Geert Van Kerckhoven, CEO & Co-Founder of Oper Credits

As a fellow SaaS founder, I’ve gained invaluable insights from my journey that I’d like to share. While my experiences may vary from yours, these tips can offer valuable guidance: 

1. Hire Strategically, Be Uncompromising: The saying “hire the right people” is a cliché for a reason—it’s crucial. Don’t settle for less than the best. Despite the temptation to expedite growth by cutting corners in recruitment, it’s a costly mistake in the long run. Stay stringent in your hiring process to ensure you surround yourself with top-tier talent. Remember, quality over quantity is key. 

2. Only scale a process when it works and it hurts: Avoid the trap of throwing resources at every issue that arises, especially post-funding. Instead, only scale when you feel you hit the nail on the head. If you feel your sales motion works and your salesperson is not effective anymore because there’s too much to work on, scale. Don’t hire more salespeople when they don’t know what to sell.  

3. Prioritize Diligently, Utilize Time Wisely: Use the Eisenhower Matrix to categorize tasks based on urgency and importance. Allocate ample time for non-urgent but important tasks, delegate urgent but less critical matters, and steer clear of non-essential distractions. Running long days and working hard on non-important / non-urgent items makes you feel busy, but it doesn’t move the needle for your business.  

4. Stay Hands-On, Lead by Example: Regardless of how your team is growing, remain actively involved in operational aspects. Technical founders should still carve out time for coding, while go-to-market founders must prioritize sales efforts. Leading by example instills a strong work ethic within your team and fosters a culture of accountability. Never lose sight of the operational side of your business as it’s where the true battles are won. 

5. Offer direct feedback generously: Founders often have an intuition when something isn’t right—this is (or at least should be) your superpower.

Therefore, tackle problems head-on rather than avoiding them—the issues rarely disappear on their own. Ignoring issues can only lead to frustration. Lead by example, you have an incredibly high bar for yourself so communicate that kindly to others.   

Michael Gonzalez, CRO Mindee

As we edge closer to the pivotal second half of 2024, it’s clear that for startups aiming not just to survive but also to thrive, rethinking traditional strategies is not an option — it’s a necessity. Here’s a distilled strategy that cuts to the chase.

Start with Your Customers

Putting customer centricity at the core isn’t just nice to have; it’s your lifeline. Every piece of your startup puzzle, especially sales, needs to click into what your customer really wants. This means every team, not just customer service, gets down in the trenches to understand and solve real customer problems. When your product hits that sweet spot of customer need, your sales pitch practically writes itself. It’s genuine, powerful, and most importantly, effective.

Tighten the CS-Sales Loop

Forget about silos between Customer Success (CS) and Sales. These teams need to be so in sync that they practically finish each other’s sentences. Why? Because insights from CS can turn into gold for Sales, helping tailor pitches that resonate. This isn’t just about improving customer satisfaction; it’s a strategic move that directly boosts sales figures by ensuring your offer is spot-on every time.

AI in Sales: The Game Changer

First off, embedding AI into sales isn’t just smart; it’s essential. Think of AI as your team’s superpower, automating the grunt work and ensuring your sales force zeroes in on leads that matter. This isn’t about replacing the human touch but amplifying it, letting your team focus on relationships and closing deals where they can truly make an impact

Martin-Pierre Gaultier, CCO & CMO at Lemonway

Don’t anticipate the market. This may sound strange, but this is the hard truth for strategists today. We’re now in a new era where the payback period needs to be shorter and certain. Start/scale-ups that could re-finance themselves in case of a late or uncertain product-market fit will no longer have this option. 

Unless you are building a deep-tech innovation that is — in essence — requesting a long financing period without a short-term return, all other companies starting series A will be requested to deliver a short-term profitable action plan (12/18 months). This means that having a deep understanding of your unit economics and your return on investment is mandatory. 

Multiple sub-processes need to be assessed: When is your time to hire? What is then your time to revenue (two very important KPIs for your CRO)? You can also move up in the company value chain by measuring how fast you go from product design to product delivery.  How does this resonate with your market maturity and your competitive landscape?

So, to finish 2024 strong, you need to be in full control of your company’s key performance indicators, and those KPIs need to show evidence of the new profitability paradigm.

Tristan Vie, VP Sales at JobTeaser

As we stride into the latter half of 2024, startup founders find themselves navigating an environment not vastly different from the previous year. Uncertainty remains a constant companion, challenging the resilience and adaptability of businesses. However, amidst the flux, there are invaluable lessons to glean from 2024.

