What's Rarely Measured Matters Most

growth strategy

1186: Keeping the Applause in Check | Adam Goldbruch, CFO, DoorLoop

Adam Goldbruch still remembers the celebration. In 2017, he stood inside a Tel Aviv startup office while employees cheered a milestone: a Disney princess quiz had generated “2.8 million page views,” he tells us. Champagne circulated as the founder delivered a visionary speech about changing communication through content. At the time, Goldbruch was young enough…
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1182: From Cockpit Decisions to Capital Decisions | Andre Mancl, CFO, Nium

Andre Mancl recalls sitting only a few months into his first CFO role when a senior technology executive arrived with an urgent warning: engineers were leaving for Google and Facebook, and the company needed an immediate across-the-board compensation increase of 30% to 40%. It would have been a major financial commitment. But Mancl hesitated. Drawing…
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1181: What AI Means for the Future of Finance Leadership | Yuval Atsmon, CFO & Sr Partner, McKinsey & Company

In the desert during military officer training, Yuval Atsmon entered one wrong number into a GPS device. Instead of reaching the intended destination, he and his team ended up in the wrong location, and the simulated mission failed. The mistake cost him the chance to finish at the top of his class, he tells us.…
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The Reset That Restarted Growth

Facing slowing growth, Aidan Viggiano led a sweeping reset—workforce reductions, compensation redesign, leadership changes, and governance overhaul—shifting the company toward balanced growth and profitability. Anchored by a “do what we said we would do” mindset, she rebuilt financial discipline, restored credibility, and emerged a stronger, more decisive leader. Now Watch Our Complete Episode Featuring CFO […]

Shrink to Grow: The Hardest Call in Finance | Burt Chao, CFO, Nintex

Facing tighter capital and slower growth, Burt Chao led “shrink-to-grow” decisions—redirecting investment away from still-profitable product lines toward higher-ROI priorities. The shift required redefining asset allocation discipline while aligning stakeholders around long-term value creation in a constrained environment. Now Watch the Complete Episode Featuring CFO Burt Chao of Nintex In his first months at Nintex, […]

1160: Disciplined Bets in an Expensive-Capital World | Burt Chao, CFO, Nintex

As he nears the end of his first 100 days at Nintex, Burt Chao is doing something many new CFOs resist: listening more than talking. Understanding the business, its people, and its real growth potential comes before dashboards or directives, he tells us. Chao describes Nintex as a company with a “long and rich history”…
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The Power Behind Story-Driven Growth | David lee, CFO & COO, WEBTOON

During Best Buy’s Renew Blue turnaround, David Lee helped redirect over $1 billion in savings to reinvent stores as “omnichannel showrooms,” blending digital and in-store experiences. By aligning consumer insight with disciplined finance, the team defied predictions of retail decline—driving one of the fastest stock recoveries in the S&P 500. Now Watch the Complete Episode […]

Sequencing Growth For Scalable Outcomes | Erik Wissig, CFO, SureCo

Realizing his high-growth startup lacked the cash to fund earned bonuses, Erik Wissig shifted the leadership team toward long-horizon cash-flow planning. By aligning growth expectations with cash realities, he prevented future liquidity gaps and created a finance discipline that shaped SureCo’s scaling years. Now Watch our Complete Episode Featuring CFO Erik Wissig of SureCo Erik […]

1141: The Long Game of Resilient Finance Leadership | Erik Wissig, CFO, SureCo

When Erik Wissig recalls his early years as a founder, one moment still stands out. The team had met its growth goals and earned their bonuses—but the company’s cash flow hadn’t caught up. “You need the cash to make those payments,” he tells us. That hard-won lesson reshaped how Wissig approached finance from that day…
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1137: When Finance Leads With Curiosity | Amy Foo, CFO, Ignition

She starts with tape from the field, not the spreadsheet. Listening to enterprise sales calls, Amy Foo heard customers whose usage rose and fell with seasons. Fixed per-seat pricing “wasn’t quite hitting the mark,” she tells us, so she piloted a pooled-seat model that flexed monthly within an annual commitment—turning smaller clips into “one to…
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1136: From Projects to Playbooks: Making Transformation Stick | Joe Custer, CFO, Intrado

When Joe Custer describes Intrado’s purpose, he begins with a story that traces back almost half a century. The company, he tells us, was born inside the Boulder County Sheriff’s Department when someone asked whether there might be a better way to connect a caller in distress with a first responder. “Turns out they were…
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Scaling Finance for the Cloud-Native Era | David Obstler, CFO, Datadog

During post-COVID uncertainty, David Obstler spotted early signs of customer optimization and reprioritized Datadog’s investments. By pulling back selectively while sustaining rapid investment in key areas, he preserved profitability, avoided layoffs, and strengthened the company’s ability to reaccelerate growth—building long-term resilience without compromising culture. Now Watch the Complete Episode Featuring CFO David Obstler David Obstler […]