Dave Santolli’s entrepreneurial career epitomized the notion that life is about the journey rather than the destination. At 42, he ‘d experienced both success and failure in business. He ‘d also found out his wife Terry was facing an uphill battle with cancer, and been relieved when she pulled through. 

In early 2005, all that was beginning to seem like practice for his current challenges. He was facing an investor suit from his last venture and legal defense fees had left Dave and Terry without a safety net.

Dave’s new venture, Telephony Translations, Inc. (TTI), was still unprofitable after five years. Dave had told his investors to expect such losses, but they had replaced him as CEO anyway. While the business seemed to be on the right track, this was a critical time for it. 

Preparation Questions 

1. Evaluate Dave Santolli’s entrepreneurial thinking and leadership at Fax tech and at TTI. 

2. What are the most important lessons and insights to take from this case? 

3. Evaluate TTI’s progress and situation in 2006. What should it and its investors /directors do?