Leaders of Growth

Leaders of Growth is the first podcast that helps B2B SaaS companies scale to $25M ARR and beyond. Arthur Nobel from Knight Capital brings insights from SaaS thought leaders, founders, and experts from fast-growing software companies to help you grow your business. Each episode covers different startup challenges, such as scaling teams, Go-to-Market, and the changing role of the founder in a growing organization. Leaders of Growth is brought to you by Knight Capital.๐˜’๐˜ฏ๐˜ช๐˜จ๐˜ฉ๐˜ต ๐˜Š๐˜ข๐˜ฑ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜ข๐˜ญ ๐˜ช๐˜ด ๐˜ข ๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜จ๐˜ช๐˜ค ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ฑ๐˜ณ๐˜ช๐˜ด๐˜ฆ ๐˜ด๐˜ฐ๐˜ง๐˜ต๐˜ธ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฑ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ช๐˜ฆ๐˜ด ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜•๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ ๐˜ž๐˜ฆ๐˜ด๐˜ต ๐˜Œ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฑ๐˜ฆ. ๐˜๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฃ๐˜บ ๐˜ง๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ต๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฑ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ๐˜ด, ๐˜ธ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฑ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ต๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ ๐˜ธ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜ฉ ๐˜ง๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ด ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜จ๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ธ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ช๐˜ณ ๐˜ฃ๐˜ถ๐˜ด๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜ฆ๐˜ด๐˜ด๐˜ฆ๐˜ด ๐˜ต๐˜ฐ ๐˜ข ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ๐˜จ๐˜ง๐˜ถ๐˜ญ ๐˜ด๐˜ช๐˜ป๐˜ฆ ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฆ๐˜น๐˜ช๐˜ต ๐˜ธ๐˜ช๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ 4-6 ๐˜บ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ด. ๐˜ž๐˜ฆ ๐˜ง๐˜ฐ๐˜ค๐˜ถ๐˜ด ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฑ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ช๐˜ฆ๐˜ด ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜ฏ๐˜ช๐˜ค๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฎ๐˜ข๐˜ณ๐˜ฌ๐˜ฆ๐˜ต๐˜ด ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ข๐˜ต ๐˜ฃ๐˜ถ๐˜ช๐˜ญ๐˜ฅ ๐˜จ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ข๐˜ต ๐˜ฑ๐˜ณ๐˜ฐ๐˜ฅ๐˜ถ๐˜ค๐˜ต๐˜ด ๐˜ญ๐˜ฐ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฃ๐˜บ ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ๐˜ช๐˜ณ ๐˜ค๐˜ถ๐˜ด๐˜ต๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ด.For more information, visit our website at knight.capital

#58 How to Build a Replicable Sales Model, with Maurits Stuyver (Founder, Vondel Venture Development)

In this insightful episode, we sit down with Maurits Stuyver, the founder of Vondel Venture Development.Maurits has spent over a decade guiding tech companies to master international expansion and commercial acceleration. He brings his extensive experience working with diverse businesses, from B2B marketplaces to SaaS companies and technical software solutions.In our conversation, we delve into:- The nuances of sales management, from the role of qualitative and quantitative coaching to strategic forecasting.-Advice on building a replicable sales model.- Hiring and building a successful Sales team.- Insights on international expansion in the software industry.- The significance of setting success metrics in Sales and the importance of localization.Tune in!Leaders of Growth is brought to you by Knight Capital.

07-27
50:15

#57 The Art of Efficient Growth: Balancing Flexibility and Processes in Sendcloud's Scaling with Bas Smeulders (Co-Founder & CFO)

In today's episode, we embark on the journey of scaling a startup to an international company with Bas Smeulders, the Co-Founder and CFO of SendCloud.ย Bas shares invaluable insights from his decade-long experience transforming a garage-based startup into a thriving startup.In our conversation, we explore:โ€ข Scaling Challenges of SendCloud and Hiring Strategies,โ€ข The beginnings of SendCloud and how the founders started out in a garage selling smartphone accessories.โ€ข Mastering market dynamics, securing funds, and synergizing,โ€ข Achieving a balance between having a flexible culture and building strong processes,โ€ข The challenges of growing too quickly or too slowly.โ€ข Pivoting to a subscription model,โ€ข Diversifying customer segments and distribution channelโ€ข And more!

