Craig discusses the stages SaaS companies go through on their way to $150M in revenue. BIO Craig Powell serves as the CEO of Autura, the leading SaaS solution focused on vehicle management, traffic flow, and law enforcement productivity. He is the former CEO of Motus, a PE-backed SaaS company focused on mobile workforce solutions. At Motus, Craig d…

Dr. Konstantin Batygin is a Professor of Planetary Science at the California Institute of Technology. Professor Batygin and his colleague, Michael Brown, have found evidence of a giant planet tracing a bizarre, highly elongated orbit in the outer solar system. The object, which they have nicknamed Planet Nine, has a mass about 10 times that of Eart…

Matt discusses M&A the environment, SaaS valuation and its drivers, and what buyers and sellers of software companies need to know. BIO Matt Lynch is a Managing Director of District Capital Partners and Sundance Partners. Prior to founding DCP, Matt led Corporate Development at Blackboard, where he managed the successful completion and integration …

Dr. Allen Frances is a Chairman Emeritus of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Duke University School of Medicine. He is best known for serving as chair of the American Psychiatric Association task force overseeing the development and revision of the fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (D…

Brian Fagan is an Archeologist, Author, and Professor Emeritus of Anthropology at UC Santa Barbara. He has written a number of books on archeology, humans, and, most recently, climate change. We discussed Early Humans, the history of hunting, the most influential civilizations, and the effects of localized climate change, which by the way, has noth…

James Pan is a former Hedge Fund manager who, a decade ago, returned funds to outside investors and converted his firm into a family office. If you search for CP&E Partners' letters, you will see the phenomenal performance that James has achieved, and he did it as a one-man-shop. In this interview, we discussed James' investment philosophy, investm…

Dr. Scott Aaronson is Schlumberger Centennial Chair of Computer Science at The University of Texas at Austin, and director of its Quantum Information Center. His research interests center around the capabilities and limits of quantum computers and computational complexity theory more generally. For the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 academic years, he is …

Joby Warrick is a best-selling author and a national security correspondent for The Washington Post. A two-time Pulitzer Prize winner, he served for 24 years with the Post’s national and investigative staffs, reporting from Washington and scores of cities around the world. He is the author of three two nonfiction books, including “The Triple Agent”…

Tapio Schneider is a climate scientist and a professor of environmental science and engineering at the California Institute of Technology. His research is focused on understanding how the turbulent dynamics of the atmosphere, from clouds to large-scale weather systems, shape Earth's climate. Ultimately, his goal is to develop a set of physical laws…

Tim Staermose is the founder of the African Lions Fund, which invests in sub-Saharan African “Frontier” economies, excluding South Africa. Tim is also an investment writer, and his website - www.GlobalValueHunter.com - is full of global value investing ideas. SUPPORT THE ACCENT ON PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/theaccentpodcast TIMESTAMPS 01:10 P…

Dr. Lalich is Professor Emerita of Sociology at CSU Chico, where she was awarded the Professional Achievement Honor. She is recognized international authority in the fields of Cults and Coercion and has written numerous books and articles on the subject. In this interview, Dr. Lalich discussed cults, who tend to join them, her experience being in a…

Nolan Bushnell established Atari, Inc. and the Chuck E. Cheese's Pizza Time Theatre chain. He has been inducted into the Video Game Hall of Fame and the Consumer Electronics Association Hall of Fame, received the BAFTA Fellowship and the Nations Restaurant News "Innovator of the Year" award, and was named one of Newsweek's "50 Men Who Changed Ameri…

After reading the book “Philip and Alexander – Kings and Conquerors” and being blown away by a remarkable story, I absolutely had to invite its author, Dr. Adrian Goldsworthy, to the Accent. He is an ancient historian and novelist, who has written more than a dozen of non-fiction and fiction books, primarily focused on Ancient Rome (Check his books…

