Run the Numbers

In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ sits down with Heidi Robinson, former CFO and COO of Food52, for one of the wildest CFO stories the show has featured. Heidi joined expecting to lead a modest turnaround and within weeks realized the company was in far deeper trouble than anyone understood. She walks through being the newest executive in the room and having to deliver that news and the Monday evening a lender swept the company's cash without warning.
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SPONSORS:
Fidelity Private Shares gives founders the structure and simplicity to focus on what actually matters - building your company. If your startup needs a little extra support (and let’s be honest, who doesn’t need a little help now and then), then you’re in for a pleasant surprise with Fidelity. If you stay investor ready, you don’t have to get investor ready. Check out www.fidelityprivateshares.com

Rillet is an AI-native ERP built for modern finance teams that want to replace NetSuite and close faster. With revenue recognition, close management, multi-entity support, and native Stripe and Salesforce integrations, Rillet helps scaling companies run their finance stack in one place. Hundreds of teams, including Windsurf and Mercor, use Rillet to make the zero-day close real. Book a demo at https://www.rillet.com/cj

Cloud Capital helps you say goodbye to on-demand rates for cloud. Committing more cuts the rate you pay for cloud infrastructure by 20–60%. Commit wrong and you pay for capacity you'll never use. Cloud Capital underwrites that risk, so you capture the savings of deeper commitments without locking in architecture or putting engineers on it. Go to www.cloudcapital.co

Brex is an intelligent finance platform that combines corporate cards, built-in expense management, and AI agents to eliminate manual finance work. By automating expense reviews and reconciliations, Brex gives CFOs more time for the high-impact work that drives growth. Join 35,000+ companies like Anthropic, Coinbase, and DoorDash at https://www.brex.com/metrics

Abacum puts your actuals, forecasts, models, and business context in one place, so you can update the plan, run scenarios, and answer "why did this change?" without rebuilding the story from six spreadsheets and a Slack thread. Connect your source systems, keep models and assumptions aligned, and give leaders trusted answers while decisions are still being made. Go to abacum.ai/mostly-metrics.

RightRev is a revenue recognition platform built for the AI economy, helping finance support usage-based pricing, credits, hybrid contracts, seats plus consumption, and whatever commercial model comes next. It gives product teams the freedom to keep innovating without outdated revenue systems slowing them down. Learn how RightRev can help at https://rightrev.com/cj

EY works with high-growth tech companies to navigate the messy realities of scaling—from regulatory requirements to IPO readiness. By helping teams get it right early and often, EY lets founders stay focused on building while reducing risk as they grow. Learn more at https://www.ey.com/techstartups
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LINKS:
Mostly Talent: https://mostlymetrics.typeform.com/to/cLTxtAsN
Guest: linkedin.com/in/heidilrobinson
CJ: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/
Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com
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TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 Cold Open
2:29 Joining Food52
3:45 Food52's Three Brands
6:14 Building a Cash Flow Model
7:25 Delivering the Worst News
8:09 A Path Without Bankruptcy?
9:05 The Cash Sweep
13:44 The Scramble
18:30 Selling at 60% Off
19:45 Working Through the Holidays
20:10 Filing Chapter 11
21:48 Chapter 7 vs. 11
23:05 The Headline Objective
23:33 The Stalking Horse Bidder
26:17 Meet the Cast29:41 Testifying Under Oath
30:50 The Independent Board Member
35:27 The Live Auction
39:06 Bidding Like Poker
40:50 The Payout Waterfall
44:24 Better Questions with EY
44:41 Rethinking Risk
46:00 CFO/COO Convergence
#RunTheNumbersPodcast #CFOs #Food52 #Bankruptcy #FinancePodcast

