The Backbone: a journey inside finance at a startup

The Backbone: a journey inside finance at a startup

By Shubham DattaBusiness
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The Backbone: a journey inside finance at a startup episodes

  • Ep. 67: Scaling for rapid growth & hiring for decision-making vs execution w/ Julian Rowlands, VP Finance at Spruce

    Julian Rowlands, VP Finance at Spruce

    I chat with Julian about:
    1. His career journey from a History major before going to business school at uChicago to becoming the VP Finance at Spruce.
    2. Spruce — what the company does and what it’s all about.
    3. Structuring and growing the finance function for scale at growth stage company. When Julian joined Spruce, the company was 75 employees. Since then, the company has tripled, growing to 250 folks. As the head of finance, Julian explains how he inherited the finance function and how it has evolved to accommodate this hyper growth.
    4. In June of 2021, Spruce raised a $60M Series C round from Bessemer, Scale Venture Partners and Zigg Capital. While Julian was at Xendit, he helped the company raise a $65M Series B round from Accel. Julian shares some of his biggest learnings going through these fundraise processes and imparts advice to folks going through fundraising rounds today.
    5. The biggest misconception about the finance function within growth stage tech companies like Spruce.
      6. 26 min
    6. Ep. 66: Finding the right path to go public for your company (IPOs, Direct Listings or SPACs) w/ Jeff Epstein, Operating Partner at Bessemer Venture Partners

      Jeff Epstein, Operating Partner at Bessemer Venture Partners & Co-CEO and CFO at Apex Technology Acquisition  Corp. (Nasdaq: APXT)

      I chat with Jeff about:
      1. His career journey from investment banking to operating, including stops at various technology and media companies to now serving as an operating partner at Bessemer Venture Partners.
      2. Apex Technology Acquisition Corp, a SPAC that recently announced its merger with AvePoint — the largest data management solutions provider for Microsoft cloud.
      3. Raising a SPAC compared to a venture fund, and the process for finding a target company to merge with.
      4. How companies should whether the traditional IPO, a direct listing or a SPAC is the right path to going public for them.
      5. Some of the unique opportunities and challenges finance leaders face today and Jeff’s advice to help navigate through them.
        6. 34 min
      6. Ep. 65: The right time for SMB SaaS companies to move upmarket featuring Ivan Makarov, VP Finance at Webflow

        Ivan Makarov, VP Finance at Webflow

        Ivan is an experienced finance executive with over 15 years of professional experience in the internet industry building finance teams and functions inside global tech companies. He has served as a VP Finance for SmugMug and Flickr for a period of 8 years, prior to joining Webflow.

        At Webflow, Ivan leads all of the accounting, financial planning, business operations, legal, corporate and tax compliance.

        I chat with Ivan about:
        1. His career journey from PwC to SmugMug, the acquisition of Flickr and then joining Webflow.
        2. Webflow —  what company does and what its all about.
        3. How finance leaders should think about pricing models that are trial-based vs freemium for SMBs and the metrics to optimize for in each.
        4. When you should consider moving upmarket as a SaaS company focused on the SMB market and what considerations you have to make as the finance leader to prepare for that change.
        5. The biggest misconception about the finance function within growth-stage software companies like Webflow.
          6. 27 min
        6. Ep. 64: Building a financially feasible business by aligning with customer incentives feat. Sruthi Lanka, CFO at Public

          Sruthi Lanka, CFO at Public

          As CFO, Sruthi oversees finance, data, and people operations. Prior to Public, she served as VP and Head of Strategic Finance at MoneyLion, the fintech startup and challenger bank. She was MoneyLion’s first finance hire in 2017 following its Series A, and built the team that forecasts and monitors the firm’s financial performance, overseeing financial planning, capital optimization, fundraising, and Board engagement. Previously, she worked on mergers and acquisitions for RBC, and at Goldman Sachs. Sruthi also serves on the Board of the nonprofit Women Creating Change.

          Sruthi has an MBA from Duke University and a B.Tech. in Electronics Engineering from the National Institute of Technology in India.

