Freshworks is a successful public SaaS company that has a humble beginning in the small town of Chennai, India. Founder and CEO Girish Mathrubootham shares five big bets that paid off as he scaled this multi-product company.
So first a caveat: I know just enough about financial accounting to be dangerous. Second caveat: I’m way, way oversimplifying things. But with that out of the way, let’s talk just enough about financial accounting to explain why Big Tech Companies both...
I was lucky enough to be the first venture investor in a next-gneration ediscovery startup, Logikcull, way back in 2015. A flash-back to them at $1m ARR or so here: Andy Wilson CEO has been part of SaaStr events and contents since then, and a great session below on...
Dear SaaStr: When should a CEO walk away from an acquisition? I’ve thought about this a lot. I’ve walked from acquisitions where I, to be honest, did want the money but still walked. And I’ve taken several offers, too, sometimes when it turned out to be the wrong...
Dear SaaStr: What Are The Pros and Cons of a Double Trigger with a 6 year Vest for Founders of a Startup? I think there are no cons and this is a great idea. First, a 6+ year vesting schedule protects you from the less committed founders. The last thing you want is...
Dear SaaStr: How Do You Know When It’s Time to Sell Your Startup? First off, the axiom that companies are bought, not sold, is mostly right. 95 times out of 100, you can’t wake up some morning and just go sell your start-up. Unless there are pre-existing...
Dear SaaStr: What Happens To Employees When a Company Gets Acquired? The truth is, it varies, and it’s fair to have anxiety here. Generally speaking in most acquisitions: All engineering and most/all product employees will be retained. Many times, with a retention...
Dear SaaStr: We sold 30% of our Company Pre-Money During our Friends and Family Round. Will VCs Care? No. In the old days, 30% in your friends-and-family round was pretty common. It may become common again, as times are tougher for many these days in venture. What...
Dear SaaStr: Do Late Stage Startups Prefer to Get Acquired or Go Public? It really varies. Especially these days, when the IPO markets are closed. When it was literally an IPO a Day in 2021, it seemed almost easy. And today — it seems so far from easy. It Was...
Dear SaaStr: Is Late-Stage Venture Capital More Stressful than Early-Stage Venture Capital? It’s more lamentful, I think. If you do late stage investing … well, every company you invest in is pretty darn good and growing nicely. And probably even most of...
A life poorly lived is a trap Go for it at least once — Jason ✨Be Kind✨ Lemkin ???????? (@jasonlk) November 17, 2023 Acquisitions are rarer in tougher times. Everyone just gets more conservative, even the biggest players. But if you stay in the game, get...
A life poorly lived is a trap Go for it at least once — Jason ✨Be Kind✨ Lemkin (@jasonlk) May 5, 2023 BusinessInsider had a great story a ways back on Datto’s $1b exit to Vista Private Equity (more on the role of PE in SaaS here). So much of it...
Dear SaaStr: How Many Board Seats Do VCs Typically Get? Let me try to simplify, generally speaking: 1. Generally, “proportionate” boards are usually seen as fair, and easy to agree to. I.e., if the investors own 20%, and the founders 80%, then investors get 1 board...