07-20
33:37

#56 From Bootstrapping to Hyperscale: The Journey of Pieterjan Bouten (Co-Founder & Chairman, Showpad)

In today's episode, we delve into the world of scaling a business from a service to a product model with Pieterjan Bouten, the Co-founder and chairman of Showpad.PJ shares insights from his entrepreneurial journey, starting from his initial consulting career to co-founding two companies - Netlog and In The Pocket, and ultimately crossing the challenging line to a product business with Showpad.In our conversation, we explore:โ€ข The journey of Showpad through various stages of growth - from bootstrapping to international expansion, hyper-scaling, and maturation.โ€ข The strategic diversification of distribution channels, navigating from PLG motion to direct and outbound sales.โ€ข PJ's personal journey as a founder of Showpad, transitioning from the role of CEO to Chairman, and the self-discovery and growth that came with it.โ€ข The importance of trusting one's intuition and surrounding oneself with the right people.Let's dive in!Leaders of Growth is brought to you by Knight Capital.

07-13
41:32

#55 Getting Acquired, with Sahin Boydas (CEO, RemoteTeam - a Gusto Company)

In this episode of "Leaders of Growth", we engage in an in-depth conversation with Sahin Boydas, the entrepreneur behind RemoteTeam, which was acquired by Gusto, a $10 billion company that focuses on providing payroll, benefits, and human resources management solutions for small businesses.In this conversation, we cover:Sahinโ€™s entrepreneurial journey: From Turkey to AustinUnlocking growth with Fidle: A transformative tool for businessesInside Gusto's acquisition of RemoteTeam: Lessons from the trenches.How to prepare for an integrationBalancing career growth and personal satisfaction in remote teamsEmbracing the shift to remote work.Tune in to gather invaluable insights and strategies for navigating the ever-evolving B2B software landscape.

07-05
46:09

#54 Behind the Numbers: Exploring SaaS Company Valuations and M&A Trends, with Marcin Majewski (Founder, Aventis Advisors)

Our latest episode features Marcin Majewski, Founder and Managing Director of Aventis Advisors, an M&A advisory firm focusing on technology and growth companies, who shares his insights and experiences from the front lines of technology mergers and acquisitions. Recently, Aventis Advisors launched comprehensive research on valuation trends and multiples in the Public and M&A market for SaaS companies.In this episode, we dive deep into Marcin's research and discuss:โ€ข How does the current market environment impact tech M&A valuations, and what should investors consider?โ€ข The differences between public and private multiples.โ€ข Why are SaaS businesses valued higher than on-premise software businesses, and how have their premiums changed recently?โ€ข How the "small company discount" market valuation trends.โ€ข Valuation Drivers: How does business size affect valuations, and what factors contribute to higher valuations for larger companies?โ€ข Valuations from private deals vs. those from public markets.โ€ข Revenue multiples vs. EBITDA multiples.โ€ข How should founders approach understanding their company valuation.Like the episode? Subscribe and donโ€™t miss out on the next one!

05-11
41:05

#53 Unlocking Growth Opportunities: Strategy, Execution, and Performance Management with Asia Orangio (Founder, DemandMaven)

In today's episode, we dive into strategy, execution, and performance management for scaling your business with Asia Orangio, the CEO and founder of DemandMaven, where she helps early-stage startups and technology companies define their go-to-market strategy and grow with a data-driven approach. Asia was previously a Board Member at Moz.Today we discuss:โ€ข Scaling a Company Across Series A to C and common challenges.โ€ข Choosing the right KPIs . How focusing on the wrong KPIs can hinder growth.โ€ข Aligning Strategy, Execution, and Performanceโ€ข Sales-led Growth vs. Product-led Growthโ€ข Value of customer research in driving growthโ€ข OKR, Wigs, and JTBD frameworkโ€ข Understanding Acquisition Channels for GrowthLike the episode? Subscribe and donโ€™t miss out on the next one!

