The Angel VC

MARCH 14, 2015

In both cases I asked how the reference calls went, and in both cases the answer was that they hadn't done any before hiring the candidate. I can think of a few possible reasons: "Based on the candidate's CV and my interviews I'm so confident that he/she is the right one, reference calls aren't necessary." It costs so much time!"

Interviewing 153

Interviewing Data 153

Natalia Luneva

JANUARY 7, 2023

Cheat sheets Get up to speed fast with these quick references and keyboard shortcuts. The post Microsoft office 2016 training courses free.Quick Reference Guides first appeared on Natalie Luneva. The post Microsoft office 2016 training courses free.Quick Reference Guides appeared first on Natalie Luneva. Necessary Necessary.

Technology 52

Technology Software Development Data Software 52

IT World

JULY 12, 2022

This download accompanies our Word for Microsoft 365 cheat sheet. See that article for detailed information on how to get the most out of Word for Microsoft 365/Office 365 in Windows. To read this article in full, please click here (Insider Story)

88

88

Tom Tunguz

APRIL 3, 2013

Reference checks are part and parcel of the VC diligence process and most hiring processes. Types of References. I find it’s valuable to speak to references who have worked with the candidate in different roles. I find it’s valuable to speak to references who have worked with the candidate in different roles.

Sales Hiring 100

Sales Hiring Technical Review Interviewing Engineering 100

Unbounce

JANUARY 29, 2019

You earn 20% of the recurring revenue for every person you refer to Unbounce, and keep earning for as long as they remain a customer (it can really add up). “As the best-in-show landing page software on the market, Unbounce makes it SO easy for me to create residual income by recommending and referring clients and other marketers.”

Payments 109

Payments Revenue Payment Methods PayPal 109

TechEmpower SaaS

DECEMBER 11, 2023

References: The company should willingly provide references. Do they assist with the transition to in-house or other developers? How do they handle hosting and support? Client Retention: Do they have repeat or long-term clients?

Software Development 443

Software Development Development Software Review Software 443

SaaStr

FEBRUARY 23, 2024

And some do very in-depth ones with lots of “off sheet” references (i.e., Many do few references checks beyond the CEO, but not all. 1 rough reference isn’t going to stop a deal. Everyone does some background checks, or least they did outside of the Boom Times of late 2020 through late 2021. ones not provided by the CEO).

Investment 189

Investment Leadership 189

TechEmpower SaaS

OCTOBER 9, 2023

Structured Data refers to information organized in a defined manner, making it easier to search and analyze. Here's a suggested approach: Ground Truth Creation: Design a test dataset with established answers or recognized documents to serve as a reference point.

AI Search 519

AI Search Artificial Intelligence Generative AI AI 519

SaaStr

MARCH 23, 2024

What will matter is that you don’t squander the leads, that you make them happy, that you learn from them, and that they refer others to you. In the end, it won’t matter too much if your first 100 customers pay you $50,000 in total or $100,000. It will matter, but not too much. But after that, you need some professionals. Often 2x better.

Pricing 239

Pricing Sales Revenue 239

SaaStr

MARCH 12, 2024

Do Reference Checks — Thoughtfully VC reference checks are a bit nuanced. A lot of VCs publish today. Blog posts. Read, watch, and listen. Do this enough, you will get a sense of what they are truly like. #5. What will failed founders say? What about folks that never hit the plan? They may give negative feedback on VCs.

Sales 223

Sales 223

CloseSaaS

DECEMBER 14, 2015

Can you provide some references for us?” You’ve been on the phone with your prospects for a while, and your sales game is on fire. You’re pumped, and ready to seal the deal. Then they pop the question: “We’d like to get a sense of your business from customers similar to us.

Sales 52

Sales Business 52

The Daily Egg

JANUARY 9, 2024

More often, the term refers to a key component of your network. These days, firewalls aren’t just a part of building construction. The post What Is a Firewall and How Do I Know If It’s Working? appeared first on The Daily Egg.

Construction 161

Construction 161

SaaStr

MAY 24, 2022

Many mediocre hires were made to fill slots, reference checks not made, etc. Do reference checks, on and off sheet. Often with zero reference checks or diligence. So maybe it’s time to get back to the Old Ways, with more interviews, more time, and real reference checks. So did startups. jasonlk) May 23, 2022. Probably.