In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ sits down with Shiv Verma, CFO of Robinhood, to unpack the company's 2022 "refounding". They dig into why Shiv personally signs off on every headcount and marketing dollar at a $100B+ company, and how Robinhood's capital allocation philosophy — no loss leaders, minimal variable costs, and a hard $100 million ARR bar for new products — shapes everything from prediction markets to private-market investing.
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SPONSORS:
RightRev is a revenue recognition platform built for the AI economy, helping finance support usage-based pricing, credits, hybrid contracts, seats plus consumption, and whatever commercial model comes next. It gives product teams the freedom to keep innovating without outdated revenue systems slowing them down. Learn how RightRev can help at https://rightrev.com/cj
Fidelity Private Shares gives founders the structure and simplicity to focus on what actually matters - building your company. If your startup needs a little extra support (and let’s be honest, who doesn’t need a little help now and then), then you’re in for a pleasant surprise with Fidelity. If you stay investor ready, you don’t have to get investor ready. Check out www.fidelityprivateshares.com
Rillet is an AI-native ERP built for modern finance teams that want to replace NetSuite and close faster. With revenue recognition, close management, multi-entity support, and native Stripe and Salesforce integrations, Rillet helps scaling companies run their finance stack in one place. Hundreds of teams, including Windsurf and Mercor, use Rillet to make the zero-day close real. Book a demo at https://www.rillet.com/cj
Cloud Capital helps you say goodbye to on-demand rates for cloud. Committing more cuts the rate you pay for cloud infrastructure by 20–60%. Commit wrong and you pay for capacity you'll never use. Cloud Capital underwrites that risk, so you capture the savings of deeper commitments without locking in architecture or putting engineers on it. Go to www.cloudcapital.co
Brex is an intelligent finance platform that combines corporate cards, built-in expense management, and AI agents to eliminate manual finance work. By automating expense reviews and reconciliations, Brex gives CFOs more time for the high-impact work that drives growth. Join 35,000+ companies like Anthropic, Coinbase, and DoorDash at https://www.brex.com/metrics
Abacum puts your actuals, forecasts, models, and business context in one place, so you can update the plan, run scenarios, and answer "why did this change?" without rebuilding the story from six spreadsheets and a Slack thread. Connect your source systems, keep models and assumptions aligned, and give leaders trusted answers while decisions are still being made.
Go to abacum.ai/mostly-metrics.
EY works with high-growth tech companies to navigate the messy realities of scaling—from regulatory requirements to IPO readiness. By helping teams get it right early and often, EY lets founders stay focused on building while reducing risk as they grow. Learn more at https://www.ey.com/techstartups
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LINKS: 
Mostly Talent: https://mostlymetrics.typeform.com/to/cLTxtAsN
Guest: linkedin.com/in/shiv-verma-6408249
Company: www.robinhood.com
CJ: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/
Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com
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TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 Intro
2:21 The 2022 Refounding
8:46 Using NPS
17:53 Moving to a GM Model
19:58 Finance Partners
17:49 Killing Committees for DRIs
20:04 Headcount Requests
27:02 RPM Teams and Efficiency
32:27 The Art of Capital Allocation
33:34 Core, Scaling, and New Seeds
37:07 Funding a New Idea
38:17 Killing OKRs
44:59 No Loss Leaders
48:36 Building Prediction Markets Fast
51:26 Why Shiv Hates Variable Costs
53:37 Market Share Over Revenue
55:59 Forecasting a Volatile Business
59:53 Shiv's Biggest Mistake
1:02:03 Lessons from the Oakland A's
1:04:04 Advice to His Younger Self
1:04:48 Finance Tech Stack
1:05:30 Craziest Expense

This is Part 1 of our new Token Series with Tabs. CJ calls up Ali Hussain to dig into one of the fastest-growing, least-understood line items on the P&L: AI inference and token spend. They debate whether AI costs ultimately belong to the CTO or the CFO, why the shift from "experimentation budgets" to real operating costs is forcing companies to rethink ownership, what's actually different about AI spend compared to the early cloud transition, and how tools like OpenRouter (acquired by Stripe) and Ramp's new offering are approaching the problem from opposite ends of engineering vs. finance.

