Jeff Shouger
San Francisco Bay Area
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About
Jeff Shouger is a finance executive with significant leadership experience in managing…
Articles by Jeff
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Why Missionary Leadership is Essential Today
Why Missionary Leadership is Essential Today
Market movement has been volatile during the first quarter of this year. The erratic deal flow has been characterized…
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Driving Optionality for Growth in a M&A MarketMar 1, 2022
Driving Optionality for Growth in a M&A Market
The gaming industry is steadily transforming through M&A deals. In early January, Take-Two Interactive, the parent…
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Niantic’s latest capital raise accelerates its momentum to build the ‘Real-World Metaverse’Dec 2, 2021
Niantic’s latest capital raise accelerates its momentum to build the ‘Real-World Metaverse’
There is a fervent race to grab market share in the digital universe. Social media, technology, and interactive…
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How Will Gaming Platforms Advance the Creator Economy?Nov 8, 2021
How Will Gaming Platforms Advance the Creator Economy?
The media and entertainment world is remarkably different now compared to a year ago. Mobile gaming is dominating the…
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As User-Generated Content Evolves, So Does The Need for CommunityJun 10, 2021
As User-Generated Content Evolves, So Does The Need for Community
Benefits of UGC We are seeing an increased focus on user-generated content (UGC) among interactive experiences and the…
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Gaming + Social is Driving New Interactive Entertainment ExperiencesApr 22, 2021
Gaming + Social is Driving New Interactive Entertainment Experiences
With mobile gaming dominating the entertainment category, there is an abundance of options for interactive…
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Why Mobile Gaming is Dominating EntertainmentFeb 16, 2021
Why Mobile Gaming is Dominating Entertainment
Prior to COVID, mobile gaming was strong. Now, the category is booming with record growth.
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To be Lucky, Plan for the UnexpectedDec 14, 2020
To be Lucky, Plan for the Unexpected
If this year has proven anything, it is the need to be prepared for everything and anything. The initial shock of the…
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Capital Raising Optionality in a Cash-Driven MarketOct 29, 2020
Capital Raising Optionality in a Cash-Driven Market
It amazes me to see that capital markets today are flooded in liquidity, with a record-breaking pace of venture capital…
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Integrity Paves the Way for Strong Corporate GovernanceSep 25, 2020
Integrity Paves the Way for Strong Corporate Governance
“Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody's going to know whether you did it or not.” - Socrates…
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4 Comments
Activity
4K followers
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Jeff Shouger shared thisLet’s go Bing!Jeff Shouger shared thisFriends, I’m excited to announce that my new book, Everybody Wins, will be out this October 27 with Penguin Random House, and is now available for preorder! https://lnkd.in/gbNgfGSi What makes great video games so satisfying, engaging, and retentive? Some twenty years ago, when EA Sports and The Sims were at the peak of their powers, I wondered if I could recreate the magic of video games in other kinds of consumer products, and other walks of life entirely. What I came back with was my “Gamification Checklist,” which broke down the elements of great games and franchises, and began to imagine how I could export it. I’ve taken what I know from decades in the games business to help build newer companies and products like Amazon Prime, Zynga, Duolingo, Spotify, Twitch, Coursera, Pokémon Go, Take Two, Cameo, Thrive Global, My Fitness Pal, and Alan Health. Now, daughter Chloe and I have written a book to share my “Gamification Checklist” with, well, everyone. If you’re building a product, a company, a game, or classroom curriculum, if you’re a fan of gaming, a founder or a leader, or even a parent trying to understand Roblox better, my hope is that this book offers a new lens on what it means to succeed and why, in the best systems, everybody wins. Stay tuned for more announcements in the coming weeks.Everybody Wins by Bing Gordon, Chloe Gordon: 9798217176687 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: BooksEverybody Wins by Bing Gordon, Chloe Gordon: 9798217176687 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books
