Rod Drury: From Xero to $2.1 Billion

In our 100th episode of Startup Theatre, we went live in Queenstown for a milestone fireside chat with Rod Drury, founder of Xero.

Rod unpacks the behind-the-scenes reality of building a global SaaS company from Wellington: why they IPO’d early, what raising capital actually takes, and how to build teams that can scale without losing pace.

We also get into founder PR, working on the business vs in it, what “A-players” really are, and why culture (and proximity) still matters.

Then Rod goes beyond Xero and talks about New Zealand’s next chapter: digital identity, open banking, “sovereign” infrastructure, and the practical risks of global platforms extracting value from tourism and payments. If you care about startups, high performance, or the future of NZ tech, this one is essential listening.

Topics include:

• Early-stage IPOs, capital strategy, and “raise when you don’t need it”

• Building founder-led urgency and accelerating decision-making

• Hiring A-players and the real cost of compromise

• Founder comms, media strategy, and long-term relationship building

• NZ innovation: digital identity, tourism platforms, and procurement

• AI’s impact on jobs and the “no new hires” mindset

Startup Theatre is produced by Empire Films, and this episode was proudly supported by PwC.