Facing an existential crisis at MicroStrategy, Eric Brown led a massive restructuring—cutting two-thirds of staff and shifting operating margins from -40% to +30% in under three years. Market cap rebounded from $55M to over $1B, proving that decisive, sweeping change can revive a company against impossible odds. Now Watch the Complete Episode Featuring CFO Eric […]
Balancing Profitability and Expansion in SaaS | Andrew Casey, CFO, Amplitude
At ServiceNow, Andrew Casey learned that transformation succeeds through disciplined change management, not speed. By focusing on three major initiatives—comp plans, territory design, and customer success—he drove customer‑centric growth while reinforcing the right behaviors. This “rule of three” approach now guides multi‑year transformations at Amplitude, aligning teams, processes, and metrics for sustainable ARR expansion. Andrew […]
1118: Partnering for Growth: Finance Meets Customer-Centricity | Andrew Casey, CFO, Amplitude
Andrew Casey remembers a moment when colleagues truly looked to finance for leadership. At ServiceNow, a then‑$400 million company with little go‑to‑market infrastructure, the team faced a long list of missing elements: no functioning comp plan, no partner ecosystem, and no clear strategy for scaling sales. “Whenever people said they didn’t know how,” Casey recalls, “I…
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1086: M&A, AI, and the Art of Integration | Adam Ante, CFO, Paycor
“It wouldn’t surprise me. No, it would be exciting.” That was Adam Ante’s initial response when asked if five years from now, he could imagine himself still in the C-suite—but not as a CFO. The comment seemed to linger in the air, hinting at a deeper current in his career journey. Ante, who had led…
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1085: The Strategic Power of Curiosity | Erik Rothschild, CFO, Cin7
Fresh out of a hedge fund analyst role, Erik Rothschild walked into an interview at a Chicago-based trading firm and did something unexpected—he pitched actual trade ideas to the portfolio manager across the table. That bold move earned him a spot on the team, and eventually, a portfolio of his own. “That whole experience taught…
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Unleashing Innovation: Strategic Insights into AI Adoption
Trintech CFO Omar Choucair discusses emerging roles in AI, emphasizing the critical balance between rapid innovation and risk management. He explains that while 20% of employees eagerly adopt AI tools, many remain hesitant. Key is targeted training and ensuring proper licensing—using enterprise platforms that provide compliance and access to multiple solutions. He stresses that cross-department […]
1077: Unleashing Innovation: Strategic Insights into AI Integration | Omar Choucair, CFO, Trintech
Trintech CFO Omar Choucair is increasingly turning to AI as a strategic advantage—building teams, refining data “plumbing,” and automating time-consuming processes. His strategic mindset, honed by years of thriving in unpredictable environments, drives him to embrace AI as a catalyst for operational efficiency and transformative growth. Choucair tells us that his approach centers on leveraging…
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996: Cultivating a CFO’s Toolkit | Aaron Levine, CFO, Prophix
From his early days in auditing at PwC to his current role as CFO at Prophix, Aaron Levine has had a career that has closely tracked the evolving nature of the financial leadership role. His journey has been marked by a series of strategic transitions and expansions of his skill set that illustrate the broadening…
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886: When SaaS Became the Destination | Alka Tandan, CFO, Gainsight
One key takeaway from Gainsight CFO Alka Tandan's career journey is the importance of being open to new opportunities and pivoting when necessary. Tandan started in investment banking, transitioned to media, and then vectored again to the SaaS industry. Looking back on the first move of her career, Tandan says that she “came to a…
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789: Always Be Hiring | Jonathan Sides, CFO, Fleetio
Among the many SaaS CFOs with whom we have spoken, few have listed their finance leader priorities for us as simply and concisely as did Jonathan Sides, CFO of Fleetio, a Birmingham, Alabama, software company that helps companies to track and manage their fleet operations. “My personal defect is always wanting to take on more—without…
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486: Counting Your Customer Success Milestones | Matthew Fahy, CFO, FinFit
When Matt Fahy identifies the opportunities that have punctuated his finance career, he credits subscription revenue models as having played a recurring role along the trajectory that has led to multiple CFO tours of duty. For Fahy, it all began with a move to New York City, where he was soon serving one of the…
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479: Keeping the Customer Top-of-Mind | Stefan Schulz, CFO, PROS Holdings, Inc.
Among the many flights that CFO Stefan Schulz has taken between Minneapolis and Houston over the years, few are etched in his memory better than a certain return flight to Minneapolis—during which he created an ambitious list of Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) action items. The list that Schultz created in the air that day was long and…
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