2. Unveiling the Data Behind
Effective Scaling
Christine Edmonds
General Partner
& Head of Analytics
ICONIQ Growth
@Edmonds_C
Doug Pepper
General Partner
ICONIQ Growth
@dougpepper
4. 4
Methodology
Our analyses leverage quarterly
operating and financial data from
92 enterprise SaaS companies.
Most companies included
represent ICONIQ Growth
investments, and other public
companies were selected based
on IPO performance.
We also conducted a survey of
~38 CEOs, CFOs and CROs from
ICONIQ Growth companies and
other private SaaS companies in
November 2022 regarding cost
management strategies and go-
to-market impact.
Notes: As of August 2022; Trademarks are the property of their respective owners. None of the companies illustrated have endorsed or recommended the services of ICONIQ; Select ICONIQ Growth companies included in the analysis are not shown
here due to privacy of investment. See a full list of portfolio companies here. For more information on methodology please refer to our 2022 Topline Growth & Operational Efficiency report
Sources: Financial and operating data from select ICONIQ Growth enterprise SaaS investments and public data from certain SaaS IPOs that occurred during 2H 2013 –2021 via Factset and quarterly earnings. Survey of 38 CEOs, CFO,s and CROs from
ICONIQ Growth companies and other private SaaS companies in November 2022 regarding cost management strategies and go-to-market impact
ICONIQ Growth Portfolio Companies
Select Public Companies
Private Public or Acquired
5. 5
The ICONIQ Growth
Enterprise Five
1
2
3
4
5
ARR Growth
Net $ Retention
Rule of 40
Net Magic Number
ARR per FTE
TOPLINE
GROWTH
OPERATIONAL
EFFICIENCY
How quickly and consistently is ARR growing and
what are the drivers of new ARR?
How well is ARR being retained and how is the
quality and size of customers changing?
What is the burn associated with this growth
and the path to profitability?
What is the composition of spend and how
efficiently is it being used?
How efficiently is the team scaling to support
and further drive growth?
Through our research on top-line growth and efficiency we’ve identified five key metrics we
believe are strong indicators of a company’s overall health and long-term success
7. 7
2022 was challenging for companies with general decline in year-to-date topline attainment
as the year progressed; 86% companies analyzed missed original incremental topline plan
Sources: Financial and operating data as of Feb 2023 from select ICONIQ Growth enterprise SaaS investments and public data from certain SaaS IPOs that occurred during 2H
2013 –2021 via Factset and quarterly earnings
Attainment defined as actuals as %
of annual plan of net incremental
cumulative bookings
All By Sector
75-100%+ FY22 Attainment
100%+ FY22 Attainment
<75%+ FY22 Attainment
By 2022 ARR or Revenue Range
2022 Performance
Attainment of 2022 Plan
67%
60%
69% 69%
85%
64% 64%
57%
19%
13%
20% 23%
8%
23%
14% 29%
14%
27%
11% 8% 8%
14%
21%
14%
All Vertical SaaS Horizontal SaaS Consumer &
Fintech
Less than $25M $25-150M $150-250M $250M+
8. 8
2022 Attainment: Topline vs Bottomline
Beat topline plan
with more burn than
anticipated
Beat topline plan
with less burn than
anticipated
Missed topline
with more burn than
anticipated
Missed topline
with less burn than
anticipated
Scale (2022 ARR or Revenue)
Topline Attainment
Bottomline
Attainment
Sources: Financial and operating data as of Feb 2023 from select ICONIQ Growth enterprise SaaS investments and public data from certain SaaS IPOs that occurred during 2H
2013 –2021 via Factset and quarterly earnings
Over 80% of companies
analyzed missed the
original incremental
topline plan for 2022
However, most managed
to optimize efficiency and
extend runway by
burning less than
originally planned (64%
of companies analyzed)
0%
50%
100%
150%
200%
0% 50% 100% 150% 200%
10. 10
Notes: Information provided accurate as of August 2022. Implied FCF based on median burn multiple and net new ARR
Source: Quarterly operating and financial data from the companies included in Topline Growth & Operational Efficiency report, dated September 2022
In today’s environment, companies need to keep a close eye on their burn multiple and
manage towards ~2018-19 era benchmarks
1.6x
0.9x
0.6x
0.4x
2.1x
1.3x 1.3x
0.8x
Less than $25M $25-100M $100-200M $200M+
$5M $23M $53M $96M
($11M) ($30M) ($66M) ($77M)
$5M $26M $47M $83M
($8M) ($23M) ($28M) ($33M)
Net New ARR
FCF1
Net New ARR
FCF1
2020-22
2018-19
Burn Multiple: FCF / Net New ARR
Non-profitable companies, Median
2020-22
2018-19 2020-22
2018-19 2020-22
2018-19 2020-22
2018-19
11. 11
Companies who have been able to beat bottomline plan have taken a variety of strategic
