20VC: Monday.com CEO on Is SaaS Dead: Will Everything Be Vibe Coded | Will Systems of Record Become Valueless Databases in an Agentic World | Will LLMs Own the Value in the Application Layer with Eran Zinman
Monday has been hit harder than almost any other public SaaS company. With $1.3BN in ARR, the company is valued at just $3.8BN; a more than 60% fall since IPO. Today, Eran Zinman, Monday's CEO joins Harry Stebbings in the hotseat to walkthrough six of the biggest threats to Monday's business; what is real, what is not and what are the unknowns.
AGENDA:
05:47 Six Threats Monday Faces Today
07:04 Threat #1: Vibe Coding: Will Companies Vibe Code Everything
11:24 Threat #2: Will OpenAI and Anthropic Own the Application Layer
13:52 Threat #3: Will Agents Turn Monday and Salesforce into a Database
18:43 Why is Monday Adding 15% Headcount When Everyone is Cutting?
21:40 How Monday is Using AI to be More Efficient
27:49 What Happens to Seat Pricing? What Comes Next?
34:17 What No One Sees About Enterprise AI Adoption
37:13 How Google AI Overview Smashed 10% of our Customer Acquisition
38:49 If Bullish on Monday, Why Has Eran Not Bought More Stock…
40:38 How to Manage Internal Morale When Stock is Down 60%
44:08 Do Private Companies Have Advantages Public Companies Do Not Have
47:28 With $1.5BN in Cash, Why is Eran Not Buying More Companies…
53:30 What is the Most Offensive Bet Eran Would Like to Take?
57:13 Quickfire: Marriage, Biggest Short, Mentors
How to create agents that people actually want to use
Ryan welcomes Assaf Elovic, head of AI at monday.com, to discuss creating AI tools that users will actually adopt, how they created their Monday Sidekick agent with the user experience in mind, and the opportunities that AI creates for better productivity and more efficiency.
Episode notes:
monday.com is a work management platform that allows you to plan and execute work across departments with a unified, AI-first product suite.
Connect with Assaf on LinkedIn and Twitter.
Congrats to Populist badge winner Vilx-, who received the badge for their answer to How do you provide a default type for generics?.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Inside monday.com’s transformation: radical transparency, impact over output, and their path to $1B ARR | Daniel Lereya (Chief Product and Technology Officer)
Daniel Lereya, the Chief Product and Technology Officer at monday.com, shares how he and his team realized they were being outpaced by competitors and how that realization completely transformed how they operate and allowed them to build a global powerhouse, doing over $1 billion in ARR, with 245,000 customers worldwide.
What you’ll learn:
1. How they used seemingly impossible goals, like building 25 new features in one month, to unlock bigger thinking on their team
2. How sharing real-time metrics with the entire company—even during interviews—created a culture of accountability and alignment
3. How focusing on impact, rather than just shipping features, has transformed the company’s culture
4. The story behind monday.com’s decision to launch five new products simultaneously and how it redefined their market positioning
5. How they use “traps” (timeboxed deadlines) to drive focus, avoid scope creep, and deliver faster
6. Daniel’s personal journey of navigating impostor syndrome and scaling challenges, and the mental models he uses to stay grounded and effective
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Brought to you by:
• Enterpret—Transform customer feedback into product growth
• Airtable ProductCentral—Launch to new heights with a unified system for product development
• Vanta—Automate compliance. Simplify security
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Where to find Daniel Lereya:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-lereya-aa487646/
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Where to find Lenny:
• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com
• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/
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In this episode, we cover:
(00:00) Introduction to Daniel and monday.com
(04:20) The pivotal moment: competitors shipping faster
(08:50) Setting ambitious goals
(17:44) Focusing on impact rather than features
(27:07) Transforming your product quarterly
(32:07) Scaling monday.com: challenges and strategies
(39:14) How monday.com maintains transparency as a public company
(45:40) The importance of taking risks
(51:02) Counterintuitive lessons in product development