Reflecting on past experiences, it’s evident that hope alone is insufficient for sustainable growth. The focus must shift towards fostering healthy, tangible expansion.

Key Recommendations:

• Focus on Controllables: Amidst external turbulence, prioritize elements within your sphere of influence. Channel efforts towards areas where meaningful impact can be realized, fostering a sense of agency amidst uncertainty.

• Profitability Quest: While growth is paramount, it should not come at the expense of profitability. Strive for a balanced approach that fuels sustainable expansion while safeguarding financial health.

• Product-Centric Approach: Revisit the core of your business by engaging directly with customers. Field insights offer invaluable guidance, illuminating areas for improvement and innovation.

• Strategic Decision-Making: Embrace strategic decisions, even if they entail tough choices. Regret often stems from indecision rather than action, highlighting the importance of bold, decisive leadership.

• People and Organizations: Strike a balance between remote and on-site operations, tailoring approaches to suit evolving needs. Simplify organizational structures to enhance agility, transitioning from complex matrices to streamlined models.

• Retention Strategy: Prioritize retention by delineating clear criteria for retaining top talent. Communicate transparently regarding growth versus sustainability trajectories, aligning expectations with organizational goals.

Revenue-Related Advice for SaaS:

• New Business Strategy: Augment new business strategies with insights gleaned from existing intelligence. Leverage data to identify industries, company sizes, and territories with lower churn rates, optimizing acquisition efforts for sustained growth.

• Existing Client Focus: Allocate resources judiciously by prioritizing high lifetime value clients. Don’t take renewals for granted. Automate processes for smaller clients to streamline operations, maximizing efficiency and scalability. 

• Territorial Expansion: Approach territorial expansion cautiously, acknowledging the inherent uncertainties. Focus on consolidating presence in high-revenue regions to mitigate risks associated with venturing into unknown territories.

Good luck with H2 2024! 

Raphaël Boukris, Chief Revenue Officer & Co-Founder of Didomi

In the rapidly evolving landscape of 2024, the doctrine of “growth at all costs” has officially become a relic of the past. Last year was a clear demarcation, setting a stringent tone that persists: Series A, B, and C startups are now under the imperative to balance growth with capital efficiency. The market no longer forgives  frivolous expenditure or aimless expansion; instead, there’s a premium on strategic, ROI-driven investment. As a Chief Revenue Officer penning this narrative, I emphasize that achieving a harmonious balance between expansion and profitability is not merely advisable but essential.

Growth remains a non-negotiable for startups aiming for a significant valuation. However, the approach must be judicious. Every investment decision should pass rigorous scrutiny, underpinned by tangible returns. In this climate, focusing on creating a ‘blue ocean’ strategy for a singular, well-performing product in key markets is critical. Success in one’s domestic market creates a stable platform from which to consider entering more speculative markets. This strategy not only mitigates risk through potentially lower customer acquisition costs abroad but also solidifies the startup’s foundation for sustainable growth.

Moreover, the landscape of stakeholder expectations has transformed. Venture capitalists (VCs) have heightened their demands but so have prospects. The latter’s appetite for superficial “nice-to-have” solutions has diminished, giving way to a demand for products that deliver significant, measurable impact. In this environment, the role of the CFO has ascended to new heights, embodying a critical voice in the executive decision-making process. It is imperative for product teams to cultivate deep, empathetic connections with both current customers and prospects. This closeness enables a precise understanding of the market’s pain points, guiding the development of innovations that address genuine needs with quantifiable benefits.

The essence of navigating post-Series A growth in 2024 is simple in theory yet complex in execution. Startups must resist the temptation to dilute their focus across too many projects or markets without clear ROI. The successful ones will be those that manage to innovate within the confines of what is genuinely valuable to their customers, thereby crafting high-value propositions that resonate deeply with their target audience.

Saskia Fiszel, Founder & COO at Virgil

For Series A startup founders and beyond, navigating the current landscape to finish 2024 on a high note requires two seemingly contradictory — yet logical — approaches.

For one thing, we all have now shifted the focus to profitability rather than vanity metrics. The old music of high-speed growth with no business model has run its course. The new tune is clear: profitability, profitability, profitability. And that’s excellent for building a sounder economy!

However, let’s be equally cautious with profitability-only blinders as we should be with growth-only mirages: 

Founders, in my view, are trying to change the world. And to do so, they must create innovation on a massive scale. We know this requires a huge deal of ambition. Creating a small, profitable SME is one thing, but creating a profitable AND disruptive business that changes the face of our economy is even greater. While being financially prudent is essential, it should not stifle the desire to transform the industries in which startup founders operate. In my view, the big challenge for start-ups in 2024 is to adopt responsible business practices while maintaining their ambitious goals. 