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Jeff Shouger shared thisI am an advisor for Whop, and they are hiring for a Strategic Finance role. Whop sits at the intersection of creators, commerce, payments, and digital products, and they are looking for someone who can do more than build models. This person will help drive forecasting, improve unit economics, support capital planning, and partner across the business as the company scales. Strong role. Real impact. Great time to join. Please reach out if someone comes to mind. https://lnkd.in/gC8ZH4ug
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Jeff Shouger shared thisLove it. Great reminder for anyone who’s been told they can’t do it or aren’t good enough.Jeff Shouger shared thisYou have no experience. You’ve never started a company. You’ve never had a full time job. Nike is going to kill you. You’re a kid. You don’t have technical skills. You shouldn’t build hardware. Apple is going to kill you. You can’t build hardware. You can’t measure heart rate non-invasively. Athletes don’t care about recovery. Under Armour is going to kill you. It won’t be accurate. You don’t listen. You’re an ineffective leader. You can’t recruit great talent. You’re going to have to pay every athlete. You can’t measure sleep non-invasively. It’s too expensive to research. Athletes are a small market. The product costs too much to make. The product costs too much to sell. Your valuation is too high. Consumers aren’t going to want it. Hardware is too hard. You should measure steps. Fitbit is going to kill you. You can’t build a marketing engine. You can’t raise enough money. You need a real CEO. Google is going to kill you. You can’t be a subscription. You can’t build a brand. You can’t do consumer in Boston. Your valuation is too high. You shouldn’t make accessories. You shouldn’t make apparel. Lululemon is going to kill you. You can’t predict Covid. Stay in your niche. You are going to run out of money. You can’t build a health platform. Amazon is going to kill you. You can’t measure blood pressure. You can’t get medical approvals. The market is too small. You don’t understand AI. The market is too competitive. It won’t work internationally. The supply chain is too complicated. You can’t build an AI. You can’t raise enough money. It’s too competitive. Healthcare isn’t going to want it. … Just keep going ✌️
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Jeff Shouger shared thisProud to have played a small part in the Zynga story. It was a truly career-changing experience for me. Congratulations, Mark Pincus, on the release of your new book.Jeff Shouger shared thisI'm excited to share that my book, Life at the Speed of Play, will be out in June. I've spent these last 5 years writing so I can share my lessons and stories around building products and scaling companies. At Zynga, we lived with the mantra that we had to test more ideas in a week than the game industry would test in a year. Now, in this AI era, where anyone can build anything, the winners will be those who learn the fastest, tune to their winning instincts, and kill their losing ideas. Life at the Speed of Play is my playbook. I’m sharing it with founders, product makers, and anyone trying to turn an idea into something that matters. If you’re building something new, I think this book will help. Life at the Speed of Play is available for pre-order now, out June 23.
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Jeff Shouger shared thisIncredible story and journey! What’s most exciting is I know David Lee and the team are just getting started!Jeff Shouger shared thisWhen Ben Cohen covered HomeCourt between 2018 and 2020, he was a sports reporter at The Wall Street Journal. Those stories brought in all kinds of investor interest, with many assuming we were some kind of big shots, only to discover we were a small team with a niche product. Ben has since gone on to write one of WSJ’s most thoughtful columns, The Science of Success, where he explores what makes people, teams, and ideas work. I feel incredibly honored that what we’ve built with Nex Playground resonated with him again. We went from an iPhone app to a vertically integrated ecosystem spanning our own hardware, OS, SDK, and content services. It feels like the mother of all pivots and a hell of a journey. More than anything, it is a story about believing in ourselves, believing in each other, and never giving up. Take a look: 🖇️ https://lnkd.in/g46k2AxiThe Hottest Toy of the Year Is Made by a Tech Startup You’ve Never Heard OfThe Hottest Toy of the Year Is Made by a Tech Startup You’ve Never Heard Of
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Jeff Shouger shared thisHaving worked with Pokémon GO I have seen first hand the benefits movement and entertainment can make in people’s lives. Amazing to see how much positive impact Nex is making bringing the same fundamental values to the world.Jeff Shouger shared thisMeet Julian. He has bilateral club foot, which has made jumping a challenge. But we got to be part of his very first jump. A memory this family will never forget. ❤️ These are the stories that keeps us building: play that unlocks confidence, movement, and joy for every kid.
