E44: Rippling CFO Adam Swiecicki on Building a Compound Startup and Channeling Ambition

In this episode, CJ interviews Adam Swiecicki, CFO at Rippling and former CFO at Brex. They cover valuable insights into Swiecicki's role as well as the strategies that have fueled Rippling's growth in the competitive HR, Finance, and IT space. Adam also shares lessons from being a short seller to a company CFO, the ROI on R&D investment, capital allocation and how to avoid CFO burnout. If you're looking for an ERP head to NetSuite: https://netsuite.com/metrics and get a customized KPI checklist.  — PSA: Run The Numbers has a new Spotify and Apple show link. Follow the links to subscribe and ensure you'll never miss an episode Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/run-the-numbers/id1723787140 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0zQCkklNnVgMD364kCW5SV — SPONSORS: NetSuite provides financial software for all your business needs. More than 37,000 thousand companies have already upgraded to NetSuite, gaining visibility and control over their financials, inventory, HR, eCommerce, and more. If you're looking for an ERP platform ✅ NetSuite: https://netsuite.com/metrics and get a customized KPI checklist. Maxio is the only billing and financial operations platform that was purpose built for B2B SaaS. They're helping SaaS finance teams automate billing and revenue recognition, manage collections and payments, and put together investor grade reporting packages. 🚀 Request a demo at www.maxio.com/runthenumbers for 10% off your first year. Thoropass provides complete compliance management, continuous monitoring, and security audits through intuitive software and expert guidance – allowing you to do business with confidence. Learn more: https://bit.ly/Thoropass 🔒 Tropic is the next-generation Procurement Platform that’s helping modern CFOs take control of their budgets and bottom line. By combining approval workflows, supplier management, and pricing benchmarks all in one place, Tropic makes savings opportunities easy to find and act on. 🌴 Visit www.tropicapp.io/metrics to learn how. — FOLLOW US ON X: @cjgustafson222 (CJ) @turpentinemedia — TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) Preview (02:27) Sponsor - NetSuite | Thoropass (05:23) Understanding Rippling's Business Model (09:42) Resource Allocation in a Compound Startup (15:54) Sponsor - Maxio (17:02) Competitive Moats in the SaaS Industry (23:01) Launching Rippling’s Finance Cloud (26:43) Understanding Customer Lifetime Value at Rippling (28:36) The Signal of a Strong PMF (30:34) Rippling's Northstars (32:45) The Concept of Revenue Growth Endurance (33:40) The Role of a CFO (36:12) Balancing Strategy and Execution (40:25) Adam’s Frameworks, Methods, or Processes for Prioritizing Work (44:10) From Short Selling to Running a Company (48:10) Avoiding CFO Burnout: Enjoying the Journey (51:23) Adam’s Craziest Work Experience and Expense (53:27) Rep Yo Stack Sponsored by Tropic: Adam’s Finance Software Stack (57:57) Wrap This show is produced by Turpentine: a network of podcasts, newsletters, and more, covering technology, business, and culture — all from the perspective of industry insiders and experts. We’re launching new shows every week, and we’re looking for industry-leading sponsors — if you think that might be you and your company, email us at [email protected].