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Tabs is an AI-native revenue platform that unifies billing, collections, and revenue recognition for companies running usage-based or complex contracts. By bringing together ERP, CRM, and real product usage data into a single system of record, Tabs eliminates manual reconciliations and speeds up close and cash collection. Companies like Cortex, Statsig, and Cursor trust Tabs to scale revenue efficiently. Learn more at https://www.tabs.com

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LINKS: 
Mostly Talent: ⁠https://mostlymetrics.typeform.com/to/cLTxtAsN⁠
Guest: ⁠linkedin.com/in/ali-hussain786
Company: ⁠www.tabs.com
CJ: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/⁠
Mostly metrics: ⁠https://www.mostlymetrics.com⁠

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TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 Cold Open
1:11 From Experimentation Budgets to Real AI Costs
2:43 Who Owns AI Spend Inside a Company?
4:12 Lessons from the Cloud Transition
5:55 Why AI Costs Are Different from Cloud
7:51 AI as "Electricity Through the House"
8:42 Paying for 5 to 10 LLM Providers
9:58 OpenRouter vs. Ramp: Two Approaches
11:47 What the Finance Stack for AI Spend Should Look Like
13:34 Passing AI Costs on to Customers

In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ sits down with Emily Man of Primary Ventures to map out where value actually accrues in the AI economy. They break down the 5 layers of the AI stack and why Emily believes the next era of AI adoption will be driven by diffusion through apps rather than smarter models alone.
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SPONSORS:
Abacum puts your actuals, forecasts, models, and business context in one place, so you can update the plan, run scenarios, and answer "why did this change?" without rebuilding the story from six spreadsheets and a Slack thread. Connect your source systems, keep models and assumptions aligned, and give leaders trusted answers while decisions are still being made.
Go to abacum.ai/mostly-metrics.
RightRev is a revenue recognition platform built for the AI economy, helping finance support usage-based pricing, credits, hybrid contracts, seats plus consumption, and whatever commercial model comes next. It gives product teams the freedom to keep innovating without outdated revenue systems slowing them down. Learn how RightRev can help at https://rightrev.com/cj
Fidelity Private Shares gives founders the structure and simplicity to focus on what actually matters - building your company. If your startup needs a little extra support (and let’s be honest, who doesn’t need a little help now and then), then you’re in for a pleasant surprise with Fidelity. If you stay investor ready, you don’t have to get investor ready. Check out www.fidelityprivateshares.com
Rillet is an AI-native ERP built for modern finance teams that want to replace NetSuite and close faster. With revenue recognition, close management, multi-entity support, and native Stripe and Salesforce integrations, Rillet helps scaling companies run their finance stack in one place. Hundreds of teams, including Windsurf and Mercor, use Rillet to make the zero-day close real. Book a demo at https://www.rillet.com/cj
Cloud Capital helps you say goodbye to on-demand rates for cloud. Committing more cuts the rate you pay for cloud infrastructure by 20–60%. Commit wrong and you pay for capacity you'll never use. Cloud Capital underwrites that risk, so you capture the savings of deeper commitments without locking in architecture or putting engineers on it. Go to www.cloudcapital.co
Brex is an intelligent finance platform that combines corporate cards, built-in expense management, and AI agents to eliminate manual finance work. By automating expense reviews and reconciliations, Brex gives CFOs more time for the high-impact work that drives growth. Join 35,000+ companies like Anthropic, Coinbase, and DoorDash at https://www.brex.com/metrics
EY works with high-growth tech companies to navigate the messy realities of scaling—from regulatory requirements to IPO readiness. By helping teams get it right early and often, EY lets founders stay focused on building while reducing risk as they grow. Learn more at https://www.ey.com/techstartups
—
LINKS: 
Mostly Talent: https://mostlymetrics.typeform.com/to/cLTxtAsN
Guest: linkedin.com/in/emily-man-02a1a486
Company: https://www.primary.vc/
CJ: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/
Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com
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TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 Cold Opens
1:12 Meet Emily Man, Primary Ventures
2:01 What's Exciting in Venture Right Now
3:09 The 5 Layers of the AI Stack
4:08 Where Funding Has Focused So Far
5:54 Diffusion Through Apps
9:30 "Enough" Intelligence
17:11 Payroll vs. Compute Ratio
23:01 Alex Karp and "Owning Your Weights"
24:05 On-Prem vs. Cloud, Again?
30:53 Models vs. Loops
32:34 Software Goes Headless
34:14 Pre-2022 SaaS Companies
36:29 The Roadkill Bucket
41:42 The Vibe-Coding Backlash
44:55 Objectivity vs. Subjectivity
48:03 When AI Agents Talk to Each Other
49:43 Creating Alpha Without Being AI-Native
51:01 Better Questions, Brought to You by EY
51:16 The Future CFO Tech Stack
#RunTheNumbersPodcast #AIforCFOs #FinanceLeadership #Zuora #GoingPrivate