          I chat with Sruthi about:
          1. Her career journey starting off as a computer engineer turned finance professional with experience across product development, pricing, corporate development, capital raising and mergers and acquisition. Prior to her current role as the CFO of Public, she was the VP of Strategic Finance at MoneyLion and before that spent time in investment banking at RBC Capital Markets and Goldman Sachs.
          2. Public — what the company does and what it’s all about.
          3. Payment for Order Flow and why Public decided to move away from this model to tipping. What considerations she had to take into account to determine if this would be financially feasible for the company.
          4. Public recently crossed 1M members on the platform. As the company grows towards realizing its mission to open the stock market to everyone, the biggest challenges and opportunities she sees from her seat as the CFO.
          5. Themes and interesting investment conversations happening in the Public community, including Sruthi’s favorite themes and investments she’s tracking these days on Public?
            6. 27 min
          6. Ep. 63: What it means to be a finance exec for a publicly-traded software company with Blaine Fitzgerald, EVP Finance & Incoming CFO at Kinaxis (TSX: KXS)

            Joining me on this episode of the Backbone is Blaine Fitzgerald, EVP Finance & Incoming CFO at Kinaxis (TSX:KXS), a company that revolutionizes planning by delivering the agility you need to make fast, confident decisions in an unpredictable world.

            I chat with Blaine about:
            1. His career journey having started his career in accounting with stints at Collins Barrow, EY and Deloitte. From there Blaine held roles at CMHC before making the plunge into tech with Curtiss-Wright Controls Defence Solutions. In 2013, he joined this small company called Shopify where he spent 5.5 years and played a key role in taking the company public as the VP of Finance. From there, Blaine spent some time at Spartan Bioscience as their CFO before joining Kinaxis as an Executive Vice President of Finance. Blaine will be transitioning into the CFO role at Kinaxis in August 2021.
            2. Kinaxis — What the company does and what is it all about.
            3. A behind-the-scenes look at taking Shopify public and the IPO process. As a finance leader, how you know a company is ready to take the plunge in the public markets and Blaine’s learnings for finance leaders preparing to go through that process now.
            4. What it means to be a finance exec for a publicly-traded software company and how the finance function has to evolve once you’re a public company, including the systems and processes they rely upon that need to be in place before a company goes public.
            5. The biggest misconception about the finance function within software companies.
              6. 27 min
            6. Ep. 62: Taking care of your people, company, & customers while navigating through a crisis with Naeem Ishaq, CFO at Checkr

              Joining me on this episode of the Backbone is Naeem Ishaq, CFO at Checkr, the leading technology company in the background check industry.

              At Checkr, Naeem leads finance, facilities, and data operations teams, responsible for financial strategy and planning, corporate development, and optimizing Checkr’s financial performance for long-term growth.

              Naeem has nearly 20 years of leadership experience at companies like Circle, Salesforce, and Square (which he helped to lead through a successful IPO in 2015). He was one of the first 5% of employees at both Square and Salesforce and has a strong record of repeatedly scaling growth businesses from startup stage to global reach.

              I chat with Naeem about:
              1. His career journey working at the intersection of finance and tech since 2002, starting at Intel. From there he joined Salesforce in 2008 when it was a $4B market cap company and 1700 people, spending over four years there before joining Square when they were around 170 people and helping them go through their IPO. Prior to joining as the CFO at Checkr, Naeem led finance at Boxed Wholesale and Circle.
              2. What Checkr does and what the company is all about.
              3. Some of the frameworks and mental models that formed the M&A playbook for organizations like Salesforce and Square. Throughout his career Naeem had the opportunity to work very closely on M&A. While at Salesforce, he  played a key role in the acquisition of Jigsaw for $300M and the Buddy Media acquisition for $689M. Then at Square, he led the acquisition of Caviar. Naeem has worked on 40+ different M&A transactions during his career.
              4. His advice to finance leaders who may end up going through an acquisition process with large strategic acquirers.
              5. The best practices for navigating through times of crisis, from the CFO seat.
              6. The biggest misconception about the finance function within growth stage software companies like Checkr.
                7. 39 min
              7. Ep. 61: The role of momentum and velocity in propelling Blackberry's epic run from $2M to $20B in sales with Dennis Kavelman, Partner at Inovia Capital (Former CFO / COO at Blackberry)