Amit Wadhwaney is a Portfolio Manager and Co-Founding Partner at Moerus Capital Management. He has over 25 years of experience researching and analyzing investment opportunities in developed, emerging, and frontier markets worldwide, and has managed global investment portfolios since mid-90s. Prior to founding Moerus, Amit was a Portfolio Manager a…

Tre Nation is the frontman of a hugely popular band, Ghost Hounds, whose latest single, "The Last Train to Nowhere," is playing all over the world. In this interview, Tre shared the story of the band, his musical taste, his upbringing, touring with Rolling Stones and ZZ Top, and many other things. Get the latest Ghost Hounds album, "First Last Time…

Gerald Posner is the author of thirteen acclaimed books, including New York Times bestsellers CASE CLOSED, WHY AMERICA SLEPT, and GOD's BANKERS. He is a contributor to Forbes. Posner was a finalist for the Pulitzer in History. “A merciless pit bull of an investigator,” concluded the Chicago Tribune. In this interview, we discussed Case Closed, a co…

Carlo Cannell started Cannell Capital in 1992 with just $600k, and the fund grew over time to over $1 Billion. Unlike most fund managers, Carlo returned a portion of the assets back to investors, even though it meant less management fees. But that is not what Carlo is known for. Carlo has a superb track record investing in small-cap stocks, which h…

Dr. Robert Cialdini has spent his entire career conducting scientific research on what leads people to say “Yes” to requests. The results of his research, his ensuing articles, and New York Times bestselling books have earned him an acclaimed reputation as The Godfather of Influence. His books, including Influence and Pre-Suasion, have sold more th…

Dr. Donald Hoffman is a cognitive psychologist and famous science author. He is a professor in the Department of Cognitive Sciences at the University of California, Irvine. Hoffman studies consciousness, visual perception, and evolutionary psychology using mathematical models and psychophysical experiments. His research subjects include facial attr…

Dr. Michael Shermer is the Founding Publisher of Skeptic magazine, the host of the podcast The Michael Shermer Show, a Presidential Fellow at Chapman University, and the author of numerous New York Times bestsellers. Watch this episode with visual aid at www.YouTube.com/theaccentpodcast, and enjoy many more unpublished episodes. Dr. Shermer's books…

John Kleinheinz is the CEO of Kleinheinz Capital Partners, the investment advisor for the Global Undervalued Securities Fund, a global-macro-themed hedge fund that at its peak managed $4 billion. In the 1990s, he was a partner in an investment firm where he managed the Russia Value Fund, one of the earliest funds to invest in Russia, and formed at …

Paleontologist Jack Horner discovered the first dinosaur eggs in the Western Hemisphere, the first evidence of dinosaur colonial nesting, the first evidence of parental care among dinosaurs, and the first dinosaur embryos. Horner's research covers a wide range of topics about dinosaurs, including their behavior, physiology, ecology, and evolution. …

In this episode, I interviewed Dr. Avi Loeb, the longest-serving chair of the Astronomy department at Harvard University, the best-selling author, and one of the most influential people in Space (according to Time Magazine). We discussed Alien life, Interstellar objects visiting the Earth (Oumuamua), the limitation of the multiverse, time travel, a…

Jim Rogers is a legendary investor, philanthropist, and author. In 1973, Jim Rogers and George Soros founded one of the most successful hedge funds in history, the Quantum Fund. By 1980, Quantum Fund returned more than 40 times the initial investments (vs ~50% for S&P). Unlike Soros, who continued running the fund, Jim retired from the industry and…

Frank Wilczek is a theoretical physicist, mathematician and Nobel Prize laureate. In this interview, we discussed his most famous research projects - Asymptotic Freedom (which won him Nobel), Axions, Anyons, and Time Crystals. He shares his take on whether or not we are in a Simulation, risks and benefits of Artificial Intelligence, and even shares…