To remain competitive and make a real difference, start-ups must continue to innovate strategically. However, with scarcer resources, founders need to prioritize the most promising initiatives and focus on those with the greatest potential to create value, while avoiding dispersion. To be “successful” in 2024, there is no magic formula: we will have to be extremely selective and rigorous in steering the company as well as meeting deadlines to give innovation the place it rightfully deserves.

Loic Mocellin, Executive Coach, Startups Operating Partner

Don’t shut your ambitions down…

…at least not all of them!

Investments and startups’ valuations are not at their very best, you might have noticed that already! But that is not enough to make a crisis. It’s possibly enough to show a bubble that just burst after a couple of crazy decades. 

Assign your teams to “bread and butter” business. 

Don’t leave any low-hanging fruit on the tree.

Trust your management team to make the right decisions. 

Hire well, fire fast, out of respect for the hard workers.

By being pragmatic and resilient, you’ll be able to spend 20% of your time, along with your exec team, foreseeing what will happen beyond H2. Work on plans A, B, and C…and define in advance what will trigger them. When you’re in the heat of the moment, decisions can be irrational, and you might want to avoid that. 

Learn to listen to your emotions. Gain a clear understanding of what sets them off. Elaborate ways to channel them to be the great and inspiring leader they all need you to be. 

If you trust your teams to keep the engine going, they will trust you to make the best decisions in critical moments and to take the right turn.

Oh…and if you can’t manage, open up and find yourself a sparring partner. It’s your duty to work on yourself and challenge your status quo, so you can remain good at what you do.

Peter-Paul de Leeuw, Founder & CEO at Amberscript

Ever since LLMs gained popularity, the defensibility of AI-first startups has been questionable as LLM AI APIs are available to well-established SaaS players with existing competitive advantages. I am convinced that the answer can lie in building an AI-first service business that looks like a software business, and I am building our transcription and subtitling business Amberscript accordingly. We provide fully 100% correct transcripts and subtitles, with a small human check but automated to a large degree by generative AI.

In this approach, which I think can be applied to many industries, foundation models, and industry-specific data are used to rebuild a service business from the ground up. The business is automated to such a high extent that it can provide our service without (too much) human interference. Subtitling is well-suited for this: while previously the service was only available with a high degree of human involvement, using LLMs trained on specific industry and even client guidelines and data provides a workflow where a light human quality check (as hallucinations are limited but still exist) makes the process scalable at prices impossible before. Using proprietary data and finding a niche industry to train the LLMs in creates defensibility.

The key to this approach is to sell the work, not the AI-powered SaaS features. The market for software that can produce the end product is in this case, and many other cases such as customer support and accounting, much smaller than the market for the end product at the application layer. Therefore, you can choose a more specific niche that increases your service level and your data moat when collecting data to train a custom LLM. As performance curves of AI models are asymptotic (it is much harder to get from 80% to 100% than it is to get from 0% to 80%; the reason the self-driving car is not here yet), incumbents that cover the whole market are left with a subpar product.

As the services you will offer are most likely already being provided, there is no product-market fit challenge. The main challenge, however, is being able to scale without compromising on the quality of the service. This will oftentimes require a way of being able to include a human layer with a very light touch to do quality checks and light improvements for many customers at the same time, as opposed to current professionals in service areas providing the full service for a limited number of customers. A balance must be found in going after growth (more focus on the full service) and profitability (more focus on the software).

Looking to found an AI startup? Sell the automated service, not the software.

Pierre-Marin CAMPENON, Managing Director EU, Partnerships at Younited

Entrepreneurs today find themselves operating in a landscape transformed by a sudden shift from growth-centric to value-centric approaches over the past two years. This shift has ushered in a ‘new normal’ in 2024, characterized by a long-overdue emphasis on value creation and sustainability.

In this evolving paradigm, the hallmarks of successful companies are clear: a relentless focus on profitability, operational efficiency, and sustainable growth. These fundamental principles, often regarded as common sense, have surged back into prominence within the tech sector in recent months, now forming an integral part of every entrepreneur’s strategic framework.

However, it’s crucial to recognize that adhering to these principles alone is not sufficient to validate a business model. Entrepreneurs must also continue to innovate and cultivate their unique value propositions in this more rational environment. They must blend the profit-driven mindset of established corporations with the agility, innovation, and speed inherent to startups.