05-04
45:47

#52 Barbra Gago (Founder @ Pando & Former CMO @ Miro) on Marketing and Unlocking Employeeย Progression

In this episode, we had an insightful conversation with Barbara Gago, founder and CEO of Pando and former CMO of Miro.We discussed:โ€ข The significance of aligning marketing and sales teams and experimenting with different channels.โ€ข Why you should tie marketing compensation to revenue results.โ€ข How to approach employee progression for retaining talent.Join us for an inspiring episode that delves into Barbara's founding journey.Like the episode? Subscribe and donโ€™t miss out on the next one!

04-13
41:13

#51 How to Optimize Go-to-market with Scott Stouffer (Co-founder, scaleMatters)

In this episode of Leaders of Growth, Arthur Nobel from Knight Capital interviews Scott Stouffer, CEO and co-founder of Scale Matters.ย Scott shares valuable insights on optimizing go-to-market for early and growth-stage B2B companies.Scott and Arthur discuss several topics, including:ยท The common inefficiencies in sales and marketing efforts of early and growth-stage companies.ยท A data-driven approach for determining the number of salespeople needed to achieve revenue goals.ยท Go-to-market management.ยท GTM maturity and how to leverage data according to your stage.ยท Go-to-market tech infrastructureLike the episode?Subscribe and don't miss out on the next one!This podcast is brought to you by Knight Capital.

03-22
35:58

#50 Breaking the Mold: Lessons From a Category Creation Expert, with Joe Sawyer (CMO, Mirakl)

In this episode, Arthur delves into Category Creation with his guest, Joe Sawyer, the Chief Marketing Officer of Mirakl, a renowned enterprise marketplace SaaS platform that has become one of the most valuable private software companies in Europe.Listen out for:Importance of balancing vision and execution.When should companies start with category creation?How to compete against category creators.Elements of category creation.Challenges of category creation.Whether category creation is the right strategy for businesses.Like the episode? Subscribe and don't miss out on the next one!

03-01
34:10

#49 Navigating the M&A Process, with Lowell Ricklefs (Founder, Traction Advising)

In this episode, Arthur speaks with Lowell Ricklefs, the Founder and Managing Partner of Traction Advising, a B2B SaaS-focused M&A firm. The conversation delves into the topic of Acquisitions, touching upon the following points:- Scaling challenges- How to prepare your company for an acquisition- The rationales behind acquiring a company- Differences between Private Equity funds and Strategics- A step-by-step understanding of the acquisition process- Working with an advisor vs. selling the company on your own- And more!Like the episode? Subscribe, and don't miss out on the next one!This podcast is brought to you by Knight Capital.

02-09
38:18

#48 From Campus to Unicorn: How Research Led to a $5B Business, with Johanna Smรฅros (Founder & CMO, Relex Solutions)

In this episode of Leaders of Growth, Arthur Nobel sits down with Johanna Smรฅros, Founder and CMO of the unicorn software company Relex Solutions, a supply chain & retail planning platform.They discuss:โ€ข How Relex Solutions was born and the company's roots in academic research that laid the foundation for its success.โ€ข The importance of aligning customer and vendor interests.โ€ข Why "pursuing your passion" isn't always the best career advice.โ€ข The company's growth and evolution, including the decision to raise capital and the development of the founder's role as the company grew.โ€ข The importance of customer obsession and happiness and how they relate to the company's success.โ€ข Focusing on the problem instead of the competition.โ€ข Why the company raised $500 Million last year and how it helped them to grow and expand.Like the episode? Subscribe, and don't miss out on the next one!This podcast is brought to you by Knight Capital.๐˜•๐˜ฐ๐˜ต๐˜ฆ: ๐˜›๐˜ฉ๐˜ช๐˜ด ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ๐˜ท๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ด๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ช๐˜ฐ๐˜ฏ ๐˜ธ๐˜ข๐˜ด ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ค๐˜ฐ๐˜ณ๐˜ฅ๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ช๐˜ฏ ๐˜”๐˜ข๐˜บ 2022, ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ด๐˜ฐ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ง ๐˜ต๐˜ฉ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ง๐˜ช๐˜จ๐˜ถ๐˜ณ๐˜ฆ๐˜ด ๐˜ข๐˜ฏ๐˜ฅ ๐˜ฏ๐˜ถ๐˜ฎ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฆ๐˜ณ๐˜ด ๐˜ฎ๐˜ช๐˜จ๐˜ฉ๐˜ต ๐˜ฃ๐˜ฆ ๐˜ฐ๐˜ถ๐˜ต๐˜ฅ๐˜ข๐˜ต๐˜ฆ๐˜ฅ.