Sales Hiring 248

Sales Hiring Sales Recruiting Interviewing Startup 248

SaaStr

FEBRUARY 8, 2024

It takes time here, often a few years for enough happy customers to refer you enough other happy customers to really matter. Which means once you get 100, then 500 or 1000 customer … there will be enough super happy customers to get a word-of-mouth engine going.

Scale 217

Scale Engineering Acquisition Metrics 217

CloseSaaS

MARCH 26, 2014

When you're talking with prospective clients, they'll sometimes ask you for references. They want to talk with someone other than you to get a real customer's perspective on your product and service.References of happy customers are one of the most powerful sales tools you have.

Startup 52

Startup Sales 52

SaaStr

APRIL 25, 2024

If you have options, if more than one VC wants to invest in you — do reference checks. Pick VCs on your board, especially early-stage VCs, that you trust. This is different than “nice” This will go a long way. On the individual partner, not just the firm. Look at the track record of the Series A-B-C VCs you bring in.

Finance 167

Finance Investment SaaS Marketing 167

SaaStr

JUNE 4, 2023

A few tells: No CEO-level reference. Please, do real reference checks — and find at least one CEO or boss that says they are truly great. Reference checks are not a waste of time. But they actually aren’t that good. They didn’t really do it. They just worked there. Maybe not everywhere. Zero is an issue.

Sales Hiring 223

Sales Hiring SaaS Interviewing Startup 223

SaaStr

JANUARY 8, 2022

References Really Do Matter Here — from Customers Too if possible. Sometimes, references are just a Check the Box exercise. If they won’t provide a positive reference — that’s a big flag. But even in that case, the products don’t have to be remotely similar. Not here.

Sales Recruiting 270

Sales Recruiting Sales Hiring Sales Pricing 270

SaaStr

OCTOBER 12, 2022

He has one terrible reference. Yes, but what about the other 3 great references? True, but it got the journey going. Don’t leave. I’ll pay you $50,000 to stay. A lot of money. But it was time. Don’t hire that VP. The best in startups often break a little glass. Too much is a problem.

Investment 237

Investment Startup Technology 237

SaaStr

FEBRUARY 26, 2024

Well, as frustrating as it can be when a new VP, a new Director, a new IC doesn’t work out … it was your fault not doing enough diligence: Did you really do reference checks? Did you do good ones? Were you really sure they could do the job? Or did you more love their LinkedIn and experience? Did the hire really meet the bar?

Sales Hiring 244

Sales Hiring Social Media Interviewing Education 244

SaaStr

SEPTEMBER 17, 2023

User Evidence which helps collect high value references, case studies, and more. Other than your own, what app would you never let anyone take away from you no matter what: Asana – our team lives in it and it keeps us in sync. #4. What’s your top “undiscovered gem” — an app you love but others may not have heard of?

Marketing 236

Marketing Scale Mobile Branding 236

SaaStr

SEPTEMBER 24, 2023

Check out this week’s top blog posts, podcasts, and videos: Top Blog Posts This Week: How to Do a Reference Check in 60 Seconds Building a Global SaaS Empire: 5 Bets That Paid Off with Freshworks How to Be a Much Better Sales Executive in About 60 Seconds Salesforce, Samsara, Monday and More: “Layoffs are Over.

Sales Hiring 228

Sales Hiring Scale AI Cloud 228

SaaStr

MAY 27, 2023

The latest Carta data summarizes it well: But while raise VC capital has gotten harder, the rough rules in B2B / SaaS haven’t really changed: Seed Round: $10k-$100k a month in revenue Growing 150% annually or more Strong founders, including strong technical co-founder Series A: $2m ARR or more ($1m if in hot space and growing fast) Growing 100%-150% (..)

Venture Capital 231

Venture Capital Startup CTO Churn 231

SaaStr

JULY 22, 2021

To get that word-of-mouth/viral/refer ral engine going faster. The more you share success with your existing customers — the more they will refer more of their friends to you. If you see 20% or more of your new customers coming from word-of-mouth by $2m-$3m ARR, Things are going really well. Do it for rea l. More on that here.

