guides by TJ Thinakaran
Contrary to popular opinion, SaaS is not dead. Even during the industry’s post-pandemic reckoning, this notion felt misinformed and sensationalist. That doesn’t mean SaaS hasn’t…
In 2022, the CPaaS industry was punished for the “excesses” of 2020–21. In 2023, we cleaned up our act. In 2024, we demonstrated that steady,…
Klaviyo has maintained its position as a stock market darling. Trading at over thirteen times last-twelve-months (LTM) revenue, its $11.53 billion market cap places it…
Speaking of inherent biases in frameworks, mine is the focus on the health of the SMB segment. Especially the focus on the “small” in small…
With a 23% year-over-year (YoY) increase in revenue and $600M in ARR, Braze rounded out the Q3 2024 (its FY 2025) earnings results for the…
Sinch recently held its first-ever capital markets day—a major milestone for any company. This event is a chance for leadership to present the company as…
With the exception of Klaviyo, sustaining momentum within increasingly demanding markets remains a challenge for the cohort. Over 80% of Klaviyo’s top fifty customers use…
Not only did the two companies outperform their Q3 targets, but Twilio and Bandwidth also raised their FY 2024 guidance. RCS was top of mind…
In one week, the US will elect a new president; in four weeks, the biggest Black Friday / Cyber Monday (BFCM) ever will kick off…
Earlier this year, I mentioned that Tata Communications is a complex business, which is why simply replacing Kaylera with Tata in my CPaaS financial discussions…
Before the interest rate reduction, Sinch, Bandwidth, Upland, and LINK Mobility (four of the seven companies) traded at a discount to their last twelve months’…
At over ten times its last twelve months’ (LTM) revenue, Klaviyo leads the valuation race. Its $8.31 billion valuation puts it in the same zip…
The last one to release its results, Braze too presented healthy revenue growth—a first-ever non-GAAP profit—and gave some interesting insights into its RCS adoption roadmap.…
Like its peers, LINK Mobility showed strong results in Q2. Unlike its peers, however, it is the only CPaaS company to report double-digit improvements in…
Klaviyo reported $222 million in revenue with a 35% year-over-year growth rate and SaaS-like 77% gross margins. At this rate, it is possible that the…
At $1.1 billion in revenue, with a 51% gross margin and improved free cash flow, Twilio took the prize for both earnings and profitability beats.…
Since 2012, I’ve maintained a dynamic list of public companies I follow. If it is true that software is eating the world, then understanding these…
CPaaS earnings season kicks off in a week, and even temperamental optimists like myself are pensive. This marks the first de-risked year—the first year-over-year comparisons…
“Interoperability” is a long word to write and say. Yet it’s at the heart of any David vs. Goliath tech story. The success of any…
In Messaging and Growth in the Pandemic, we unpacked the drivers of pandemic-led growth. We discussed why it was a one-time event, with little to…
When Tata Communications acquired Kaylera, I thought it would be a simple swap and a way to introduce a more global perspective. This was naïve.…
The five companies I watch—Bandwidth, LinkMobility, Sinch, Upland, and Twilio—ended 2023 with $9.2 billion in revenues. Collectively, they are projected to end 2024 with a…
By March 2020, the pandemic had shut down the world. Its effect on businesses was swift and brutal. Airlines, hotels, restaurants, manufacturing, retail, health, and…
The seventh week of the year kicks off the earnings season for the messaging space. On Valentine’s Day, within twenty-four hours of each other, Twilio,…
Last year I shared the most popular emails as per Substack. Here are my most-clicked blog articles as per my WordPress plugin: 1. My Best…
Be a manager long enough, and you'll either initiate a staffing cut or be asked to execute one. There is plenty of literature about who,…
The goal of onboarding is to make the new employee a contributor as soon as possible. It is crucial to get it right, and yet…
I stumbled on the questions I wrote about last week circa 2013-14. Fresh from our first round of funding (Series A to fund EZ Texting's acquisition), I…
The best managers are superb capital allocators. They take expensive investor money and assign it to the proper growth initiatives. Accountability for a team or…
A robust, vibrant, living company culture needs strong feedback loops. It’s pretty easy to accomplish this when it’s you and your co-founder in a garage, a team…