01-19
44:37

#47 Managing Your Board and M&A as a Startup, with Brian Requarth (Founder @ Latitud)

Today, we had Brian Requarth on the show. Brian is the Co-Founder of Latitud, a company that provides community, infrastructure, and capital to tech companies. Additionally, he founded and exited VivaReal for $550m+. Brian is the author of the Amazon best-selling book Viva the Entrepreneur.In this episode, Arthur from Knight Capital and Brian discuss:โ€ข The challenges of scaling his companyโ€ข Balancing speed and growthโ€ข Metrics to assess the companyโ€™s performanceโ€ข When does it make sense for a start-up to look at mergers and acquisitions?โ€ข Running efficient boardsLike the episode?Subscribe to the Leaders of Growth podcast!Leaders of Growth is brought by Knight Capital.

12-07
17:46

#46 The Road to $100M ARR: New Markets & New Channels, with Arun Mani (CRO at Pleo)

In this episode, Arthur Nobel, Principal at Knight Capital, chatted with Arun Mani, CRO of Pleo, a spending management solution that offers smart payment cards for employees to buy work-related products while keeping the company in control of spending. The company is based in Copenhagen, raised over $420M, and has around +800 employees.Arun scaled sales organizations at two successful companies (Appnexus & Freshworks) and served as s a C-level strategy adviser at Mckinsey and Accenture. He also founded NIA, a non-profit organization to promote women's education in developing countries.ย In this episode, Arthur and Arun discussedHis background and careerTypical challenges in companies at different stages - $20-$50, $50-100, and >$100 Focus vs. Diversification (new markets and productsย 3 Scaling lessons to grow your companyInternationalizationPitfalls of expanding to the USChannel SalesServing mid-market vs. serving enterprisesHaving a Country Manager vs. VP of SalesLike the episode? Subscribe and donโ€™t miss out on the next one!Leaders of Growth is brought to you by Knight Capital

10-13
40:29

#45 Building your Sales Organization, with Jacco van der Kooij (Founder, Winning by Design)

In this episode, Arthur sat down with Jacco Van Der Kooij, Founder and Co-CEO at Winning by Design, which was the second-fastest-growing private company in Silicon Valley in 2021.They discussed:How the go-to-market strategy aligns with the price of the product you are selling.What different kinds of people do you need sales organization grows through the stages.The essential factors to survive and grow as a SaaSNew deals vs. UpsellingThe most important metrics for the Sales OrganizationChurnHow can a sales leader set the stage with the help of the sales rock starsThe differences between US and European startupsLike the episode? Subscribe to Leaders of Growth or get the summary of this interview in the Leaders of Growth book.This podcast is brought to you by Knight Capital

07-15
34:50

#44 Scaling Moss to >400 FTE 2.5 Years After Launching, with Ante Spittler (Co-Founder and CEO)

Ante Spittler is the Co-Founder and CEO at Moss, an all-in-one spend management solution with headquarters in Berlin, Germany.Moss allows companies to pay all business expenses with virtual and physical credit cards, keep track of employee expenses without chasing receipts, and automate their accounting.Moss reached its Series B stage and raised over $150 M in funding and quadrupled its team in the last 12 months.In todayโ€™s episode, Ante and our host Arthur discussed how Moss was born, the challenges and learnings from scaling the company, and how they approached international expansion and scaling the team.Like the episode?Subscribe to the Leaders of Growth podcast!Leaders of Growth is brought by Knight Capital.