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Jeff Shouger shared thisNex Playground is looking for a Senior Accounting Manager who’s ready to help build the financial foundation behind games that make you move. This isn’t your typical accounting role — you’ll help scale a global business that blends technology, play, and motion. From revenue recognition to COGS, you’ll make sure the numbers behind the fun are just as solid as the gameplay. If you love clean reconciliations, smart systems, and working with a team that believes play should be active and joyful — we’d love to meet you.
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Jeff Shouger shared thisNex Playground is looking for an FP&A Manager to help power the future of active gaming — where screens get kids moving instead of sitting still. You’ll build models, connect insights to impact, and work with a team that believes play should be physical, social, and full of joy.
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Jeff Shouger shared thisCheck out this New York Times piece on Nex Playground — I love how it captures what makes it special. Like Niantic, Inc.'s games, it gets kids off the couch, moving, laughing, and playing together. Games that make you move — that’s the future of fun.Jeff Shouger shared thisIf you’re gifting for kids and adults this year… NYT Wirecutter thinks our little cube checks all the boxes. 📦 Read the full article to learn why: https://lnkd.in/gtHZt3Ma Thank you Haley Perry for capturing exactly why families are obsessed with Nex Playground lately. 🫶
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Jeff Shouger liked thisJeff Shouger liked thisFriends, I’m excited to announce that my new book, Everybody Wins, will be out this October 27 with Penguin Random House, and is now available for preorder! https://lnkd.in/gbNgfGSi What makes great video games so satisfying, engaging, and retentive? Some twenty years ago, when EA Sports and The Sims were at the peak of their powers, I wondered if I could recreate the magic of video games in other kinds of consumer products, and other walks of life entirely. What I came back with was my “Gamification Checklist,” which broke down the elements of great games and franchises, and began to imagine how I could export it. I’ve taken what I know from decades in the games business to help build newer companies and products like Amazon Prime, Zynga, Duolingo, Spotify, Twitch, Coursera, Pokémon Go, Take Two, Cameo, Thrive Global, My Fitness Pal, and Alan Health. Now, daughter Chloe and I have written a book to share my “Gamification Checklist” with, well, everyone. If you’re building a product, a company, a game, or classroom curriculum, if you’re a fan of gaming, a founder or a leader, or even a parent trying to understand Roblox better, my hope is that this book offers a new lens on what it means to succeed and why, in the best systems, everybody wins. Stay tuned for more announcements in the coming weeks.Everybody Wins by Bing Gordon, Chloe Gordon: 9798217176687 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: BooksEverybody Wins by Bing Gordon, Chloe Gordon: 9798217176687 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books
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Jeff Shouger liked thisJeff Shouger liked thisHonored to share that Nex has been named to TIME's 100 Most Influential Companies of 2026! To us, this means more than making a list. This recognition represents a growing belief that gaming can be active, safe, and built for real-life connection. Here's to more families choosing movement and play together. We're so proud to be part of that momentum. ❤️ Thank you, TIME! Read here: https://lnkd.in/gG-Q7tAD #TIME100Companies
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Jeff Shouger liked thisJeff Shouger liked thisYC's latest request for startups is out. Loved this infographic by Andrew Sorohan. Basically, AI as a feature has no real moat/ differentiator. AI as a foundation or infra is what YC is looking to fund now.
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Jeff Shouger liked thisJeff Shouger liked thisBuilding trust takes years. Here's a story of relationships, persistence, and how we earned the chance to work with Mahesh Ramachandra, Michael Masukawa, and Ryan Andal at Nex.