In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ sits down with Todd McElhatton, CFO of Zuora, for a deep cut on pricing, packaging, and value in the age of AI. They dig into how companies are figuring out whether to charge for AI at all, why token-based budgets are starting to sit alongside headcount budgets, and why AI may be increasing — not decreasing — the value of deep expertise.
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SPONSORS:
Brex is an intelligent finance platform that combines corporate cards, built-in expense management, and AI agents to eliminate manual finance work. By automating expense reviews and reconciliations, Brex gives CFOs more time for the high-impact work that drives growth. Join 35,000+ companies like Anthropic, Coinbase, and DoorDash at https://www.brex.com/metrics

Abacum puts your actuals, forecasts, models, and business context in one place, so you can update the plan, run scenarios, and answer "why did this change?" without rebuilding the story from six spreadsheets and a Slack thread. Connect your source systems, keep models and assumptions aligned, and give leaders trusted answers while decisions are still being made. Go to abacum.ai/mostly-metrics.

RightRev is a revenue recognition platform built for the AI economy, helping finance support usage-based pricing, credits, hybrid contracts, seats plus consumption, and whatever commercial model comes next. It gives product teams the freedom to keep innovating without outdated revenue systems slowing them down. Learn how RightRev can help at https://rightrev.com/cj

Fidelity Private Shares gives founders the structure and simplicity to focus on what actually matters - building your company. If your startup needs a little extra support (and let’s be honest, who doesn’t need a little help now and then), then you’re in for a pleasant surprise with Fidelity. If you stay investor ready, you don’t have to get investor ready. Check out www.fidelityprivateshares.com

Rillet is an AI-native ERP built for modern finance teams that want to replace NetSuite and close faster. With revenue recognition, close management, multi-entity support, and native Stripe and Salesforce integrations, Rillet helps scaling companies run their finance stack in one place. Hundreds of teams, including Windsurf and Mercor, use Rillet to make the zero-day close real. Book a demo at https://www.rillet.com/cj

Cloud Capital helps you say goodbye to on-demand rates for cloud. Committing more cuts the rate you pay for cloud infrastructure by 20–60%. Commit wrong and you pay for capacity you'll never use. Cloud Capital underwrites that risk, so you capture the savings of deeper commitments without locking in architecture or putting engineers on it. Go to www.cloudcapital.co

EY works with high-growth tech companies to navigate the messy realities of scaling—from regulatory requirements to IPO readiness. By helping teams get it right early and often, EY lets founders stay focused on building while reducing risk as they grow. Learn more at https://www.ey.com/techstartups
—
LINKS: 
Mostly Talent: https://mostlymetrics.typeform.com/to/cLTxtAsN
Guest: linkedin.com/in/todd-mcelhatton-2140761
Company: www.zuora.com
CJ: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/
Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com
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TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 Intro
1:15 Meet Todd
2:24 Debating Price
7:33 Is Software "Going Headless"?
9:18 Is AI Increasing the Value of Experts
9:58 Hiring Specialists vs. Generalists
16:49 Rethinking the Budget Envelope
26:56 Time to Value
31:20 Forward-Deployed Engineers
35:20 Parallels Between On-Prem-to-Cloud
36:10 Rethinking Strategy
37:07 Avoiding the Sunk Cost Trap
38:58 The Art of Pivoting
40:12 VMware
41:31 Experimenting With AI
42:33 What Private Boards Bring
43:13 Short-Term Pain
43:45 One-Way Doors vs. Two-Way Doors
44:57Long-Ass Lightning Round
45:04 Biggest Career Mistake
45:36 Advice45:56 Finance Tech Stack
46:43 The Craziest Thing Expense
#RunTheNumbersPodcast #AIforCFOs #FinanceLeadership #Zuora #GoingPrivate