Sinisa (Siggi) Rakovich

Don't just book recurring revenue any old way. There's a right and wrong way to do it. Many think ARR and annual run rate are interchangeable. But that's not how the best do it. Instead, proper revenue recognition is critical for valuation. Here are 7 steps that will help you get it right: 1. Understand the difference between booking and recognizing revenue. 2. Calculate ARR based on subscription term, not billings. 3. Don't confuse ARR with annual run rate. 4. Recognize revenue evenly over the subscription term. 5. Ensure your recognition method can withstand due diligence. 6. Train your team on compliant recognition practices. 7. Monitor revenue recognition accuracy every accounting period. You'll know you're doing it right when your SaaS valuation soars. Remember — you're not just booking recurring revenue. You're building a highly valuable SaaS business.

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B2B Enterprise VC firms list. Find #EnterpriseVC firms. Access 850 #B2B #Enterprise venture capital firms list. https://lnkd.in/dWnMzNNy #startup #startups #vc #venturecapital #funding

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B2B Enterprise VC firms list. Find #EnterpriseVC firms. Access 850 #B2B #Enterprise venture capital firms list. https://lnkd.in/dWnMzNNy #startup #startups #vc #venturecapital #funding

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Agents, specifically AI agents, are the focus of the season. In a few years, we will all marvel at how token-heavy the 2024 agents were, with negligible persistence (excuse for this: output freshness), and one-size fits-all implementations. Eagerly waiting for quicker iterations and more nuanced, case specificity. In the meanwhile, use the current gen of agents to get to/past the Hello, world! Thiyagarajan Maruthavanan (Rajan) | Dharmesh Shah #startups #ai #agents

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The profitability sanity test for VC-backed unprofitable cos. Ask this question: How much revenue would it take to be breakeven if: - gross margin % is held constant - all opex spend is held constant on a $ basis Is that revenue achievable with no additional cost? In the attached example, the company needs to grow revenues from $50,000,000 to $87,500,000 with no additional expense to be breakeven. That's $37,500,000 of incremental revenue with $0 of added expense. The question for this business is whether that's possible. If the gap seems too large, then to make the gap more attainable there are two levers: - increase gross margin % - reduce operating expense The best means to do that varies by business, but those are the two levers. And this needs to happen while the company is growing revenues. If the gap seems impossible, then you may have a fundamental business model issue that will make profitability a remote possibility. Of course, there are means in which companies can grow to achieve scale which will help with the profitability likelihood over time - but that will require outside capital which should never be treated as categorically attainable.

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B2B Enterprise VC firms list. Find #EnterpriseVC firms. Access 850 #B2B #Enterprise venture capital firms list. https://lnkd.in/dvg5rJKe #startup #startups #vc #venturecapital #funding

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B2B Enterprise VC firms list. Find #EnterpriseVC firms. Access 850 #B2B #Enterprise venture capital firms list. https://lnkd.in/dvg5rJKe #startup #startups #vc #venturecapital #funding

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B2B Enterprise VC firms list. Find #EnterpriseVC firms. Access 850 #B2B #Enterprise venture capital firms list. https://lnkd.in/dvg5rJKe #startup #startups #vc #venturecapital #funding

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B2B Enterprise VC firms list. Find #EnterpriseVC firms. Access 850 #B2B #Enterprise venture capital firms list. https://lnkd.in/dvg5rJKe #startup #startups #vc #venturecapital #funding

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Understanding the Rule of X for SaaS Scaleups For SaaS scaleups, the Rule of X offers a straightforward framework to estimate revenue multiples. It was originally developed by Bessemer Venture Partners and supplemented with data last week by Dealroom founder Yoram Wijngaarde. It emphasizes that growth significantly outweighs profitability, even amid VC crunches. However, when growth is constrained, profitability becomes essential. Framework Overview: The Rule of X combines growth rate and free cash flow (FCF) margin to evaluate company value, using a multiplier (typically 2-3x) on growth. Datadog Example: With a 25% growth rate and a 25% EBITDA margin, Datadog achieves a Rule of X score of 100%, implying a 15x revenue multiple for 2024. Importance of Growth: Growth has a compounding impact on valuation, significantly outweighing FCF margins. Subscribe to ‘Siliconnector’ Telegram channel for insights and news from Tech world and Silicon Valley: https://t.me/siliconnector

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My conversation with Leo Polovets is live! Leo is a co-founder and General Partner at Susa Ventures and Humba Ventures. He writes $1m-$3m checks via Susa, mostly in B2B SaaS companies, and $250k-$500k checks via Humba, mostly in deep tech and in critical sectors (manufacturing, energy, defense, etc). Some of Susa Ventures' notable investments include Robinhood, Flexport, and Stord. In our conversation, we dig into: → Founding story of Humba Ventures → Portfolio construction → How to successfully raise capital from LPs → Biggest Lies Told in the VC Industry → Importance of Diversifying deal Sourcing Channels → Hardest part about building a Venture Capital Fund → How much of investing is random and luck? → Who is he outside of work And much more! Listen now 👇 Youtube: https://bit.ly/45oAn2l Spotify: https://bit.ly/4b8BLr5 Chad Byers Seth Berman