Olivier Chastan is the founder and CEO of Iconoclast, a company acquiring and managing the intellectual property of iconic entertainment artists, creators, and brands. Over the past year or so, Iconoclast acquired the IP of Tony Bennett, The Band, The Murder, Inc. (Ja Rule, DMX, etc.), DJ Diplo, and many others. Olivier has more than 20 years of ex…

Marin Alsop is a chief conductor of ORF Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra. She is the first woman to lead a major US orchestra (Baltimore Symphony), and the first conductor to be awarded a MacArthur Fellowship. Marin is featured in the documentary The Conductor, which follows her journey from student to conductor, delving into women's struggles in mu…

Dave discusses Squire’s product, the history of the company, how Squire successfully navigated through the early days of COVID, and the role institutional and celebrity angel investors play in the Company. BIO Dave Salvant is a Co-Founder and President of Squire Technologies, a provider of an all-in-one barbershop management platform. Prior to Suir…

Barb discussed Sapia’s unique product, the role of artificial intelligence in unbiased hiring, the Sapia data set based on a billion words and 2 million candidate profiles, the initial dataset that Sapia utilized, its first client, go-to-market strategy, and many other things. BIO Barb Hyman is the Founder and CEO of Australia-based Sapia. Prior to…

Sean discussed the financial diligence process of SaaS companies, common mistakes in ARR, Gross Profit, and EBITDA calculations, the effects capitalized software and capitalized commissions have on cash EBITDA, and many other things. BIO Sean St. Germain is a Managing Director at Alvarez & Marsal. He focuses on transactions in the software and tech…

Francois shared his experience of bringing the Norway-based Cognite to the US market, discussed the most significant challenges he has faced along the way, and compared corporate cultures in the US and Europe. BIO Dr. Francois Laborie is the President of Cognite North America, overseeing Cognite’s expansion and operations in the US, Canada, and Lat…

Diamond discussed SaaS valuation and how multiples have changed over the past several years, the main drivers of multiples, and M&A market trends. BIO Diamond Innabi is a Vice President at Software Equity Group, a boutique investment bank focused on B2B software companies. Over her nearly a decade career at SEG, she was instrumental in numerous M&A…

Marion shared her experience of being a serial entrepreneur, the challenges of raising funds, as well as founding and growing Govenda. We discussed the company’s product, customer base, go-to-market strategy, and everything in between. BIO Marion Lewis is a serial entrepreneur and the Founder and CEO of Govenda, a board management platform that ena…

Miguel discusses the story of Capchase, typical profile of SaaS clients, terms of financing they provide, and how investors and lenders view such financing. BIO Miguel Fernandez is a Co-Founder & CEO of Capchase, an alternative finance provider that enables SaaS companies to access their future contract payments upfront. Prior to launching Capchase…

Scott discusses the rise of Customer Success, Gainsight Essentials, its GTM strategy, and the most common mistakes by SMBs when it comes to CS. BIO Scott Salkin is SVP & GM, Gainsight Essentials at Gainsight. He is a seasoned entrepreneur, CEO, and senior B2B sales and marketing executive. Prior to joining Gainsight, Scott was the founder and CEO o…

Mark discusses Alpine Investors and Alpine Software Group, a unique holding company they have built by acquiring SaaS companies within several verticals. He also shared Alpine's take on talent, the profile of companies the firm invests in, and SaaS 2.0. BIO Mark Strauch is a founding partner at Alpine Investors and Chairman of Alpine SG, the firm's…

Geoffrey Moore, the author of numerous marketing books (including the all-time classic – Crossing the Chasm), discusses how COVID affected the Chasm and how SaaS companies should apply the blueprint to SMB and Enterprise target markets. He also speaks about Geoffrey’s newest book, Zone to Win, written for later-stage technology companies. BIO Geoff…

Bruno discusses the evolution of the Data Analytics space, its current trends, and shares his view on what lies ahead. BIO Bruno Aziza is a recognized authority on Business Intelligence and Information Management. He is a Data & Analytics industry veteran with more than two decades of experience in leading technology companies of various sizes - fr…

