Russell Lester
CFO of Tropic and former Calendly CFO; focuses on capital allocation, spend management, and frameworks like spoilage, levers, leakages, and the center-of-table for aligning company resources.
Top 3 podcasts with Russell Lester
Ranked by the Snipd community
35 snips
Jun 5, 2025 • 60min
Wasted Capital and Where to Find It: The CFO’s Guide to Spoilage, Levers & Leakages
In this conversation with Russell Lester, CFO of Tropic, explore how finance leaders can uncover wasted capital and enhance growth strategies. Russell introduces concepts like "spoilage," where deployed capital fails to deliver value, and discusses how to identify "levers" that amplify efforts while tackling "leakages" that hinder progress. He shares insights on adopting effective spend management tools, aligns decision-making, and emphasizes the importance of daily data analysis for CFOs to thrive in today’s business environment.
13 snips
Jan 14, 2026 • 39min
Multi-Year Deals and the Illusion of Better Pricing | Russell Lester
Russell Lester, President and CFO of Tropic, brings valuable insights from his spend management expertise. He discusses why volume often trumps term lengths in negotiating multi-year discounts. AI's impact on evolving pricing models is highlighted, along with the risks of long contracts. Russell explains how buyers can defend against price increases and emphasizes the importance of using data for SaaS optimization. He also critiques the pitfalls of complex pricing choices and advocates for a buyer-first approach in negotiations.
Dec 25, 2025 • 57min
Capital Spoilage and Leakage: A CFO’s Guide to Finding What’s Lost | Mostly Classics
In this engaging conversation, Russell Lester, CFO of Tropic and former Calendly CFO, dives into the nuances of capital management. He introduces the concept of 'spoilage,' highlighting how wasted capital can hinder growth. Lester explains levers and leakages, emphasizing the CFO's role as a Chief Alignment Officer. He shares practical insights on identifying waste, aligning teams, and utilizing tools for efficient spend management. Discover how daily 'data safaris' can drive curiosity and smarter decisions that foster growth.