(54:33) The value of timeboxing and deadlines
(57:28) Embracing user feedback
(59:54) Adapting leadership styles
(01:04:43) Personal reflections on leadership
(01:10:41) Handling crises and strategic planning
(01:17:28) The role of AI in work and personal life
(01:22:13) Final thoughts and lightning round
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Referenced:
• Monday.com: https://monday.com/
• The basics of a monday.com board: https://support.monday.com/hc/en-us/articles/115005317249-The-basics-of-a-board
• Eran Zinman on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eranzinman/
• Roy Mann on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/manroy/
• Tal Harari on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tal-harari-a2515215/
• Four-minute mile: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four-minute_mile
• A better way to plan, build, and ship products | Ryan Singer (creator of “Shape Up,” early employee at 37signals): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/shape-up-ryan-singer
• Brian Chesky’s new playbook: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/brian-cheskys-contrarian-approach
• AI blocks: https://support.monday.com/hc/en-us/articles/18433811274386-AI-Automation-blocks
• Unpacking Amazon’s unique ways of working | Bill Carr (author of Working Backwards): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/unpacking-amazons-unique-ways-of
• Behind the founder: Drew Houston (Dropbox): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/behind-the-founder-drew-houston-dropbox
• SpaceX: https://www.spacex.com/
• Why and how to lead with transparency: https://monday.com/blog/monday-insights/may-30th/
• How to win in the AI era: Ship a feature every week, embrace technical debt, ruthlessly cut scope, and create magic your competitors can’t copy | Gaurav Misra (CEO and co-founder of Captions): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-to-win-in-the-ai-era-gaurav-misra
• This Week #5: Overcoming impostor syndrome, introducing growth to an org, and how to partner with your data scientist: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/this-week-overcoming-impostor-syndrome
• Sheryl Sandberg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sheryl-sandberg-5126652/
• Bryan Johnson on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryanrjohnson/
• ChatGPT: https://chatgpt.com/
• Cursor: https://www.cursor.com/
• How to build deeper, more robust relationships | Carole Robin (Stanford GSB professor, “Touchy Feely”): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/build-robust-relationships-carole-robin
• FIFA 22: https://store.playstation.com/en-us/concept/10002538/
• Formula 1: Drive to Survive on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/80204890
• Google Photos: https://photos.google.com/
—
Recommended books:
• Shape Up: Stop Running in Circles and Ship Work that Matters: https://basecamp.com/shapeup
• Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Working-Backwards-Insights-Stories-Secrets/dp/1250267595
• No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention: https://www.amazon.com/No-Rules-Netflix-Culture-Reinvention/dp/1984877860
• Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life: Life-Changing Tools for Healthy Relationships: https://www.amazon.com/Nonviolent-Communication-Language-Life-Changing-Relationships/dp/189200528X/
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Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.
—
Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com/subscribe
SaaStr 790: AI at Scale: 8 Learnings from monday.com Co-Founder and Co-Ceo Eran Zinman and SaaStr CEO and Founder Jason Lemkin
SaaStr 790: AI at Scale: 8 Learnings from monday.com Co-Founder and Co-Ceo Eran Zinman and SaaStr CEO and Founder Jason Lemkin
Join us for an inspiring conversation with monday.com co-CEO and Co-Founder Eran Zinman and SaaStr CEO and Founder Jason Lemkin.
From humble beginnings at $10 million ARR in 2017 to smashing the $1 billion ARR mark in just eight years, Eran shares their journey, challenges, and strategies that have fueled their remarkable growth. Discover the importance of customer diversity, maintaining NRR and GRR levels, leveraging AI for business efficiencies, and the impact of adopting a multi-product approach.
Learn how monday.com effectively manages SMB, mid-market, and enterprise customers, and gain valuable insights into the future of AI in SaaS solutions. Perfect for SaaS founders and tech enthusiasts looking for proven strategies to scale their businesses.
