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How his AI-first services company grew $0 to $40M ARR in one year. | Eric Foster, Founder of Tenex
Manage episode 522144215 series 3298391
Eric spent 30 years in cybersecurity. Built and sold an MSSP to private equity for hundreds of millions. Then he started Tenex and hit $43 million in revenue in ONE YEAR.
This isn't theory. This is a founder who's done it multiple times breaking down exactly how AI-native companies are about to eat every services industry alive. If you're building anything that touches AI, services, or enterprise sales, this is the episode.
Why You Should Listen
- Why selling outcomes beats selling products every time
- How to close enterprise deals in 60 days instead of 12 months
- The difference between AI-native and AI-bolted-on companies
- Why founder-led sales is non-negotiable in the early days
- How to build for IPO from day one without slowing down
Keywords
startup podcast, startup podcast for founders, AI startup growth, founder-led sales, zero to one startup, enterprise sales strategy, AI native company, managed services startup, cybersecurity startup, product market fit
00:00:00 Intro
00:10:29 Selling His Last Company for $100Ms
00:15:10 The Origin Story of TENEX
00:36:47 How They Hit $43M ARR in Year One
00:43:27 The 30 Second Demo That Closes Enterprise Deals
00:47:10 Why Selling Outcomes Beats Selling Products
00:51:29 The Mechanics of Going From Zero to $40M ARR
01:01:09 Go to Market and Founder Led Sales
01:05:32 When He Knew He Had Product Market Fit
Retry
Chapters
1. Intro (00:00:00)
2. Selling His Last Company for $100Ms (00:10:30)
3. The Origin Story of TENEX (00:15:10)
4. How They Hit $43M ARR in Year One (00:36:39)
5. The 30 Second Demo That Closes Enterprise Deals (00:43:27)
6. Why Selling Outcomes Beats Selling Products (00:47:10)
7. The Mechanics of Going From Zero to $40M ARR (00:51:30)
8. Go to Market and Founder Led Sales (01:01:09)
9. When He Knew He Had Product Market Fit (01:05:32)
244 episodes
Manage episode 522144215 series 3298391
Eric spent 30 years in cybersecurity. Built and sold an MSSP to private equity for hundreds of millions. Then he started Tenex and hit $43 million in revenue in ONE YEAR.
This isn't theory. This is a founder who's done it multiple times breaking down exactly how AI-native companies are about to eat every services industry alive. If you're building anything that touches AI, services, or enterprise sales, this is the episode.
Why You Should Listen
- Why selling outcomes beats selling products every time
- How to close enterprise deals in 60 days instead of 12 months
- The difference between AI-native and AI-bolted-on companies
- Why founder-led sales is non-negotiable in the early days
- How to build for IPO from day one without slowing down
Keywords
startup podcast, startup podcast for founders, AI startup growth, founder-led sales, zero to one startup, enterprise sales strategy, AI native company, managed services startup, cybersecurity startup, product market fit
00:00:00 Intro
00:10:29 Selling His Last Company for $100Ms
00:15:10 The Origin Story of TENEX
00:36:47 How They Hit $43M ARR in Year One
00:43:27 The 30 Second Demo That Closes Enterprise Deals
00:47:10 Why Selling Outcomes Beats Selling Products
00:51:29 The Mechanics of Going From Zero to $40M ARR
01:01:09 Go to Market and Founder Led Sales
01:05:32 When He Knew He Had Product Market Fit
Retry
Chapters
1. Intro (00:00:00)
2. Selling His Last Company for $100Ms (00:10:30)
3. The Origin Story of TENEX (00:15:10)
4. How They Hit $43M ARR in Year One (00:36:39)
5. The 30 Second Demo That Closes Enterprise Deals (00:43:27)
6. Why Selling Outcomes Beats Selling Products (00:47:10)
7. The Mechanics of Going From Zero to $40M ARR (00:51:30)
8. Go to Market and Founder Led Sales (01:01:09)
9. When He Knew He Had Product Market Fit (01:05:32)
244 episodes
All episodes
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