                Dennis Kavelman, Partner at Inovia Capital (Former CFO / COO at Blackberry)

                I chat with Dennis about:
                • His 15 year run as the CFO and COO of Blackberry after joining the company when it was virtually unknown, with just 20 employees and roughly $2-million in revenue back in 1995. During this time Blackberry grew to more than 15,000 employees and sales of $20B. Dennis had a front-row seat for the company’s explosive growth from startup to global player. He also helped take Blackberry public as CFO.
                • What made Blackberry into a global success story and how the company evolved from 20 to 15,000 employees and $20B in sales.
                • Blackberry’s co-CEO management structure and whether it is something he recommends to companies today.
                • How he managed to continuously evolve as Blackberry grew to remain “qualified” for the role having minimal prior experience.
                • How he transitioned into the world of venture as a Partner at Inovia Capital and his focus area at the firm.
                • What advice or key learnings he shares with the up and coming emerging technology companies of today.
                • Hiring top talent.
                  • 43 min
                • Ep. 60: IPO readiness and what it truly means to take a company public today with Curt Sigfstead, CFO at Clearbanc

                  Curt Sigfstead, CFO at Clearbanc

                  I chat with Curt about:
                  1. His career journey that led him to the CFO seat at Clearbanc. Prior to joining Clearbanc, Curt was the Head of Technology Investment Banking for the West Coast at JP Morgan. Over the last 22 years while he was there, Curt led over $200B of technology M&A transactions and over 80 technology IPOs, follow-ons and private placements — a tremendous feat.
                  2. What Clearbanc does and what it’s all about.
                  3. How he thinks about risks an emerging company has to take, and the frameworks or mental models a CFO can use to evaluate them.
                  4. IPO readiness and M&A preparedness: the right time for a company to think about going public and specifically for the CFO, what needs to be in place before that can happen. M&A preparedness —to the extent one can “prepare for M&A” — what the company’s finance leader should be thinking about to ensure the company is ready to transact.
                  5. The biggest misconception about the finance function within growth-stage software companies like Clearbanc.
                    6. 32 min
                  6. Ep. 59: Determining the core competencies of the finance function with Etienne St-Martin, Director of Finance at Roadmunk

                    Etienne St-Martin, Director of Finance at Roadmunk

                    I chat with Etienne about:
                    1. His career journey from Deloitte to Freshbooks to becoming the Director of Finance at Roadmunk.
                    2. What Roadmunk does and what it’s all about.
                    3. Building a finance function and deciding what aspects to do in-house vs outsource.
                    4. How seasonality may affect pricing and packaging SaaS businesses that serve both the SMB and enterprise markets. Both Freshbooks and Roadmunk have free trials and a self-serve onboarding process.
                    5. The biggest misconception about the finance function within growth-stage software companies like Roadmunk.
                      6. 25 min
                    6. Ep. 58: The makings of a well-rounded finance leader with Brian Montminy, CFO at Lessonly

                      Brian Montminy, CFO at Lessonly

                      I chat with Brian about:
                      1. His career journey starting as a consultant with Accenture, followed by 5 years at JP Morgan Chase before taking the plunge into tech with Salesforce where he held various roles in the finance and strategy team.
                      2. What Lessonly does and what it’s all about.
                      3. Risk aversion and why finance leaders are less likely to take on personal risk as a finance leader.
                      4. How Brian has had to evolve as the company has grown and how the finance function has changed during his tenure. For context, Brian joined Lessonly around Series A when the company was 24 people with 300 customers, and now the company is at 170 people with over 1,000 customers.
                      5. The biggest misconception about the finance function within growth-stage software companies like Lessonly.
                        6. 28 min

                      About The Backbone: a journey inside finance at a startup

                      From the publisher's feed

                      The Backbone explores the journey inside finance at high-growth technology startups. Our host Shubham Datta interviews finance leaders at various stages of emerging technology companies to find out their story, key financial and operating metrics they track, how they measure them and what their biggest challenges are. Hear directly from finance leaders at tech startups who are in there day in and day out, serving as the backbone of their company.