When Infoblox founder Stuart Bailey, 34, discovered moving to Sunnyvale, California, was a condition of his venture funding, he knew there was one person he couldn't afford to leave in Evanston, Illinois: his tae kwon do instructor, Master Soon Chul Kim.
Bailey's relationship with Kim stretches back to 2000, when Bailey wandered into the studio below his company's office and signed up for a class to counterbalance the long hours he was likely to put in on his startup. Within six months, all 10 of Infoblox's original team, focused on developing technology to help companies manage various IT network resources, had signed up. So when Bailey was faced with moving, he sought to maintain the culture of confidence martial arts helped nurture.
These days, Kim holds two daily classes for Infoblox employees, family and friends at the on-site studio to help foster a sense of community at the company, which anticipates 2005 revenue to reach between $20 million and $30 million. Says Bailey, "When people know each other, and they can communicate well and can have that kind of resonance between each other, they can solve problems."
This story appears in the August 2005 issue of Entrepreneur. Subscribe »
