The xCollective - by RocketX

A lot of B2B scale-ups are fixated on generating high volumes and expanding their customer base. Investors care about, revenues, right?  So let’s grow as big as possible, as fast as possible. But here's the catch: while they're busy driving up account numbers and customer reach, they often underinvest a crucial aspect – pricing. Pricing is often treated as an afterthought, missing out on the opportunity to unlock the true value they offer and capitalise on it today. Welcome back to another exciting edition of the xCollective! In this episode we had the privilege of hosting Dr. Ian Tidswell, the pricing expert from Ideal Price. We discussed the often overlooked potential of pricing as a growth lever for many businesses. When done well, pricing can make the difference between success and failure.

In the world of scale-ups, where growth and expansion are paramount, discussions about a company’s regulatory strategy may seem unusual. However, those who understand the potential impact of regulatory and political factors on their businesses know that thinking proactively about them can be a game-changer. In the first episode of Season 2 of the xCollective, we had the pleasure of speaking with Spencer Hawes, an industry veteran with extensive experience working at major companies like Uber. Join us as we explore how early-stage companies can leverage their regulatory strategy to expand internationally and drive success.

Tough times often breed innovation and creativity, as evidenced by the numerous companies founded during the COVID-19 pandemic that filled new market gaps. To just name one, Workwize, which has experienced explosive growth as remote work has become more prevalent.   In the latest edition of the xCollective, Beer Zandt sat down with Viktor Dik, the COO and co-founder of Workwize, to talk about their journey and how to drive talent engagement in a hybrid work environment. In the latest edition of the xCollective, Beer Zandt sat down with Viktor Dik, the COO and co-founder of Workwize, to talk about their journey and how to drive talent engagement in a hybrid work environment.

In this month's xCollective we’re discussing an exciting subject! Well, exciting for some, less for others. Nevertheless, a topic that occupies the minds of many founders. We’re going to talk about employee incentive plans and the different approaches you can take. Or the big five, as our guest Bas Jorissen, founding partner at Archipel Tax Advice, likes to call them. As a ‘tax guy’ Bas is a big fan of employee incentives schemes, and not only because the tax side of it is fascinating. He believes that these types of incentives help companies perform better. “Employee incentive schemes help with employee retention and motivation, and that’s not just my word. Research of the Harvard Business Review shows, companies perform a third better after implementing incentive plans perform than before.” Bas shares.

Did you know that increasing customer retention rates by 5% increases profits by 25% to 95%? In the 7th episode of the xCollective we’re going to talk about customer success, an often underutilized function within early stage growth companies. But paramount to sustainable growth, especially in times of economic uncertainty. Let’s introduce our guest Oksana Afonina, an expert in building and scaling customer success teams. Oksana has been in the tech industry for over 10 years, with experience in client-facing and leadership roles at Google, Facebook and AppLovin, she’s definitely not new to the industry. For the past two years, she leads Customer and Partner Success teams at HubSpot.

Another month, another xCollective. This time we’re going to discuss the topic of equity management with Floris van Hoogenhuyze, co-founder and CEO of WE.VESTR. They’re aiming to simplify equity management through its all-in one platform for start- and scaleups.

In this month's xCollective podcast Beer Zandt spoke to Nadine van der Wal, Head of Growth at Spotr. An AI-powered building inspection platform, that has grown from an innovative idea to an internationally backed company. Their growth journey is impressive, and with Account Based Marketing as their most important strategy a very structured journey as well.

Deel has one of the most extraordinary growth stories in this day and age. Growing remotely from zero to 1000 in a window of three years, it’s impressive to say the least. What are the consequences for hiring talent globally and how to benefit as a founder? In this episode, Beer Zandt talks to Dennis Valkema, country manager and expansion lead at Deel. As a specialist in hiring remote we’ve asked him everything there is to know about remote hiring, hybrid work and the great resignation.

Most startups and scaleups underestimate the value of an effective events strategy. This is likely because events are not measured in the same way as, for example, performance marketing is. However, in the post-COVID era, there’s a whole new set of opportunities businesses and their creative marketers can capitalise on within this field. RocketX Head of Revenue, Beer Zandt, talked to Patrick de Laive, founder of The Next Web about this topic in more detail and discussed the importance of integrating an events strategy into your marketing.

Raising Series A funding is arguably the most critical funding round for founders throughout their entire fundraising journey. A lot has changed in the fundraising landscape over the last 12-18 months. To find out how, we talked to Ilan Goudsmit, Investment Manager at Endeit Capital and one of the most renowned investors in the Netherlands, alongside René Janssen, Founder and Managing Director at Lepaya. The pair share some of the most valuable lessons they’ve learned in raising series A funding and beyond, in a bid to give founders some key insights in doing the same.