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Jeff Shouger liked thisJeff Shouger liked this𝑺𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒆𝑿 2.0 (𝑷𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝑰): 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑬𝒓𝒂 𝒐𝒇 𝑶𝒓𝒃𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝑨𝑰 Starlink has rapidly grown into SpaceX's most important business, scaling to thousands of satellites and reshaping global connectivity. This in-depth breakdown explores its network design, product evolution, future AI-compute vision in orbit, and how these developments could shape SpaceX's valuation and long-term trajectory. 𝐒𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐗: 𝐀 𝐎𝐧𝐜𝐞-𝐢𝐧-𝐚-𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐲 In just two decades, SpaceX evolved from a scrappy upstart blowing up early prototypes on a remote Pacific island to the most capable and influential space company on Earth. It changed how rockets are built, launched, reused, and priced. It built the world’s largest satellite constellation. And it reshaped the strategic landscape for governments, corporations, and entire industries. SpaceX’s rise is often summarized through its major technical breakthroughs, but each achievement reflected a deeper strategic shift: -𝑽𝒆𝒓𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝑰𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏: Instead of outsourcing critical systems, SpaceX designs and builds the majority of its hardware in-house. -𝑹𝒂𝒑𝒊𝒅 𝑰𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏: A software-like approach to hardware: build fast, test fast, fly fast. -𝑬𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝑺𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒆: By flying more often, SpaceX drove per-launch costs down while capturing more market share. 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒌: 𝑭𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝑺𝒊𝒅𝒆 𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒋𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝑺𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒆𝑿’𝒔 𝑪𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝑩𝒖𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 The idea of Starlink was generated in 2015, when SpaceX began exploring how a vast constellation of low-Earth-orbit satellites could bring affordable, high-speed internet to parts of the world that traditional networks had never reached. After securing key FCC approvals and launching test satellites in 2018, Starlink deployed its first operational batch in 2019 and opened a public beta in 2020, at the time serving only a few tens of thousands of early users. From there, growth accelerated rapidly: subscriber numbers climbed past 100,000 in 2021, exceeded 1 million by the end of 2022, and continued to rise to 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 8 𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒂𝒄𝒓𝒐𝒔𝒔 150+ 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒃𝒚 𝑵𝒐𝒗 2025, spanning homes, businesses, aircraft, ships, and vehicles. Revenue followed a similar trajectory, growing from under a billion dollars in 2021 to 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 10 𝒃𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒃𝒚 2025, making Starlink one of the fastest-scaling communications services in history. Beyond traditional internet service, Starlink also enables cellular backhaul and is developing 𝒅𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒕-𝒕𝒐-𝒄𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒕𝒚, allowing standard smartphones to connect directly to satellites. SpaceX has expanded the platform with 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒆𝒍𝒅, a secure government-focused variant designed for national security, defense, and resilient communications. And as of Dec 11, 2025, there are 9,149 S𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒔𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒔 active in Low Earth Orbit according to satellitemap.space.
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Jeff Shouger liked thisJeff Shouger liked thisM&A is more than a transaction; it’s about people, culture, and creative autonomy. I am thrilled to announce that I’ll be speaking at the inaugural iicon conference this April in Las Vegas. Tim O’Brien, Hemal Thaker and I will be on the Main Stage for a deep dive into a topic close to my heart: “After the Deal: Doing M&A Right in a Creative Industry.” Using Scopely’s acquisition of Niantic’s games business as a real-world case study, we’ll explore: ✅ How to empower teams after a major transition. ✅ The strategies for preserving creative autonomy in a high-growth environment. ✅ How to align cultures to unlock innovation without losing what makes a studio special. As the interactive entertainment landscape continues to consolidate, these conversations are more vital than ever. I look forward to connecting with fellow innovators and sharing what we’ve learned through our journey. 📅 When: April 29, 2026 🔗 Register here: iicon.com/event-info #iicon2026 #GamingIndustry #MandA #Scopely #Niantic #InteractiveEntertainment #Leadership
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Jeff Shouger liked thisJeff Shouger liked thisOver the past two months, I’ve had the privilege of stepping into the role of Global Controller at Cohere. Our mission to scale intelligence for enterprise AI requires financial rigor, and I’m proud to lead initiatives that align with our strategic goals. Cohere is shaping the future of enterprise AI while keeping sovereignty and security at the center. This focus is already delivering real impact for global companies such as Fujitsu, Bell and RBC. And we’re just getting started! We’re expanding our team across many critical areas. These hires will be instrumental in ensuring compliance, scalability and financial excellence as we prepare for our next phase of growth: *Director, SEC Reporting and Technical Accounting: https://lnkd.in/gsCbsKVp *Technical Revenue Manager: https://lnkd.in/gKF-493Q *International Accounting Manager: https://lnkd.in/gyw4HTxS *Senior Accountant: https://lnkd.in/ggNtVpPN Let’s connect if you're interested in these opportunities or want to learn more about Cohere’s journey.