actions, often in tandem, to reduce burn and extend runway including but not limited to
Most Common Less Common
Sources: Financial and operating data as of Feb 2023 from select ICONIQ Growth enterprise SaaS investments and public data from certain SaaS IPOs that occurred during 2H 2013 –2021 via
Factset and quarterly earnings
SPEND
REDUCTIONS
HIRING
SLOWDOWN /
FREEZE
CHANGES TO GTM
STRATEGY
REDUCTIONS IN
FORCE (RIF)
LEVERAGE
OFFSHORE
RESOURCES
FORECASTING
RIGOR AND BEAT
& RAISE MOTION
12. According to our survey, strategies related to headcount management in addition to software
spend remain the most common levers to pull, given the immediate and significant impact to
spend
12
Cost Management Strategies:
% of Companies Implementing
16%
1% 50%
10%
2% 25%
14%
5% 35%
Percent of workforce laid-off:
Percent of workforce outsourced:
Percent decrease in software spend:
10%
-17% 84%
Min Max
Average
Expected 2023 YoY growth in headcount:
Degree of Impact
Source: Survey of 38 CEOs, CFO,s and CROs from ICONIQ Growth companies and other private SaaS companies in November 2022 regarding cost management strategies
and go-to-market impact
80%
59%
56%
28%
Hiring slows
Software cuts
RIFs
Outsoucing
13. 13
Sources: Financial and operating data as of Feb 2023 from select ICONIQ Growth enterprise SaaS investments and public data from certain SaaS IPOs that occurred during 2H 2013 –2021 via
Factset and quarterly earnings
10% 18%
43%
56%
100%
90%
82%
57%
44%
Q1 '22 Q2 '22 Q3 '22 Q4 '22 Q1 '23
Over 50% of companies
that implemented RIFs were
significantly below the Rule
of 40 and/or had less than
2 years of runway.
However, many others also
implemented RIFs to ensure
active performance
management despite
strong cash positions.
56% of companies analyzed have implemented a reduction in force (RIF) to date in order to
right-size their organization, with the majority of RIFs happening in the last 6 months, and many
still ongoing
% of Companies that Implemented RIFs by Quarter
% of companies by quarter, Cumulative, in period beginning Q1 ‘22
Implemented
RIF
Did not
implement RIF
14. In response to softer demand and decreasing GTM health, many companies also adjusted
their GTM strategies, such as making hiring changes, pricing adjustments, and changes to
sales compensation plans
14
75%
8%
4%
13%
1. GTM Hiring
Slows
Already have
Likely will
Considered but
likely won’t
Not considered
% of Companies Implementing GTM Strategies vs. Plan in 2022
% of respondents
Already have
+ likely will
3. AE Comp
Changes
25%
33%
13%
29%
5. SDR Comp
Changes
8%
25%
17%
50%
25%
17%
4%
54%
4. Adjust Contract
Terms
54%
8%
17%
21%
2. Adjust
Pricing
83% 62% 58% 33%
42%
Source: Survey of 38 CEOs, CFO,s and CROs from ICONIQ Growth companies and other private SaaS companies in November 2022 regarding cost management strategies
and go-to-market impact
15. Expected Cash Runway in Months, End of 2022
All Median by 2022 ARR Range
2022 End of Year Runway
2022 Beginning of Year Runway
What was the impact of these
changes?
Companies expected to have a
median of 27 months runway at
the beginning of 2022. By the
end of 2022, median runway
was 28 months.
Cost cutting actions and
strategic fundraising may have
contributed to an added median
of 13 months to the companies’
runways.
Sources: Financial and operating data as of Feb 2023 from select ICONIQ Growth enterprise SaaS investments and public data
from certain SaaS IPOs that occurred during 2H 2013 –2021 via Factset and quarterly earnings
27
21
26
31
28
28
22
33
36
28
Median Less than $25M $25-150M $150-250M $250M+
17. 56%
67%
-39%
38%
51%
-31%
35%
13%
-18%
Topline YoY OpEx YoY Bottomline %
As we look to 2023, median topline growth is expected to be roughly in line with 2022
growth; however, there is a significant pivot to efficient growth with a projected
improvement in margins.
17
2023 Plan vs Historical Actuals
Notes: (1) Reflects ARR or revenue where available, or CARR, bookings otherwise used as proxy; (2) Reflects operating margin, EBIT, or EBITDA where available
Sources: Financial and operating data as of Feb 2023 from select ICONIQ Growth enterprise SaaS investments and public data from certain SaaS IPOs that occurred during 2H 2013 –2021 via Factset
and quarterly earnings
Topline Growth1 YoY Growth in OpEx Operating or EBITDA Margin2
2021A
127% 66% 61% 108% 70% 26% 6% 1% 1%
Top Quartile
Median 2022 YoY
plan was 56%
2022A 2023P 2021A 2022A 2023P 2021A 2022A 2023P
18. Headcount is also expected to remain relatively stable in 2023, varying based on company
scale or sector. In general, companies that executed RIFs in 2022 do not expect to increase
headcount or re-hire cut roles in 2023.
