From corporate to startup finance

You started your career in big corporations like T-Mobile and Philips before moving into early-stage startups. What led to that shift?

I started in accounting at T-Mobile with a finance degree, but I quickly realized I needed a stronger accounting foundation. So I went back, got my accounting degree, and sat for the CPA. That gave me a completely different perspective and better handle on the debits and credits.

From there, I moved into finance at Philips, which was great, but I wanted a broader view of the business vs. being siloed into a certain business unit and function. I transitioned to a publicly traded biometric software company, where I got exposure to “early-stage” accounting, SEC reporting, budgeting, and forecasting.

The team was small; just six people and I actually got to speak with the CFO, but that’s when I knew early-stage finance was the right fit for me as I got to see the whole process. That was my aha moment.

How do finance team structures differ between large enterprises and startups?

They are different worlds all together. In large companies, finance roles are specialized; you own one slice of the pie, whether it’s financial reporting, forecasting, or accounts payable. That’s necessary when the team is large. But in early-stage companies, those lines blur.

At startups, finance teams are often lean. You do it all. You’re closing the books, building financial models, helping sales and marketing plan budgets—all at the same time. Finance tends to be one of the last departments to get headcount, so you have to be resourceful. That’s why I look for finance professionals who can adapt, take initiative, and think beyond their job description.

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Building high-impact finance teams

You’ve been the first finance hire multiple times. What’s your playbook for getting started?

If I join a company as the first finance hire, I typically follow this approach:

1. Assess the tech stack. What systems are in place? What’s missing? How do they work together? Build out a tech roadmap but avoid the temptation to try to automate everything out of the gate. Get the big pieces in place.
2. Implement basic processes. Before scaling, you need clean books, an organized chart of accounts, consistent/understandable reporting  and structured budgeting.
3. Understand revenue streams. Where is money coming from, and how does it flow through the business?
4. Identify the cost drivers. In early-stage startups, employee costs often make up 70% of expenses. Finance leaders should review spending, prioritize key vendors, assess contracts, and cut unnecessary subscriptions.
5. Build out the team. My first hire is typically a controller or strong accounting manager to own the books, then a senior accountant followed by staff accountants.    

What soft skills do you look for in early-stage finance hires?

Curiosity is huge. If someone just reports numbers without asking why they look a certain way, they’re not the right fit. I need people who question assumptions and dig into the details.

Strong communication is just as important. Finance interacts with every department and helps develop strategy: sales, marketing, HR; so you need to be able to collaborate and translate financial insights into business actions.

Finance strategy and business partnering

When should a startup invest in FP&A?

Around $25M ARR is a good milestone. A decade ago, FP&A was mostly spreadsheet heavy and incredibly manual focused on updating the forecast. Now, with modern finance tools, a lot of data aggregation is automated and FP&A is more interactive with the business. Assumptions, drivers and scenarios can be built and compared real-time to drive business decisions. 

At early-stage companies, finance leaders often handle FP&A themselves. But when you’re scaling fast, you need a dedicated team to analyze trends, optimize spend, and drive strategic decisions. FP&A today is less about data crunching and more about providing actionable insights to leadership. 

There’s always some tension between finance and other teams. How do you ease this tension?

It’s easy for finance to become the “no” department, where every request for headcount or budget gets shot down. But finance should be a business partner, not an obstacle. We need to explain why a decision makes sense or doesn’t. 

1. Educate teams on key metrics. Many business leaders care about finance but don’t fully understand financial drivers. Simplify reporting so they see why certain decisions are made.
2. Use dashboards wisely. Dashboards with 27 metrics and no commentary don’t help anyone. Focus on a few key indicators that everyone can rally around. A couple easy ones to nail down in a B2B SaaS business are GRR and NRR. Share broadly, set reports up to publish automatically upon the books being closed.
3. Lead with data. When making budget decisions, explain the why behind them. For example, if marketing wants more budget, show how past spend has impacted pipeline and revenue, and arrive at a decision together. Keep it simple, don’t get lost in the weeds.

Navigating acquisitions

You’ve been through multiple acquisitions. What’s your advice for finance teams preparing for one?

Don’t wait for an acquisition to get your house in order.

1. Be audit-ready. Keep clean books, clear reporting, and structured budgeting. You should be able to repurpose a lot of what you’ve got.
2. Know your numbers cold. Revenue by customer, contract details, profitability - these should be at your fingertips.
3. Move fast. If a buyer asks for financials and it takes two weeks to respond, that’s a red flag. Have everything organized and ready to go.

Acquisitions can be unpredictable - they might happen next month, in two years, or never. But having strong financial processes in place will always put you in a better position when that time comes. Also, understand the difference between being bought versus sold. If you’re being bought, it means the company is in demand. If you’re being sold, it means you’re searching for a buyer. That distinction impacts how an acquisition plays out.

Essential tools and resources

What’s your go-to finance tech stack for startups?

The right tools can make finance much more efficient. My core stack includes:

• General Ledger: Rillet for automating daily accounting entries.‍
• Spend Management: Ramp for tracking and controlling expenses.‍
• FP&A: Drivetrain for forecasting and real-time financial insights.‍
• Excel: No matter how many tools you use, Excel isn’t going anywhere!

What’s a must-listen finance podcast?

I have a few favorites:

• The SaaS CFO by Ben Murray – great for finance fundamentals.
• SaaS Talk by Ray Rike & Dave Kellogg – deep dives into SaaS metrics.
• Acquired by Ben Gilbert & David Rosenthal – a fantastic take on finance, strategy, and acquisitions.