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𝐔𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜: ‘𝐋𝐅𝐈’ 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐥-𝐁𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 We rely on metrics daily: 🌟 NPS, 💻 Churn Rate, 📈 CAGR, 💰 Burn Multiples, 📉 LTV, CAC, MRR, ARR, etc. These metrics guide us through business strategy and decision-making. Even books like “Measure What Matters” focus on OKRs/ goals, which I LOVE as a leader. But as I took a step back, I realized there was something missing. Amidst the flurry of KPIs, frameworks and analyses, one crucial area often goes unnoticed: our own well-being 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐌𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐥-𝐁𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 Imagine what would happen to a company if we didn’t measure performance or plot KPIs. It would likely fail, blindsided by unforeseen issues. "𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐝." – 𝑃𝑒𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝐷𝑟𝑢𝑐𝑘𝑒𝑟 If true, then why do we not apply the same logic and discipline to our personal well-being? I continue to see leaders, professionals, and entrepreneurs silently suffering. It’s scary. It’s sad. But it’s also a wake-up call. 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐋𝐅𝐈 🌞 Of course, you wouldn’t know what LFI means because I conjured this up, but hang with me… I did put some thought behind this 😎. I wanted to find a way to measure and monitor overall fulfillment and satisfaction in life, evaluating aspects like purpose, passion, joy, contribution, and alignment with core values. I call this the 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐅𝐮𝐥𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐱 (𝐋𝐅𝐈). The foundational rocks for my rubric include: • Time with Loved Ones: Cherish every moment with family and friends. Time is fleeting, and these moments are priceless. Aging parents? Toddlers time-traveling to graduates suddenly? • Personal Happiness and Satisfaction: Take stock of your emotional well-being. Are you truly happy and fulfilled? • Health and Wellness: Prioritize your health. Without it, nothing else matters. Even money can’t be the silver bullet. If Steve Jobs couldn’t do it, what are our odds? • Purpose and Passion: Are you excited about what you do or miserable? Are you working on something you are passionate about? Better to try and fail than live and regret never pursuing it 😡 So the next time you are overwhelmed or triggered by the typical “LFG” with a 🚀, I want you to pause and think about your #LFI 🌞. In a world where success is often measured by external achievements and the only constant seems to be layoffs, let’s not forget to measure what truly matters: our own well-being. Ready to measure and improve your LFI?  What's one rock you'd add to the list above? Please share your thoughts in the comments. With this in mind, I’m working on some exciting changes for my next act and will be sharing soon as I finesse my own rubric for my LFI! It involves a little dose of imagination, bonding with my kids, laughter, & a LOT of LFI 😀 #LifeFulfillmentIndex #CEO #WellBeing #LifeMetrics #Entrepreneurship #StartupSuccess #ZeeZeeAdventures

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Good state of SaaS here

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The Art of the VC Pitch: A Brief Guide to Maximizing Your Chances With Venture Capital Through Giving Better Pitches Pitching to a Venture Capital firm is different from any other kind of pitch. It's not like a sales pitch, a product pitch, or any other kind of presentation. This guide is a road map to the nuts and bolts of maximizing your opportunity when you manage to get in front of VCs

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This Sequoia Capital article is easily the best article I have read on product-market fit. (link below) Its very relevant to (disruptive) deep tech startups, a category I often feel is ignored in these articles. 3️⃣ There's three methods to get to PMF, and the largely depend on the nature of the product and the perception of the market: 🔥Hair on Fire: Customers are acutely aware of the problem and actively looking for solutions. Success hinges on delivering the best-in-class solution through differentiation. [Smartphone market, after the iPhone] 🪨Hard Fact: Customers acknowledge the problem as an inevitable fact of life and haven't actively sought solutions. The challenge lies in convincing them that there's a better way and overcoming inertia. [Uber/ AirBnB] 👀Future Vision: Customers are either unaware of the problem or believe a solution is unrealistic. The entrepreneur needs to create a new paradigm and win over customers to this vision. [Apple iPhone/ OpenAI] Each of these have different approaches, as the nature of problem to be solved is different. 🔥Hair on Fire: Act fast and prioritize a great product with a strong go-to-market strategy, usually with a unique insight, because if its a hair-on-fire problem, there are likely existing competitors. [Rippling, the HR software did it unified HR Database for businesses] 🪨Hard Fact: Educate the market about the problem and how your solution offers a better approach. [Square had to do this to overcome the cash-only mentality] 👀Future Vision: Be prepared for a long journey, focus on attracting top talent, and find strategic pit stops for commercial traction along the way. [Nvidia did this with gaming chipsets] So which type of problem is your startup solving?

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There is a never-ending discussion about whether to bootstrap or get Venture capital. Check out the chart. This eye-opening chart reveals that bootstrapped startups have a more consistent path to $1M ARR than their VC-backed counterparts. Top VC-backed companies sprint to $1M in just 20 months But median bootstrappers hit the same milestone in 41 months Bottom quartile bootstrappers are slow but relentless, reaching $1M in 63 months. Bootstrappers show remarkably linear growth across all quartiles. VC rocket fuel isn't always the answer. Sometimes, steady organic growth builds a more resilient business. What's your take? 🤔 #StartupGrowth #Bootstrapping #VCFunding #SaaS

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