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Frontlines.io | Where B2B Founders Talk GTM.
Strategic Communications Advisory For Visionary Founders
Welcome to another episode of Unicorn Builders. In today’s episode, we’re speaking with Satyen Sangani, CEO & Co-Founder of Alation, a data intelligence platform that has raised over $340 Million in funding.
Here are the most interesting points from our conversation:
Building a new category takes patience. Satyen and his team at Alation spent nearly five years defining and evangelizing their category before it gained recognition. Founders looking to create a category should prepare for a long journey and be ready to articulate a clear problem customers may not even realize they have.
In the early days, Alation’s product vision shifted based on customer feedback. Initially focused on data catalogs, the team discovered through user interviews that many struggled more with SQL queries, prompting them to build a query tool that complemented their catalog. Don’t be afraid to pivot based on real user needs.
During the company’s early days, Satyen was tempted to reposition Alation into the emerging "data governance" space to secure more deals. However, staying true to their unique vision around data consumption eventually paid off. Founders should avoid repositioning their products into predefined categories if it doesn’t align with the company’s long-term vision.
In Alation’s early go-to-market strategy, 90% of leads came from marketing efforts, particularly through events and customer storytelling. A strong marketing presence can drive early growth without the need for heavy outbound efforts. Focus on sharing impactful customer success stories to generate inbound interest.
When pitching to investors, it’s crucial to balance what you’ve proven with a clear vision of the long-term dream. Satyen explains that investors are often more interested in the bigger picture and the potential for massive scale, so founders should spend time articulating their long-term vision to secure larger investments.
CEO and Founder of Paper
Philip Cutler: The GTM Story of Paper ($1.5B Valuation)
CEO & Co-Founder of Alation
Satyen Sangani: The GTM Story of Alation ($1.7 Billion Valuation)
Co-Founder and CEO of SambaNova
Rodrigo Liang: the Story of SambaNova ($5+ Billion Valuation)
CEO and Co-Founder of Starburst
Justin Borgman: the Story of Starburst ($3+ Billion Valuation)
Co-Founder & CEO of Monte Carlo
Barr Moses: the GTM Story of Monte Carlo ($1.6 Billion Valuation)
Co-Founder & Chief Sustainability Officer of RELEX Solutions
Johanna Småros: the Story of RELEX Solutions ($5.7 Billion Valuation)
CEO & Co-Founder of Swiftly
Henry Kim: The GTM Story of Swiftly ($1B+ Valuation)
Co-Founder of VAST Data
Jeff Denworth: The Story of VAST Data ($9.1 Billion Valuation)
CEO & Co-founder of Workrise
Michael Witte: Workrise: the GTM Story of Workrise ($3 Billion Valuation)
Co-Founder of SumUp
Marc-Alexander Christ: the Story of SumUp ($8.5 Billion Valuation)
CEO of Chronosphere
Martin Mao: The Story of Chronosphere ($1.6 Billion Valuation))
CEO & Co-Founder of BigID
Dimitri Sirota: The GTM Story of BigID ($1.25 Billion Valuation)
CEO & Founder of Aura
Hari Ravichandran: the Story of Aura ($2.5 Billion Valuation)
CEO & Founder of Unqork
Gary Hoberman: the GTM Story of Unqork ($2B+ Valuation)
Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Brex
Henrique Dubugras: the Story of Brex ($12 Billion+ Valuation)
CEO of Beyond Identity
Tom “TJ” Jermoluk: The GTM Storyteller of Beyond Identity ($1.1 Billion Valuation)
CEO of 6sense
Jason Zintak: The GTM Story of 6sense ($5.2 Billion Valuation)
CTO and Co-Founder of Copado
Federico Larsen: the Story of Copado ($1.2 Billion Valuation)
Co-Founder & CEO of Airbyte
Michel Tricot: the Story of Airbyte ($1.5 Billion Valuation)
President of Remote
Marcelo Lebre: the Story of Remote ($3 Billion+ Valuation)
Co-Founder & CEO of Flexe
Karl Siebrecht: the Story of Flexe (1+ Billion Valuation)
CEO & Co-Founder of AppsFlyer
Oren Kaniel: The GTM Story of AppsFlyer ($2 Billion Valuation)
CEO of Lightspeed
Jean Paul Chauvet: the Story of Lightspeed ($2+ Billion Valuation)
CEO & Co-Founder of Andela
Jeremy Johnson: the Story of Andela ($1.5 Billion Valuation)
Founder and CEO of SmartRecruiters
Jerome Ternynck: the Story of SmartRecruiter ($1.5 Billion Valuation)
Co-Founder of Paddle
Harrison Rose: the Story of Paddle ($1.4 Billion Valuation)
CEO and Co-Founder of PointClickCare
Dave Wessinger: the Story of PointClickCare ($5 Billion Valuation)
CEO of StoreDot
Doron Myersdorf: the Story of StoreDot ($1.2 Billion Valuation)
CEO and Co-Founder of Komodo Health
Arif Nathoo: the Story of Komodo Health ($3 Billion Valuation)
Team Member of Beta Technologies
Kyle Clark: the Story of Beta ($1.2 Billion Valuation)
Founder and CEO of Typeface
Abhay Parasnis: the Story of Typeface ($1 Billion Valuation)
CEO & Co-Founder of Sendbird
John Kim: The GTM Story of Sendbird ($1+ Billion Valuation)
CEO of Timescale
Ajay Kulkarni: the Story of Timescale ($1+ Billion Valuation)
Co-Founder, CFO & COO of Synthesia
Steffen Tjerrild: The Story of Synthesia ($1 Billion Valuation)
CEO and Founder of Guideline
Kevin Busque: the Story of Guideline ($1.1B+ Valuation)
CEO & Co-founder of Bloomreach
Raj De Datta: the GTM Story of Bloomreach ($2.2 Billion Valuation)
Co-Founder & CEO of Omada Health
Sean Duffy: the Story of Omada Health ($1+ Billion Valuation)
CEO and Co-Founder of Seismic
Doug Winter: The GTM Story of Seismic ($3 Billion Valuation)
CEO and Co-founder of Newfront
Spike Lipkin: the GTM Story of Newfront ($2.2 Billion Valuation)
Chairman and Co-Founder of Carbon
Joseph DeSimone: the Story of Carbon ($2.5 Billion Valuation)