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Alright everybody in SaaS, this is it.
The biggest, best, most action-packed SaaS + AI event of the year—SaaStr Annual 2025—is coming this May. Three full days. 10,000+ SaaS and AI leaders and more tactical, no-fluff content than you'll find anywhere else.
If you want to scale faster—$10M, $50M, $100M ARR and beyond—you need the right playbooks, the right connections and the right people in your corner. And SaaStr Annual is where it all happens.
We'll have 100's of Legendary speakers from companies like Snowflake, HubSpot, OpenAI, Canva, and more.
More networking than you can handle—meet your next investor, co-founder, or biggest deal.
A New AI Demo & Pitch Stage— with your chance to win up to $5M in funding!
So don't wait—grab your tickets now at SaaStrAnnual.com with my code jason100 to save $100 on tickets before prices go up. That's jason 100 at saastrannual.com
See you in May!
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20VC: Monday.com: Scaling from $6M to $120M in ARR in 3 Years | How Monday Have Built the Best Performance Marketing Engine in SaaS | Going Upmarket, International and Multi-Product; The Biggest Lessons and Mistakes with Eran Zinman
The story of Monday.com is insane, turned down by most VCs, then scaled from $6M to $120M ARR in just three years. Today the company is public with a market cap of $12BN. Joining us in the hotseat today is Monday's Co-Founder and CEO, Eran Zinman.
In Today's Episode with Eran Zinman We Discuss:
03:03 The Role of Video Games in Founders' Success
04:12 The Fail That Taught a $10BN Founder Everything
09:40 Pivoting to a $12BN Company: How, When and Advice on Pivots
14:15 Why 99% of Investors Turned Monday Down: Fundraising Lessons
17:05 Building a Performance Marketing Engine
21:25 How to Scale ACV and Move Upmarket
28:54 What Have Been the Most Effective Marketing Strategies
29:08 How Have Monday Been So Successful with Youtube Ads?
29:43 Biggest Challenges and Lessons in Channel Spend
30:50 Building a Multi-Product Strategy: The Rise of Monday CRM
34:37 Competing in the SaaS Market: Is Competition Good?
39:30 The IPO Journey: Why Then? Pros and Cons of Being Public?
42:38 How a Co-CEO Structure Works
43:55 How to Manage a Board
45:04 Quick-Fire Q&A
EP 126: Eran Zinman (Co-Founder, monday.com) on The Efficiency Hacks That Drove monday.com to $14B
Eran Zinman entered a crowded category, out-executed everyone, and scaled monday.com into a $14B public company. In my latest conversation with him, he details their unique metric tracking system (dubbed Big Brain) that allows them to do the same amount of work with ½ the people, along with their relentless focus on cash over other metrics, and the little tactics that brought significant ROI (like sending everyone—including investors—a daily SMS with yesterday’s metrics).
(00:00) Introduction to the Logan Bartlett Show
(01:12) The Philosophy Behind Monday.com
(01:29) Building a Flexible Platform
(04:12) Competing in a Crowded Market
(06:21) The Evolution of Monday.com
(13:43) The Importance of Cash Efficiency
(14:22) Big Brain: The In-House Analytics Platform
(23:54) Performance Marketing Strategies
(29:47) AI Integration and Future Prospects
(38:51) Founder Mode and Company Philosophy
(40:53) Learning from Mistakes and Adapting
(43:04) Customer Success and Service Philosophy
(46:53) Building a Strong Company Culture
(51:10) Interviewing and Hiring Best Practices
(54:49) Going Public and Investor Relations
(01:03:38) Co-CEO Model and Partnership
(01:08:34) Future Vision for Monday.com
(01:11:07) Embracing Failure and Continuous Improvement
Executive Producer: Rashad Assir
Producer: Leah Clapper
Mixing and editing: Justin Hrabovsky
Check out Unsupervised Learning, Redpoint's AI Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@UCUl-s_Vp-Kkk_XVyDylNwLA
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About the Show
Logan Bartlett is a Software Investor at Redpoint Ventures - a Silicon Valley-based VC with $6B AUM and investments in Snowflake, DraftKings, Twilio, and Netflix. In each episode of The Logan Bartlett Show, we sit down with the people behind today’s most important startups and extract the tactics, lessons, and frameworks they’ve learned the hard way. Conversations span hiring to GTM, product, growth, fundraising and everything in between - collectively forming the ultimate playbook to make you a better CEO, investor or board member.
