SaaSy Talk Unfiltered

About The Guest(s): Alka Tandan is Chief Financial Officer at Gainsight. Tandan has over 20 years of corporate finance and operations experience in the technology industry, mostly focused on SaaS. She began her career in investment banking where she helped take Salesforce and Google public and has held various strategic and operational roles at MetricStream, Actian Corporation, and SAP. Tandan is also a limited partner and advisor for the venture fund Operator Collective as well as an angel investor, and is a founding member of The F Suite, a community platform for Chief Financial Officers of leading venture capital funds and high growth technology companies.

Summary: Alka shares her journey growing up in Silicon Valley and how her parents' background in engineering influenced her career in tech. She discusses the challenges and realities of working in Silicon Valley, as well as the impact and influence of being a woman in the industry. Alka also talks about the importance of building strong relationships in business and how she navigates the role of CFO with a human-first approach. She reflects on her proudest moments in her career, including Gainsight's acquisition by Vista, and discusses the challenges and opportunities of scaling a SaaS company. Alka shares her strategies for adapting to economic downturns and planning for the future amidst uncertainty. She also highlights exciting developments at Gainsight, including recent acquisitions and the company's focus on the post-sales journey.

Key Takeaways:

• Growing up in Silicon Valley and being surrounded by tech influenced Alka's career in the industry

• Building strong relationships and effective communication are key to success in business

• Being a human-first CFO means being transparent, approachable, and explaining decisions to build trust

• Planning for the future requires scenario planning and regular review of the business's financials

• Gainsight is focused on filling the entire post-sales journey and leveraging AI for future growth.

Quotes:

• "Being in an environment like Silicon Valley, my uncle being an entrepreneur, you just start dreaming big."

• "The most important reason this deal matters is that we've proven you can win in business by being human first."

• "We're not just a customer success company anymore. We're looking at owning the entire post-sales journey."

Chapters: 

00:08 Guest's Early Life and Career Beginnings

02:02 Growing Up in Silicon Valley

02:37 Career Milestones and Achievements

02:47 Challenges and Realities of Silicon Valley

03:54 Impact and Influence as a Woman in Tech

06:07 Journey to Becoming a CFO

08:24 Building Strong Relationships in Business

10:26 Adapting to Economic Downturn

12:51 Challenges in Scaling a SaaS Company

15:56 Learning from Business Mistakes

18:06 Proudest Moments in Career

19:35 Adopting a Human-First Approach in Business

23:48 Navigating Transparency and Confidentiality

26:45 Adapting to Unpredictable Situations

27:04 Team Alignment and Decision Making

27:13 Impact of Investment on Team Communication and Planning

27:28 Increased Alignment and Regular Meetings with Investors

30:11 Planning for 2024 Amidst Uncertainty

30:29 Strategies for Navigating Economic Changes

32:34 The Importance of Regular Review and Adaptability

33:23 Understanding Cash Flow for Business Flexibility

34:04 Exciting Developments and Future Plans for Gainsight

35:28 Quick Fire Round: Getting to Know Alka

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