Jan shares the story of Celigo, discusses iPaaS, speaks on the Company’s Org structure and functions, and how he manages the fast-growing company with an exceptional retention profile. BIO Jan is a veteran of the software industry with more than 25 years of experience in sales, marketing, product development, and customer success. He founded Celigo…

Vlad discusses lower-middle market SaaS space, competition in the field, Nexa's deal sourcing, due diligence process, deal structures, and exit strategies. He shares a case study about Nexa's acquisition of AutoReturn, whose software connects law enforcement and towing companies. BIO Vlad Besprozvany is a Founder and Managing Partner of Nexa Equity…

Erinn Tarpey is a CMO at Visual Lease, a software provider that helps companies stay compliant with lease accounting standards. In this episode, Erinn discussed her role as a marketer, the structure of her team, how she measures the effectiveness of different marketing functions, her take on NPS, and many other things. She also shared a case study …

Marina Toybina is a six times Emmy Award winning costume designer, who is behind the fascinated costumes of The Masked Signer show on Fox. She won awards for her work at The Masked Signer, Super Bowl Halftime Show (w/Katy Perry), 55th Annual Grammy Awards, SYTYCD, and X Factor. Marina was born in Moscow, USSR, but when she was 11, her family immigr…

Shelley Perry is an investor, board director, and advisor that specializes in the uniqueness of the SaaS ScaleUp Stage. In this interview we discussed ScaleUps, compared the mindset of investors and operators, and touched on the European SaaS space. BIO Shelley Perry is a Managing Director at Scalelogix Ventures. Over her career in SaaS she was an …

Michael Lyon, is a Founder and Managing Director of Vista Point Advisors, an investment bank exclusively focused on Software and internet. In this episode, he discussed main drivers of SaaS valuation and how revenue models may influence it, Private Equity funds that are active in the space, what founders need to fix prior to selling SaaS companies,…

Faisal Masud, is a CEO of Fabric, a cloud-native e-commerce platform for middle market and enterprise clients. Faisal discusses the history of Fabric, what’s behind the company's incredible growth, and what they plan to do with $150M capital they raised in less than a year. You would also be interested to hear his take on ebay, Amazon, UPS, and tod…

Patrick Campbell, Founder and CEO of ProfitWell, discussed pricing strategies for SaaS companies. We covered wide variety of topics, from selecting a right price for your software to breaking news to your clients about increasing their price 2x. Patrick's Bio Patrick is a Founder & CEO of ProfitWell, the software for helping subscription companies …

Tom Meister, Co-Founder, COO, and General Counsel at NepFin, discusses Revenue-Based Financing for SaaS (and eCommerce companies), typical terms of such financing, profiles of the companies that should consider it as an option, and many other things. Tom Meister's Bio As COO and General Counsel, Tom manages NepFin's legal affairs and oversees its b…

Mark Znutas, Vice President of Go-to-Market Strategy and Operations at HubSpot, discusses HubSpot’s RevOps and how it aligns Sales, Marketing and Customer Success. We also covered HubSpot’s go-to-Market strategy, which has changed drastically over the years. Mark Znutas' Bio Mark is a VP of GTM Strategy and Operationsl at HubSpot, where he leads Go…

Scott Beechuk, Partner at Norwest Venture Partners discusses his experience as a startup founder and his move to VC, the latest market trends, Scott’s investment process, as well as qualitative and quantitative characteristics of companies he likes to invest in. Scott Beechuk's Bio Scott brings more than 20 years of product, engineering, and SaaS e…

Anadelia Fadeev, Director of Demand Generation and Growth at Teleport, discusses lead gen and brand awareness, how she measures effectiveness of campaigns, and "must have" online tools. Anadelia Fadeev's Bio Anadelia is a Director of Demand Generation and Growth at Teleport, a Kleiner Perkins-backed software company that allows engineers and securi…