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SaaStr 756: From Challenges and Churn to Triumph - How to Deliver Exceptional Customer Support at Scale with Monday.com's VP of Customer Experience
SaaStr 756: From Challenges and Churn to Triumph - How to Deliver Exceptional Customer Support at Scale with Monday.com's VP of Customer Experience
In this episode of the Official SaaStr Podcast, Natalie Margolin, VP of Customer Experience at monday.com, shares her journey and strategies for enhancing customer experience in a rapidly growing company. From tackling challenges of scale, implementing AI and chatbots, to ensuring customer satisfaction and building an expert support team, Natalie explains the transformative steps and guiding principles that have positioned monday.com as an industry leader in customer experience.
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SaaStr hosts the largest SaaS community events on the planet.
Join us in 2024 at:
SaaStr Annual: Sept. 10-12 in the SF Bay Area. Join 12,500 SaaS professionals, CEOs, revenue leaders and investors for the world's LARGEST SaaS community event of the year. Podcast listeners can grab a discount on tickets here: https://www.saastrannual2024.com/buy-tickets?promo=fave20
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This episode is sponsored by: Paragon
Are you constantly saying no to your customers' integration requests? You're not alone. That's why companies like Copy.ai and Sinch use Paragon, an embedded integration platform, to ship integrations 7 times faster. Ready to scale your product's integration strategy? Visit useparagon.com/saastr to explore how Paragon can help you go-to-market faster with integrations today.
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This episode is sponsored by: remote.com
When the right person for the job is a world away, Remote Talent brings the world to you. As the top job board for remote-first companies, we give you powerful tools to post your listings and reach the world's top candidates and remote professionals. Start building your dream team from anywhere—visit Remote.com/jobs today.
SaaStr 693: The Secrets to Scaling and Growth in an Unpredictable Market with monday.com's Co-founder and Co-CEO, Eran Zimman, and SaaStr CEO and Founder, Jason Lemkin
Monday has gone from $7m in 2017 to over $700m in revenue today, showcasing the sheer power of compounding revenue. Did Monday's founders feel like they'd be 100x bigger in just six years since that first SaaStr conference they attended? Eran Zimman, Monday's co-founder and co-CEO, shares his secrets to scaling and growth in an unpredictable market. Monday hasn't missed a bit, but before we dive into their secrets, let's first learn where it all started and what they do today.
SaaStr 680: The Most Important SaaS Metrics of 2023 with monday.com Co-Founders and SaaStr Founder Jason Lemkin
Learn about the most important SaaS metrics for founders in 2023 with the CEOs of the most metric-oriented company, monday, and the founder of SaaStr. The godfather of SaaS and founder of the world's largest community for business software sits down with one of the most metric-oriented companies today to discuss the most important SaaS metrics for founders in 2023. Jason Lemkin, Founder of SaaStr, and co-founders and CEOs, Eran Zinman and Roy Mann of the wildly successful monday.com chat with Startup For Startup about ARR, NRR, CAC, and what it takes to beat the odds in a tougher environment.
SaaStr 441: The Top 5 Mistakes Scaling with Monday.com with Co-Founders Roy Mann and Eran Zinman
Monday.com wasn't always worth billions. Its Co-Founders, Roy Mann and Eran Zinman share the top 5 things they'd repeat and the 5 they wish they'd done differently.
Video + blog post: https://www.saastr.com/top-5-dos-and-donts-of-scaling-with-monday-com/