. However, its focus on foundational leadership makes it widely applicable to scaling businesses.
Unlike generic leadership guides, Cohn’s book targets startup-specific hurdles like rapid scaling and founder-CEO transitions. It complements titles like The Lean Startup by adding psychological and managerial depth.
Cohn advises codifying core values through team workshops and embedding them in hiring, promotions, and daily decisions. For example, Etsy’s “Keep commerce human” value guided their seller-centric policies.
Cohn has coached CEOs at Venmo, Tory Burch, and Dell, and was named the #1 Global Guru for Startups. Her MBA and experience as a startup CFO inform the book’s blend of strategic and psychological insights.
Yes—the book’s emphasis on clear communication (e.g., async updates), structured delegation, and virtual “soulful meetings” aligns with remote/hybrid work trends. Cohn’s scripts adapt well to digital channels.
저자의 목소리로 책을 느껴보세요
지식을 흥미롭고 예시가 풍부한 인사이트로 전환
핵심 아이디어를 빠르게 캡처하여 신속하게 학습
재미있고 매력적인 방식으로 책을 즐기세요
Leadership is an unnatural act.
Your suggestions become orders, your whispers become shouts.
It's not just lonely at the top, it's exhausting.
Founders are 30% more likely to experience depression than others.
Leadership sets vision and motivates people.
From Start-Up to Grown-up의 핵심 아이디어를 이해하기 쉬운 포인트로 분해하여 혁신적인 팀이 어떻게 창조하고, 협력하고, 성장하는지 이해합니다.
From Start-Up to Grown-up을 빠른 기억 단서로 압축하여 솔직함, 팀워크, 창의적 회복력의 핵심 원칙을 강조합니다.

생생한 스토리텔링을 통해 From Start-Up to Grown-up을 경험하고, 혁신 교훈을 기억에 남고 적용할 수 있는 순간으로 바꿉니다.
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You've just raised your Series A. The team is celebrating. Investors believe in your vision. But something feels off. The scrappy energy that built your product now feels chaotic. Your casual suggestions have become company mandates. People you hired six months ago seem lost. Welcome to the most critical transition in entrepreneurship: the shift from passionate founder to effective leader. This isn't just about scaling operations or hitting metrics-it's about fundamentally reimagining your role. The very traits that made you successful as a founder can become liabilities as a CEO. Your attention to detail becomes micromanagement. Your passion reads as volatility. Your instinct to jump in and fix things prevents your team from developing. The company becomes a mirror, reflecting both your brilliance and your blind spots back at you with increasing intensity.