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Naga Subramanya B B's avatar

This is amazing content. As a B2B SaaS Finance leader I resonate with everything you've said and taken some pointers on questions to ask for our next renewal. Things I would add -

a. SaaS Management Tools - Tipalti and bill.com are AP tools and not SaaS management, that needs to be corrected.

I have worked with and continue to work with one of the (SaaS Optimization) vendors mentioned here and I must tell you they have saved us a tonne of money and time. It's almost table stakes these days to work with one of these folks.

b. Payment Terms - While most sellers offer annual upfront, I will also ask for an early payment discount, even if its 5-6% on the current or upcoming bill, I will take it.

c. Business Value Realisation - The best tools have iron clad CSM teams and they undertake something called a business value realisation where they work with customers to identify the ROI of the tool and provide tips on how to increase that. The SaaS buyer needs to have that handy and work with their tool CSM because this document will have the answers to most questions we ask as CFOs. (We are going through this process with Snowflake and am super impressed)

d. VP's Pet Software Tool - Most VP's who join come with their own set of tools that they are comfortable with and will try to rip and replace or overlay new tools, these questions should be asked to ensure that a tool isn't just being added because a VP or someone senior "wants" or "likes" using it / has used it in the past.

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Andy's avatar

As a SaaS seller I found this article both helpful and cathartic. Especially when we’re usually pressured to do unhelpful/destructive things to try and close deals by a certain date. Every CRO should read this. Keep up the good work!

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