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Warmth and Courage: The Two Halves of Leadership
Here is what VCs typically look for
Venture capital is often misunderstood. It is not about the best idea. It is about scalable potential. Here is what VCs typically look for:
Agentic Development: Benefits and Trade-Offs
Agentic development is an approach where AI agents act as semi-autonomous contributors in software projects. Instead of only suggesting code, the agent receives a goal, accesses tools and repositories, and plans, writes, tests, and iterates toward a solution.
Sunk cost explained: Stop letting the past control the future
Sunk cost is a cost that has already been incurred and cannot be recovered, regardless of what decision is made going forward. From an economic perspective, sunk costs are irrelevant to future decision-making. Rational decisions should be based only on future costs and future benefits, not on money, time, or
The metrics that matter most
In SaaS, numbers explain whether value is real, scalable, and durable. Here are the metrics that matter most.
Niche Norwegian SaaS company attracts top leadership talent
A company to watch in niche SaaS has hired a top leader from tech giant EcoOnline as CEO. Andreas Nordsjö has taken on the leadership of Onix, a software company with a large customer base and strong ARR of NOK 70 million in 2025. Chul Christian Aamodt, expert in industry
Enterprise SaaS sales playbook
In enterprise SaaS, the first deal is large by default. The real challenge isn’t closing fast—it’s making value obvious before anything is implemented. When the investment is big, buyers don’t ask “does it work?” They ask “is this worth it?” That’s why successful enterprise SaaS
Venture Capital vs. Private Equity: Same capital, very different games
Venture capital (VC) and private equity (PE) are often grouped together, but in practice they play fundamentally different roles in the economy. The difference is less about money—and more about risk, time, and how value is created. Stage and Risk Venture capital invests early. VC-backed companies are often pre-profit,
How to identify your most valuable employees
An internal influence playbook
The hardest influence is not selling to customers. It’s creating alignment inside the organization. Strategy fails when people don’t buy in. Change stalls when influence is left to titles instead of trust. Below is a practical playbook for internal influence — inspired by Robert Cialdini, applied to leadership.
From Good to Great — Why the lessons still hold, 25 years later
Jim Collins’ Good to Great was published nearly 25 years ago. In technology years, that’s ancient. And yet, the core insights still hold up remarkably well. Why? Because the book isn’t about trends, tools, or tactics. It’s about human behavior, discipline, and focus. The fundamentals don’t
The network effect is one of the most underrated growth engines in any SaaS company
The idea is simple: the value of a product increases as more people use it. A classic example is the telephone. The very first telephone was almost worthless — it had no one to call. Two phones created some value. Ten made it useful. A million made it indispensable. The same
Lagging vs. leading KPIs in SaaS — and when to use them
In SaaS, metrics don’t just measure performance — they shape behavior. One of the most common mistakes teams make is relying too heavily on lagging indicators, while under-investing in the KPIs that actually drive future results. What Are Lagging Indicators? Lagging indicators measure outcomes after they’ve already happened. They
What a SaaS company must have in place before due diligence
Due diligence doesn’t create problems — it reveals them. The best SaaS companies prepare early, not when a transaction is already live. Here’s what really matters.
Leading sales is about people — Including when it’s time to let go
Leading a sales organization is often misunderstood. Many assume it’s about targets, pipelines, and pressure. In reality, great sales leadership is first and foremost about people. At its best, leadership is about making others successful. Creating clarity, setting direction, removing obstacles, and building confidence. Great sales leaders invest time
Why the best SaaS companies think and act like shareholders
The best SaaS companies are built by leaders and employees who think and act like shareholders. Not because everyone holds equity, but because ownership is a mindset that drives better decisions, sharper focus, and long-term value creation. This mindset was a critical success factor when we built Mintra into a
Partner sales in SaaS: Models, structures, and when to use them
Partner sales can be a powerful growth lever in SaaS—but only if the model fits your product, market, and maturity. Below are the most common approaches, and how companies organize around them. 1. Referral partners Partners generate leads; you close the deal. * Best for: Early-stage SaaS, simple products * Pros:
Focus matters more when building SaaS than when running a consulting businesS
We turned Mintra from a consulting-led business into a global SaaS company. This is what we learned. Focus matters more when building SaaS than when running a consulting business. Consulting rewards breadth. SaaS punishes it. In consulting, saying yes often makes sense. New clients, new use cases, new adaptations — all
Exit and Earn-Out Models: How deal structure shapes incentives and outcomes
Exit structures shape behavior long after the deal is signed. How consideration is paid—upfront, over time, or tied to future performance—often matters as much as headline valuation. Below are the most common exit and earn-out models, each with distinct trade-offs in risk, control, and incentives. Straight Exit (Cash
Why real ownership builds stronger leadership incentives than options
In cognitive science and behavioral economics, loss aversion refers to a cognitive bias in which the same situation is perceived as worse if it is framed as a loss, rather than a gain. Daniel Kahneman’s work on loss aversion shows that losing $100 hurts more than gaining $100 feels
Why EBITDAC matters more than EBITDA
EBITDA shows operating performance. EBITDAC shows true cash-generating ability. EBITDAC = EBITDA before interest, depreciation, amortization, and capitalization. For acquirers, this matters because capitalization policies can materially distort EBITDA: * costs capitalized instead of expensed * aggressive activation of development, software, or project costs * EBITDA inflated by accounting choices, not economics EBITDAC neutralizes
Why is it difficult to close down failure?
Daniel Kahneman described this as loss aversion: the tendency to experience losses as significantly more painful than equivalent gains are pleasurable. This makes leadership difficult. In management teams and boards, saying yes is easy. Yes to new initiatives, projects, and bets. Saying no—or shutting something down—is harder. That’
The right people on the bus
When investing, it’s critical to look beyond the idea and the numbers. The leadership team matters most. Strategy will change. Markets will change. But a strong leadership team determines whether a company adapts—or stalls. In Good to Great, Jim Collins puts it simply: “First who, then what.” Get