Being Product-Centric Changes Dynamics

1min Snip

00:00

Play full episode

Summary

Transcript

Episode notes

Having a product can create a barrier in conversations as people are less open to sales interactions. When focusing on discussing problems from the customer's perspective, people are more receptive. Before having a product, conversations were open, but when pitching a product, interactions became more difficult. Transitioning from alpha to beta versions brought insights on selection bias in feedback recipients.

Olivier Pomel built Datadog into a $40B company while burning only $25M in capital. In our conversation, he shares the fundraising lessons, operating principles, and core insights that made this possible. He also discusses the pros and cons of building a tech company in NYC, how early-career professionals should approach learning AI tools, how Datadog is building a trusted relationship with their users around AI features, and much more

(00:00) Intro

(01:30) Datadog's Early Challenges and Lessons

(04:32) The Core Insight Behind Datadog

(05:20) Building the Right Product

(07:46) Transitioning to Open Beta

(09:38) Expanding Datadog's Product Line

(11:26) Platform Vision and Modular Products

(18:12) Empowering Product Teams

(22:14) Acquisitions and Integration Strategy

(33:18) Customer-Centric Approach

(36:39) Bottom-Up Sales Strategy

(46:04) Navigating Founder Challenges

(46:37) Building a Collaborative Management Team

(48:32) Staying Close to Customers

(51:36) Maintaining a Culture of Discipline and Efficiency

(56:26) Pricing Strategy and Market Positioning

(01:01:24) Fostering a Low-Ego, High-Performance Culture

(01:06:32) Hiring and Promoting for Long-Term Success

(01:12:21) Fundraising and Investor Relations

(01:16:03) Deciding Whether to Sell or Scale

(01:18:26) The Impact of AI on Software Development

(01:23:24) Choosing New York Over Silicon Valley

(01:28:04) Final Thoughts and Reflections

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

🎙 Listen to the show

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-logan-bartlett-show/id1606770839

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5WqBqDb4br3LlyVrdqOYYb?si=3076e6c1b5c94d63&nd=1

Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5zaW1wbGVjYXN0LmNvbS9zb0hJZkhWbg

🎥 Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCugS0jD5IAdoqzjaNYzns7w?sub_confirmation=1

Follow on Socials

📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/theloganbartlettshow

🐦 Twitter - https://twitter.com/loganbartshow

🎬 Clips on TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@theloganbartlettshow

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, Logan goes behind the scenes with world-class entrepreneurs and investors. If you're interested in the real inside baseball of tech, entrepreneurship, and start-up investing, tune in every Friday for new episodes.