John Chambers, Former CEO and Executive Chairman of Cisco, Shares His Playbook for Success in 'CONNECTING THE DOTS: Lessons for Leadership in a Startup World

NEW YORK, Sept. 25, 2018 /PRNewswire/ For the first time, Silicon Valley visionary John Chambers, former CEO and Executive Chairman of Cisco Systems and current founder and CEO of the purpose-driven venture firm JC2 Ventures, shares the lessons that transformed him from a dyslexic kid from West Virginia into one of the world's most successful business leaders in his book, CONNECTING THE DOTS: Lessons for Leadership in a Startup World. 

As a tech titan who was never interested in technology, and a great communicator who struggled to read, Chambers is a leader that truly breaks the mold. In Connecting the Dots, he offers insights into how he developed a set of winning strategies for spotting market shifts and managing through periods of disruption. In collaboration with award-winning journalist Diane Brady, Chambers has created a real-world playbook for achieving lasting success in the digital age, founded on the leadership principles that helped him outmaneuver competitors and grow Cisco into a multi-billion-dollar company.

"I never thought I would write a book about my career, leadership and life lessons," said John Chambers, author of Connecting the Dots. "Yet, as I helped numerous startups grow and scale their businesses, I started to think my experiences and lessons learned might help others well beyond the world of technology. With the help of Diane Brady, I was able to articulate both my successes and my mistakes, creating a playbook for others to learn from and look to as they navigate business, life, and everything in between."

"CEOs love to talk about leadership. What sets John apart is his focus on creating playbooks of best practices around every major part of leadership, from hiring to acquiring," said Diane Brady, co-author of Connecting the Dots. "He breaks abstract goals into steps that everyone can understand and replicate."

John Chambers served as Cisco's CEO for more than two decades, turning a simple router company into a backbone of the Internet. He has been a trusted advisor to presidents and politicians on both sides of the aisle and earned the first-ever Clinton Global Citizen Award for Corporate Citizenship. As founder and CEO of JC2 Ventures, Chambers is now investing time and money into the next generation of tech leaders, helping innovative startups from around the world grow and scale their businesses by navigating and accelerating market transitions.

John and Diane are both available for interviews around Connecting the Dots. As part of the launch of the book, Chambers, who has been involved with Second Harvest foodbank in Palo Alto for years, dating back to his early days at Cisco, partnered with the charity to donate $1 for every book that was pre-ordered from September 4 - 24.

Select praise for Connecting the Dots includes the following from some of today's most well-respected business leaders:

"By turns practical and insightful, John Chambers' indefatigable spirit, sound judgement, and depth of experience shine through in Connecting the Dots." - Jamie Dimon, Chairman and CEO, J.P. Morgan Chase

"I've always known John Chambers to be wise, and credit him for the business ideas that helped Oracle be successful. With the brilliant insights found in Connecting the Dots, I learned even more that I plan to use. Whether it's how to learn from difficult setbacks, find your courage as a leader, focus on the customer, and so much else, this is a must-read for any businessperson. A very personal and incredibly engaging book!" - Safra Catz, CEO, Oracle

"I watched John Chambers lead Cisco through massive tech disruptions, countless economic cycles, and scores of acquisitions that killed many of his competitors. This is a compelling story of effective leadership through good times and bad, filled with smart lessons about innovation, team building, and managing creativity. An important and relevant read - I highly recommend it." - Jack Welch, former CEO, General Electric

About JC2 Ventures

JC2 Ventures is a purpose-driven venture capital firm dedicated to helping disruptive startups from around the world grow and scale. JC2 works alongside CEOs and their teams, serving as true mentors of digital innovation. Founded by John Chambers, legendary Silicon Valley CEO who led Cisco Systems for more than 20 years, the JC2 team leverages their experiences to coach individual companies, helping them to see around corners, accelerate markets and create entirely new ones. JC2 Ventures is fully committed to developing startup companies in a Startup World, with a mission to better society by driving innovation, jobs, economic prosperity, gender diversity, inclusion and success.

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