It’s essential to understand how bookings, billing, and revenue recognition translate into real financial performance in a subscription-based business, particularly SaaS and AI models. 

I spoke with Suezann Holmes, Founder & CEO of ScaleXP, to break down how SaaS revenue is actually earned over time, why invoicing is one of the most critical data sources in a subscription model, and how core SaaS metrics are built from that data. 

The conversation focuses on the realities founders face as they scale, including revenue timing, common invoicing and reporting mistakes, and what it takes to maintain financial credibility with investors and boards.

If you’re leading a SaaS or subscription-based company and preparing for fundraising or board-level reporting, this episode is especially relevant. You’ll learn how revenue recognition under ASC 606 or IFRS 15 impacts ARR, MRR, retention, and growth metrics, and why getting this wrong early creates compounding risk as the business grows.

(00:00) Introduction

(01:55) A founder’s $5M “revenue” mistake: bookings vs real revenue

(02:22) Why revenue matters: profitability, cash burn, and usage

(03:27) Revenue vs contract value: what you’ve earned vs what’s promised

(05:06) Bookings and contract value as leading indicators

(06:19) Why invoicing is not just a back-office task

(07:17) How to avoid invoicing and revenue recognition mistakes

(09:23) CRM data requirements for clean billing and integrations

(10:00) Internal controls for invoicing, revenue, and AR

(11:32) Investor expectations: metrics founders must know by Series A and B

(13:19) How ScaleXP pulls data from Xero and QuickBooks

(13:42) Automating SaaS metrics with a calculation engine

(15:12) ASC 606 and IFRS 15 explained for SaaS founders

(17:41) Credibility as the most important KPI for founders

If you’re a SaaS or subscription business looking to get revenue recognition right, learn more at cypherfin.com.