07-06
23:42

#43 How to Price and Package your SaaS Product, with Dan Balcauski (Founder of Product Tranquility)

Dan Balcauski is the founder of Product Tranquility, a consulting that helps B2B SaaS companies define pricing and packaging for new products.Dan has 15 years of experience managing multiple products throughout their life cycles, from startups to publicly traded multinational enterprises.In this episode, Arthur and Dan discuss:- Common pitfalls in pricing- Setting a pricing strategy- The 3C's of pricing- The SVCS Model for SaaS pricing- How to approach targeting different industries and segments- How to create good packaging- Price classification- Who should be responsible for pricing in an organization?Like the episode? Subscribe to Leaders of Growth!Leaders of Growth is brought to you by Knight Capital.

06-30
41:42

#42 PR for SaaS companies 101, with Matรญas Rodsevich (Founder of PRLab)

In today's episode, we sat down with Matรญas Rodsevich, Founder & CEO of PRLab. This award-winning PR agency serves both tech startups and corporates and is one of the top five PR agencies in The Netherlands.Matรญas is also the author of The PR Paradox, where he shares his insights and learnings on mastering PR as a startup or scaleup. He's also the PRLab community's founder, comprising over 1,300+ PR and marketing professionals.In today's episode, Arthur Nobel from Knight Capital, and Matรญas, discuss:2:25 The difference between PR for startups and corporates4:20 The PR Paradox5:45 PR myths and a model to succeed in PR7:50 How much time should it take to see results?10:40 How to get PR right15:20 Strategies for getting featured in the media26:00 How to build relationships with journalists29:00 Should I hire a PR agency or have someone in-house?33:00 The most common PR MistakesLike the episode?Subscribe to the Leaders of Growth podcast!

06-23
36:08

#41 Rebranding Learnings from Unicorn Nord Security, with Marija Dzemionaite

Marija Dzemionaite is the Head Of Brand Communications at NordLayer (Nord Security.)Nord Security is an internet privacy and security provider for individuals and businesses thatย raised over $100M in funds and reached the unicorn status in April.Marija is an ex-Googler, marketer, and social media expert who led the rebranding of NordLayer. She is also an instructor at Domestika.In this episode, Arthur and Marija discuss:- What is great branding in 2022?- What is branding and rebranding, and why itโ€™s important- Why implement a rebranding strategy and its goals- Doโ€™s and donโ€™ts of rebranding- How to balance demand generation and branding activities- Brand as a competitive advantageLike the episode? Subscribe, and donโ€™t miss out on the next one!Leaders of Growth is brought to you by Knight Capital

06-15
28:27

#40 Scaling Across Series B, with Thomas Inhelder (Co-Founder & CFO, Yokoy)

Thomas Inhelder is the Co-Founder and CFO of Yokoy; an AI-based spend management platform for medium and large enterprises.Yokoy has raised over $100 M in funding and is at its Series B stage.In this episode, Thomas and Arthur from Knight Capital discuss:2:30 The current state of the market from a CFO perspective4:50 Approach to Cash Burn and Growth6:50 Break even7:40 Cutting costs during a recession9:00 KPIs to monitor11:45 Dos and Donโ€™ts of Scaling14:15 How the company structure evolved15:50 Scaling and productivity20:40 Tool Stack25:40 ProcessesLike the episode? Subscribe, and donโ€™t miss out on the next one!Leaders of Growth is brought to you by Knight Capital

06-08
30:06

#39 The Challenge of Tripling Your Team in a Year, with Christopher May (Co-CEO, Finoa)

Christopher May is the Co-Founder & Co-CEO of Finoa, a regulated custodian for crypto-assets, that offers custody and staking services to institutional investors and corporations.After working for over 4 years as a consultant at McKinsey, he founded the company in 2018.Finoa is at the Series A stage and raised over $20M in funding and its team tripled in the last year.In this episode, Arthur from Knight Capital and Christopher touched upon:2:40 Finoa's Story4:40 Scaling Challenges6:40 The Business Model10:00 Learnings of Fast-Scaling15:50 Hiring & Culture19:20 Building Culture Remotely27:00 Hiring For Remote Roles32:00 Evolving as a FounderLike the episode? Subscribe and donโ€™t miss out on the next one!Leaders of Growth is brought to you by Knight Capital

06-01
38:38

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