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Jeff Shouger liked thisJeff Shouger liked thisI’m excited to share that Inhi Cho Suh will be joining Niantic Spatial as CEO on March 30 (see my full internal note on this below.) Inhi brings with her an impressive set of experiences and I think will be the perfect leader for Niantic Spatial during its next stage of growth. I’ll be taking on the role of Executive Chairman and look forward to continuing to help steward Niantic Spatial through this incredibly exciting and disruptive period. I could not be more excited about where Niantic Spatial is right now. My belief is that AI is fundamentally transformative – and the companies that are going to emerge as the future leaders are those that build real, substantial and growing businesses on a foundation of breakthrough technical work. I have great confidence in Inhi’s ability to help Niantic Spatial seize this future. Welcome Inhi! https://lnkd.in/gQVm3Gpp
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Adapting to the 'New Normal': Staying Connected to the Real-World Through Augmented Reality
https://nianticlabs.com/en/blog/adaptability/
See publicationAdapting to the 'New Normal': Staying Connected to the Real-World Through Augmented Reality
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How to Build A Successful Finance Career in the World of Startups
BVOH
See publicationAn Interview with Jeff Shouger, Head of Finance & Accounting at Niantic, Inc.
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Steven Taylor
NAZARETH CARE CHARITABLE TRUST • 7K followers
M&A deals failing post-close? Blame it on integration finance. As CFOs, we ensure value sticks, key lessons from the trenches. I've been part of seven acquisitions. Three were wildly successful. Three barely broke even. One was a disaster that is still being unwound. The difference wasn't the deal price or strategic rationale. It was what happened in the first 90 days after close. Here's the pattern nobody talks about: Most M&A failures don't happen in the boardroom. They happen in the back office. While executives announce synergies to the board, finance teams discover the acquired company's "clean books" were held together with spreadsheets and manual adjustments. By the time you realise integration is off the rails, you've lost six months and half the value you paid for. The three integration mistakes that kill deals: 1. Delaying system integration. On our worst acquisition, we kept the target on their legacy ERP "temporarily." Eighteen months later, we were still running two charts of accounts, manually consolidating financials. Cost: $2.3M in duplicate systems, plus decisions made on incomplete data. Now? Systems integration starts day one. Unified beats fragmented, even if it's messy. 2. Ignoring the culture clash. One acquisition brought a "move fast" finance team. We were under "rigorous controls." Neither was wrong. But without alignment, every decision became a battle. The month-end close took twice as long. The acquired CFO quit within six months, taking three key people. Now? We run joint close processes before the deal closes. See how they work, and agree on the new way forward. 3. Treating synergies as automatic. In our best acquisition, every synergy had a clear owner with monthly targets. We delivered 95%. On our worst? "Everyone" was responsible. We delivered 40%. Synergies need the same rigour as any other business target. What successful integration looks like: Day 1: Combined teams align on reporting, close the calendar, and get approvals. Week 2: Joint month-end close (painful but revealing). Month 2: System integration roadmap with specific milestones. Month 3: Synergy tracking dashboard live. Month 6: Single source of truth, one ERP, one process. The uncomfortable truth: Investment bankers get paid on the deal price. CFOs get judged on whether they created value. That value isn't created in the negotiation room. It's created in the integration trenches. Your board remembers the acquisition price for six months. They remember the integration execution forever. The best deal at a great price with terrible integration loses to a decent deal at a fair price with excellent integration. Every time. What's the hardest M&A integration lesson you've learned?
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Richard Sanchez Jr.
