MSMP 81: Jeroen Corthout on Building a SaaS

What Does MSMP 81: Jeroen Corthout on Building a SaaS Talk About?

In this episode of the Mads Singers Management Podcast, host Mads Singers interviews Jeroen Corthout, co-founder of Salesflare, a B2B CRM serving thousands of companies. Jeroen shares his journey of building a SaaS business, emphasizing the importance of intentional communication and systems, especially after his team transitioned from in-person to remote work during the pandemic. He discusses how the forced shift revealed the shortcomings of relying on accidental overhearing and led to implementing structured processes like shared Google Docs for meeting notes and tiled video calls to read reactions. Jeroen also highlights the value of customer empathy, with developers spending a week each month on customer-facing roles to better understand feedback and technical issues. The episode covers key tensions in SaaS, such as balancing profitability versus growth and building versus communicating, offering practical insights for founders and managers.

It meant we were relying on accidentally overhearing something. There was no system in place.Jeroen Corthout

Who Is Featured on MSMP 81: Jeroen Corthout on Building a SaaS?

Jeroen Corthout is the co-founder of Salesflare, a B2B CRM designed for small and medium-sized businesses. He has deep experience in building and scaling a SaaS product, with a focus on customer-centric development and team communication. Prior to the pandemic, Salesflare operated entirely in-person in Antwerp, Belgium, but Jeroen adapted to remote work by implementing intentional systems to maintain team cohesion and customer insight. He is active on LinkedIn and shares insights on SaaS management.

What Are the Key Takeaways From MSMP 81: Jeroen Corthout on Building a SaaS?

• SaaS companies must balance profitability and growth, avoiding an all-or-nothing approach.
• Effective communication systems are crucial for remote teams, replacing accidental overhearing with intentional processes.
• Developers should periodically work in customer-facing roles to gain firsthand understanding of user needs.
• Morning standup meetings help maintain team alignment and accountability in a remote setting.
• Adding free trial time based on user engagement can encourage deeper product exploration and feedback.

There was no system in place.Jeroen Corthout

Is MSMP 81: Jeroen Corthout on Building a SaaS Worth Listening To?

This episode is highly recommended for SaaS founders, product managers, and anyone interested in the operational challenges of building a software company. Jeroen Corthout offers candid insights into the realities of remote work transitions, customer empathy, and the strategic tensions between growth and profitability. The practical advice on communication systems and developer-customer interaction is invaluable for teams looking to improve their processes. Listeners will appreciate the honest reflection on what it takes to build a successful SaaS business in a rapidly changing environment.

Who Should Listen to MSMP 81: Jeroen Corthout on Building a SaaS?

• SaaS founders
• Product managers
• Remote team leaders
• Software developers

What Are Listeners Saying About This Episode?

SaaS is such a key part of the business world in general so it’s always great to go behind the scenes with someone who is actually in the trenches, building and managing a SaaS.  Jeroen Corthout, our guest for today’s episode of the Mads Singers Management Podcast, is building Salesflare, a B2B CRM servicing a few thousand companies.

While you might think of a SaaS as the company that would be most likely to be built by a distributed remote team, prior to March 2020 Salesflare was 100% in-person in Antwerp, Belgium.  Jeroen had believed that everyone “being in the same room” was always going to be the best-case scenario.  But what he noticed as the team was forced to go remote via governmental regulations and lockdowns, was that the “same room” philosophy was lazy.  “It meant we were relying on accidentally overhearing something.  There was no system in place.”  That system was put firmly in place as 2020 continued, down to how the team would keep track of decisions in meetings (Google Docs visible to all) and how they could see people’s reactions when they weren’t all in the same room (having everyone tiled during a team call so that everyone could be seen).

This intentionality in communication had long been a hallmark of how Salesflare dealt with customers.  Every developer periodically spends a week on the customer-facing side, to get a sense of what is going on there in terms of customer feedback and technical issues.  Jeroen noted that AI will play a role in software development in the future, but for now it’s up to him and his team to try to anticipate what the customer is thinking using processes like developers listening in on calls or watching chats.

SaaS businesses face several dueling pressures.  One is the question of profitability vs growth.  I was glad to see that Jeroen wasn’t chasing profitability at any cost: he was clearly aware of his niche and stated that at the beginning of the episode.  He also shared his desire to improve the hiring process as the company grows in the future.  The other dueling pressure he has to deal with every day is building vs communicating.  The development team has to build a great product and tries to extract from customers what they like, but more importantly, why they like it.  This communication with the customer is key, and Jeroen encourages this early on by not only adding every potential customer on LinkedIn, letting them know there’s an open door should they wish to talk but also by adding more “free trial” time as those new users complete more tasks within the CRM.  

If you, like me, find the SaaS trend fascinating, this episode will be a great chance for you to understand it more, from someone who is living it day-to-day.  Enjoy!

Key Learning Points:

1. Jeroen talks about the essence of what SaaS has to deliver to be competitive - 3:00

2. Jeroen shares the two main jobs of any successful software company - 4:10

3. Jeroen discusses systems he has in place to make sure his team understand how customers are thinking - 7:37

4. Jeroen notes the need to stay in touch with his team and with clients (and how he does both) - 8:14

5. Jeroen explains the process his team uses to improve the product - 9:40

6. Jeroen opines on the game-changing nature of his team going remote due to Covid - 14:54

7. Jeroen stresses the importance of morning standup meetings - 19:35

8. Jeroen ruminates on the push/pull tensions of growth and profitability - 25:50

Connect with Jeroen Corthout:

1. Salesflare
2. LinkedIn