Sales Hiring 357

Sales Hiring Scale Customer Success Branding 357

The Daily Egg

JUNE 9, 2020

Recruiting software is commonly referred to as an applicant tracking system (ATS). From the initial job vacancy listing through the employee onboarding process, leveraging software helps you fill vacant positions faster while attracting top-level talent. However, these two terms […].

Software Review 337

Software Review Software Systems Review Onboarding 337

SaaStr

APRIL 1, 2023

We stopped doing reference checks. While layoffs are all across the news today, looking back, July 2021 was the nadir for layoffs. Everyone was hiring everyone, anyone, back in mid-2021. This data from Carta helps illustrate it: So we cut corners. No time, didn’t want to know.

Sales Hiring 248

Sales Hiring Investment Leadership Startup 248

Tom Tunguz

JULY 10, 2022

She refers you to a friend, who buys software from you and then tops up again. ” which leads to a nonchalant upsell: “You’re over your usage and we love that. We should probably increase your contract.” ” The customer is in control. Other stakeholders compliment the champion on a great choice.

Strategy 337

Strategy Sales Compensation Retention 337

SaaStr

MARCH 2, 2023

At this point, customers start referring other customers to you. If your product costs $2,000 a year, that might be around 1,000 customers. If your product costs $20,000 a year, your mini-brand might kick in around 100 customers. Folks talk about you in the industry.

Branding 222

Branding Development SaaS Investment 222

SaaStr

NOVEMBER 8, 2021

In my opinion, the most informative and useful SaaS content “speaks for itself” and is well suited for future reference. Just like David Sacks’ SaaS Org Charts talk + slides , this Battery slide on the evolution of PQLs versus MQLs by company stage is a great standalone reference point. #3

Scale 296

Scale Cloud Forecasting Pricing 296

User Pilot

MARCH 12, 2024

Feature adoption rate Feature adoption rate refers to the number of users that habitually engage with features of your product. Customer acquisition cost The Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) refers to the costs and resources required to acquire a new customer. They include key business impact, satisfaction, and retention metrics.

Metrics 104

Metrics Scale Customer Lifetime Value Business 104

SaaStr

JULY 18, 2022

You gotta do reference checks. They won’t succeed, if for no other reason than you won’t backfill them the right way. If you’re not sure how to hire for a role, get an advisor that does. And have them interview your top candidates. But they don’t all have to be perfect. But an ex-boss or two should say they are great. Even if one disagrees.

Sales Hiring 230

Sales Hiring Strategy Interviewing Startup 230

SaaStr

AUGUST 10, 2023

Need a job, an intro, a reference, a whatever. Because they know you’ll always show up. But those bosses that truly care, if you stick with them one way or another, they’ll be in your corner forever. Usually, they’re there forever. If you have one of those, at least recognize it’s rare.

Management 165

Management 165

SaaStr

MAY 6, 2021

Additionally, after Sandi had checked Kathy’s backdoor references, Kathy asked those references how they felt about Skilljar and Sandi. People’s past accomplishments and references tell you more than their interview. She used her interviews with investors to find out how they really felt about the product and their why.

Sales Hiring 228

Sales Hiring Sales Recruiting Interviewing Revenue 228

Andreessen Horowitz

JUNE 20, 2023

In this post, we’re sharing a reference architecture for … The post Emerging Architectures for LLM Applications appeared first on Andreessen Horowitz. Large language models are a powerful new primitive for building software.

Artificial Intelligence 145

Artificial Intelligence Software Machine Learning Generative AI 145

SaaStr

JANUARY 2, 2024

Today, 15% of active partners have referred 10+ startups to Zendesk. While ecosystem partners tend to refer a lot of startups, the majority of ARR for Zendesk’s partner program often comes from VCs. Looking at the program overall, 90% of the volume they get comes from those 15% of active partners.

Startup 178

Startup Scale Underperforming Technical Team AWS 178

Tom Tunguz

JULY 7, 2022

We refer to each wave by its architecture advance: internet, mobile, cloud, data lake, single-page apps, containers, serverless. ” Or Web2.0 At the time, it made sense. But not anymore. Why isn’t time kind to these types of proclamations? Novel infrastructure often enables new software.

AWS 243

AWS Government Innovation Cloud 243