Robyn Consulting Group • 9K followers
Proud moment for our team at Robyn Consulting Group (RCG Financial), we’ve officially launched our newest white paper, a strategic roadmap for exit-minded SaaS founders and CEOs. This guide is the result of months of research, financial analysis, and insight gathering. Huge thank you to our RCG team for the diligence and expertise poured into this project — and to our clients and community who participated in our founder survey and shared their real-world experiences on scaling and exit readiness. Inside the guide, we uncover the four key metrics private equity firms scrutinize — and how you can optimize each one to position your company for a 10x valuation multiple. 👉 Get your copy here: https://lnkd.in/eyhz83kk
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Seema Durve
Warner Bros. Discovery • 5K followers
A growing company might benefit from bringing on a Fractional CFO when it reaches certain operational, financial, or strategic inflection points. Here are five key signs that indicate it's time to consider hiring one: You're facing strategic decisions like: *Raising capital or securing debt *Mergers & acquisitions *Expanding to new markets or product lines Even profitable businesses can run into cash flow issues. Signs include: *Struggling to cover payroll or vendor payments *Poor visibility into burn rate or runway *Difficulty forecasting future cash needs Growth is great—but it often masks inefficiencies, as stated below: *Exploding costs without clear ROI *Unclear unit economics *No budget-to-actual reporting What’s your next step: *Seeking investment *Considering acquisition or strategic partnerships *Or Exit altogether If your current finance function consists of: *A bookkeeper or accountant with no strategic input *A founder juggling financial responsibilities My signature: "Confidence is knowing your cash runway. Let's make it stretch."
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Karl Maier
Silver Fox Advisors • 16K followers
Before you push for rapid growth, make sure your systems are ready. If your business isn't optimized, small inefficiencies can become big, expensive problems as you scale. Even something as simple as shortening your cash flow cycle by seven days can free up a significant amount of working capital. Growth is exciting—but smart, strategic growth is what builds lasting success. #Abunden #BusinessGrowth #CFO #FinancialManagement #CashFlow
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Chris Anderson
Quantus Capital Advisors • 1K followers
AI won’t replace CFOs. But it will expose lazy finance teams. AI can close the books faster. It can reconcile data, build forecasts, and surface anomalies in minutes. What it can’t do is decide what matters. The risk for finance teams isn’t automation. It’s hiding behind manual processes, slow closes, and “we’ll know next month” answers. When AI removes the busywork, what’s left is judgment: • Interpreting tradeoffs • Challenging assumptions • Owning outcomes, not just reports That’s uncomfortable for teams whose value was tied to effort instead of impact. Strong CFOs aren’t threatened by AI. They use it to shift finance from scorekeeping to steering. And the gap between those two functions is about to get very obvious. #CFOThoughts #StrategicFinance #MidMarketGrowth #AIFinance #AISystems
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Anand Gupta - MBA,CPA
ARMEIS Global Advisory • 1K followers
Valuation Growth vs. Cash Flow Discipline: The Tension Every Founder Faces In today’s funding environment, one of the biggest dilemmas founders wrestle with is this: 👉 Should I chase valuation growth to attract investors and talent, or prioritize cash flow discipline to build a sustainable business? For years, we’ve celebrated startups that raise at ever-higher valuations. But what often gets lost is that valuation is a vanity metric. It reflects market sentiment at a moment in time. It’s not money in the bank, nor is it a guarantee of survival. Cash flow discipline, on the other hand, is the bedrock of business longevity. Companies don’t run out of valuation; they run out of cash. Positive cash flow signals resilience, operational health, and the ability to weather market cycles. That doesn’t mean valuation growth is irrelevant. High valuations can: • Create confidence and attract strategic partners. • Provide liquidity for acquisitions or expansions. • Enable founders to retain more equity in later rounds. But sustainable valuation growth ultimately rests on disciplined cash flow management. Investors are increasingly rewarding companies that can show a path to profitability, not just topline expansion. The best businesses are those that can balance both levers—scaling with ambition while embedding financial rigor. A few principles I share with founders: 1. Don’t outsource discipline. Even in growth mode, monitor cash burn like a hawk. 2. Build unit economics that make sense. Valuations inflate; solid margins endure. 3. Use growth capital strategically. Fuel expansion, yes, but with a clear path to efficiency. 4. Narrate both stories. To investors and boards, articulate how valuation milestones are backed by cash flow realities. At the end of the day, a high valuation may open doors, but cash flow keeps the lights on. True thought leadership in finance lies in reconciling these two forces—not choosing one over the other. So, in closing, my question is: “As a founder or investor, which do you believe ultimately matters more—valuation multiples or cash flow resilience?" Would love your thoughts and comments?
