In this episode, Alex Immerman, partner at Andreessen Horowitz, joins CJ to discuss the CFO role and how it's changing in the era of AI. He explains what the components of a company’s AI agenda the CFO should own, how and where it should be leveraged in an organization, and why, if you’re preparing to go public, AI needs to be mentioned in your S-1. He breaks down how the financial landscape differs greatly between AI-native SaaS companies and traditional B2B SaaS companies in terms of retention curves and gross margins, and how this relates to the ever-important LTV to CAC metric. As someone who has worked with prominent CFOs and interviewed many for a16z’s portfolio companies, Alex also describes the qualities of a great CFO, and shares his favorite interview question, before discussing CFOs, CEO, and board dynamics.
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LINKS:
Alex Immerman on X (@aleximm): https://x.com/aleximm
Alex Immerman on a16z: https://a16z.com/author/alex-immerman
Alex Immerman on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/immerman
Andreessen Horowitz:
https://a16z.com
CJ on X (@cjgustafson222): https://x.com/cjgustafson222
Mostly metrics:
http://mostlymetrics.com
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TIMESTAMPS:
(00:00) Preview and Intro
(02:19) Sponsor – Navan | NetSuite | Planful
(05:52) What Separates Good CFOs From Great Ones
(11:56) Questions Alex Asks When Interviewing CFOs for Portfolio Companies
(15:17) How CFOs Should Engage With Investors During the Hiring Process
(17:22) Sponsor – Tabs | Rippling Spend | Pulley
(22:22) What a Great CFO-Investor Relationship Looks Like
(24:46) The CFO-CEO-Board Dynamic
(28:27) How the Role of a CFO Is Changing in the Era of AI
(31:41) AI-Native Company Versus Incumbent for Finance Category Leader
(33:49) Components of a Company’s AI Agenda That the CFO Should Own
(38:39) Why the LTV to CAC Metric Is So Important to Investors
(41:13) LTV to CAC by Sector
(42:41) The Importance of Gross Margin Adjusting Your CAC Payback
(43:21 Retention and Churn Patterns in AI-Native Companies
(45:23) Gross Margin in AI-Native Companies Versus Traditional B2B SaaS
(50:11) What It Takes To Be a Public Company-Ready CFO Today
(53:58) How IPO Expectations for the CFO Have Shifted in the Past Few Years
(55:05) Wrap
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