While there’s no one-size-fits-all formula for achieving this delicate balance, some fundamental guidelines can steer entrepreneurs in the right direction:

• Prioritize ruthlessly: Adopt OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) frameworks to streamline strategic decision-making and focus on core objectives.

• Cultivate a diverse team: Surround yourself with individuals who embody a mix of financial acumen and forward-thinking vision, ensuring a balanced approach to business strategy.

• Listen to the market: While staying true to your vision is paramount, remain receptive to market feedback and emerging trends (AI, circular economy…), adjusting your strategy accordingly to capitalize on new opportunities.

• Embrace pragmatism: In an era marked by frugality and focus, be prepared to make tough choices, such as discontinuing unprofitable projects or optimizing operational costs, recognizing that such decisions often yield the greatest impact.

As always, history is a pendulum where any excess (the previous period was excessive, blind idolatry of growth at any cost) is irremediably, brutally corrected with a shift to the other opposite (now we’re in a situation where we almost expect any venture to be profitable from day 1!). The key to success is to adopt a balanced approach, and a crucial tool to achieve that is common sense.

Jean-Bernard MELET, CEO at Eldo

I think that everybody is now looking to reach profitability and efficiency towards growth. 

What allowed us to get close to it in 2023 is very counterintuitive as we managed to do it due to an M&A synergy and international development that usually takes too much time, money, and risk.

So, instead of sharing recommendations, I will share my 6 focuses for H2: 

1. People: You might have to reduce people and it has been hard. You don’t want your top player to leave or the global equilibrium of the team’s motivation to explode. So, we invest a lot in: 

   1. Communicate with transparency

   2. Understand people’s needs and prioritize people topics

   3. Identify A players and secure them

   4. Improve cross-collaboration: business, ops. and product

As a result, in Q1, we got our highest ever employee NPS.

2. Customer Focus: Double down efforts on customers from customer success to operations and/or product. There are 3 positive outcomes to it : 

   1. To reduce churn. A study carried out by Frederick Reichheld of Bain & Company found that increasing customer retention by 5% can increase profits by 25% to 95%.

   2. Generate upsell/cross-sell revenue, it can represent 30 to 50% of your revenue

   3. Generate free leads for your sales team. It will allow you to decrease your cost of customer acquisition

3. Product Development: Double down effort on product: 

   1. Iterate fast

   2. Build viral loop/network effects

   3. Don’t forget scaling topics

In the past, we have been focusing too much on scaling growth but we generated technical debt. In fact, it is important to get your product ready for scale if you don’t want to be slowed down by your product and see your COGS increase too much with your growth. 

4. Cash Flow Management: Find ways to collect more cash and faster : 

   1. Invoicing and collecting cash before your previous terms

   2. Increase your prices or add new options

It is much more difficult to find cash nowadays so better find ways to generate flow from efficiency and customers.

5. Strategic partnerships: It takes a long time to settle, but if you already have, you should get the most from it. Partnering with other software companies allowed us to

   1. To reduce churn

   2. Generate leads

   3. Increase brand visibility 

6. Leadership: More than ever as CEO you need to be close to your people, customers, social network, and investors. Leadership has never been more important. I recommend:

   1. Measuring the employee pulse on a quarterly basis and collecting feedback/questions before the company’s meetings

   2. Allocating more time to communicate with all counterparts

   3. Spending time making sure all C-level and managers are aligned and share the same messages with the same language elements

Florian Gendrault, Founder & CEO of Alleo

In a world where change is rapid, AI is prominent, and competition is fierce, it’s crucial to understand what makes your company unique. 2024 offers new opportunities, but only for those who determine their course with vision and determination. Given this context, it’s essential for startup founders to focus on core strategies that not only promote growth but also ensure sustainability.

My advice:

• The right team turns challenges into opportunities. Seek individuals whose skills complement one another and encourage collaboration. Joint problem-solving not only leads to innovation but also strengthens the team’s cohesion, making your startup more adaptable and resilient.

• Your product’s development should be directly shaped by market feedback. Engage early with your target audience to validate your vision. Use customer feedback to iterate quickly, ensuring your product genuinely solves user problems and fits seamlessly into the market.

• Focus on a sustainable scale by ensuring a solid product-market fit. Avoid the temptation of rapid expansion without a stable foundation. Measure growth through customer retention and consistent revenue, which are true indicators of a healthy, scalable startup.

As we process through 2024, businesses must adopt a lens of honesty in evaluating their current standing. Uncertainty about your position warrants a phase of experimentation. Let these principles guide you as you navigate the remainder of 2024, steering not just towards growth but towards meaningful advancement.