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Peter OBrien
Digital Finance HQ • 4K followers
Every hire, product feature, and GTM experiment is a capital allocation decision, most teams just don’t call it that. I’m kicking off a 3-part series on capital allocation for founders, operators, and finance leaders with a simple question: ➡️ Will the next $1 you deploy become worth more than $1? Series overview Part 1: defines the core concept + the math Part 2: where capital goes + how to measure whether it’s working Part 3: AIMS framework for communicating allocation decisions to management teams and your board Part 1 (attached here) lays the practical foundation: 🔹 The $1 invested test and ROIIC vs. hurdle rates (scoreboard vs. decision lens) 🔹 A lightweight “investment brief” to evaluate bets (GROW / BUILD / BUY) 🔹 The small metric toolkit that translates finance into operating decisions (NPV / payback / ROIIC / incremental margin) 🔹 Early-stage proxies when DCF inputs are unknowable (burn multiple + revenue quality) 🔹 Operator “vital signs” to spot drift early (profit engine, leverage, cash conversion, optics) Series Roadmap ✔️ This series (Parts 1–3): breadth-first. shared, lightweight framework to define value creation, choose decision-grade metrics, and communicate tradeoffs clearly ✔️ Next series: depth-first. momentum drivers + operational decisions that need near real-time measurement to spot drift early and course-correct fast Read Part 1 here and Part 2 and 3 on substack. Next Series will be out next week. 💰 What’s one bet you’re funding right now, and how will you prove it’s working?
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Laura Bock
QED Investors • 4K followers
💡The CFO Stack Is Being Rebuilt in Real Time💡 For decades, finance teams have been constrained by bloated ERPs, stale data, and manual closes - systems built for compliance, not strategy. Now, AI is rebuilding the CFO stack from the ground up. New platforms automate ingestion, reconciliation, and reporting, turning finance from a back-office utility into a real-time engine for decision-making. This isn’t about replacing accountants - it’s about elevating them from execution to judgment. And it’s driving one of the most important transformation cycles in enterprise software. At QED Investors, we see five frontiers reshaping the space: 1️⃣ Data as the wedge – automating ingestion and reconciliation. 2️⃣ Next-gen AR automation – cutting time-to-collect and unlocking cash. 3️⃣ Reinventing ERP – modern, modular systems replacing legacy suites. 4️⃣ AI agents – software evolving into autonomous finance teammates. 5️⃣ Vertical finance platforms – tailored stacks winning through depth and distribution. The winners will pair automation with trust, precision, and usability, redefining how finance operates at every level. 👇 Read the full report + market map: 📄 https://lnkd.in/gdXcS7eX 📄 https://lnkd.in/g44GHKFf 📣If you’re building in this space, we’d love to hear from you - reach out to me at laura@qedinvestors.com and Shruti Batra at shruti@qedinvestors.com!
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Lalit Kumar
Versa Networks • 2K followers
$3T: The amount of Capital the Big 5 tech (alone) are going to spend on Capex over the next 4 years (the WSJ carried a great article today). Why is this relevant : a) the sheer size & concentration of capital spend b) all the “creative” ways these firms are raising this amount of capital including Google announcing a 100 year note this week! c) the investors (especially debt) who are behind the raise d) last but not the least, depreciation which is projected to be almost $400B in 2029! the current opaqueness of disclosures is an issue to understand earnings & inevitable desire to “adjust” useful life to influence earnings. Including Meta gaining $2.6B in their last year results from simply adjusting math! For asset light tech companies, depreciation was not a thing. Depreciation was for “old” companies - power, energy, railroads! Not anymore and in many ways, we are going back to the future!
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