18
2023 Plan: Median YoY Change in Headcount
Sources: Financial and operating data as of Feb 2023 from select ICONIQ Growth enterprise SaaS investments and public data from certain SaaS IPOs that occurred during 2H 2013 –2021 via Factset
and quarterly earnings
10%
17%
2%
0%
11% 10%
0%
18%
All Less than
$25M
$25-50M $50-100M $100-200M $200M+ Implemented
RIF in 2022
Did not
implement
RIF
Median 2022 YoY
growth was 49%
19. 19
How companies compensate their workforce is also evolving: bonuses will increasingly be tied
to business efficiency
Type of Bonus Program
% of respondents
No bonus
program
Non-metrics-
based bonus
Metrics-based
bonus
Company Metrics Tied to Bonus Program
% of respondents, 2022 actual vs. 2023 expected
53%
29%
24%
29%
0% 0% 0%
6%
0%
47%
18% 18%
24%
6%
18%
12%
18%
ARR or
Revenue
Growth
New ARR or
Revenue
Bookings ARR or
Revenue
Retention
Customer or
Logo
Retention
EBITDA Cash Burn FCF Oper
Inco
TOPLINE GROWTH OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCY
2022
2023 Expected
47%
13%
39%
Source: Survey of 38 CEOs, CFO,s and CROs from ICONIQ Growth companies and other private SaaS companies in November 2022 regarding cost management strategies
and go-to-market impact
20. Operational
Efficiency
Topline Growth
Higher Efficiency
MediumEfficiency
Runway > 3 years
Above Rule of 40
Runway of 1.5 – 3 years
Below Rule of 40
Lower Efficiency
Less than 1.5 years
runway
Below Rule of 40
Higher Growth
MediumGrowth
Greater than 100%
attainment
YoY Growth > 70%
75-100% attainment
YoY Growth 30 – 70%
Lower Growth
Less than 75%
attainment
YoY Growth < 30%
“
Organizational Rightsizing
• Slow down or freeze hiring
• Implement performance management
• Incentivize increased business
efficiency
• Negotiate high-expense contracts
• Consider a Reduction in Force (RIF) to
optimize organizational efficiency
Active Cost
Management
• Look for opportunities to
reduce spend – first
discretionary expenses (travel,
entertainment, meals,
contractors, tooling) then non-
discretionary
• Slow down or freeze hiring
• Incentivize increased business
efficiency
“While this is a challenging time, this is also the most
depersonalized opportunity to let go of “good” talent
while retaining “great” talent” – F500 Engineering
Leader
While efficient growth is high-priority, balancing the two in a way that aligns to the realities of
performance will be key as companies continue to scale this upcoming year
Accelerate Differentiation
• Focus on GTM engine to accelerate growth,
retain key accounts, and secure competitive
advantage
• Take advantage of unique recruiting pool
resulting from RIFs across the industry to
secure key talent
Scale Strategically
• Finetune ICP and
product strategy to
focus on strategic
areas
• Continue to main path
of efficiency while
slowing increasing
investment into GTM
engine
21. 21
Additional Insights and Studies from ICONIQ Growth
Find this content and more at iconiqgrowth.com/insights
Topline Growth & Operational Efficiency
2022 Refresh
Future of Work Series
Latest coming soon!
Go-to-Market Series
The Path to IPO
Series
Engineering
Efficiency
23. 23
THE ICONIQ GROWTH
Enterprise Five
$1-$10M $10-$25M $25-$50M $50-$100M $100-$200M
$200Mto
IPO
Post-IPO4
YoY ARR Growth
(EOP ARR – prior year EOP ARR) /prior year EOP ARR
430% 170% 135% 105% 80% 75% 60%
Net $ Retention
(BOP ARR + expansion ARR - gross churn ARR) / BOP ARR
130% 130% 125% 130% 125% 130% 130%
Rule of 40
YoY ARR growth + FCF margin2
Less Relevant Less Relevant 95% 75% 70% 70% 65%
Net Magic Number
Current Q net new ARR / prior Q S&M OpEx3
2.3x 1.5x 1.5x 1.5x 1.2x 1.1x 1.0x
ARR per FTE
EOP ARR / EOP FTEs
$100K $165K $195K $220K $265K $285K $335K
ICONIQ Growth standards across five key metrics we believe are highly
representative of a B2B SaaS company’s overall growth and efficiency:
1
2
3
4
5
Top Quartile Performance by ARR Scale1
1 Quarterly operating and financial data from the companies included in Topline Growth & Operational Efficiency report, dated September 2022
2 Alternative Rule of 40 calculations include YoY Revenue Growth and EBITDA Margin
3 Quarter of S&M OpEx utilized in magic number calculations should depend your company’s sales cycle
4 Within 2 fiscal years after IPO
24. 24
Notes: Information provided accurate as of August 2022
Source: Quarterly operating and financial data from the companies included in Topline Growth & Operational Efficiency report, dated September 2022
We have consistently seen
companies with top-quartile
growth double ARR in each of
the first 2-3 years as they
scale from the $10M ARR
threshold.
After $100M, top performers
maintain meaningful double-
digit growth.
Net New and Ending ARR from $10M, in Years
Net New ARR
Ending ARR
~2.5x
~2.2x
~1.8x
~1.5x
~1.5x
Pre-IPO
YoY Growth
Top Quartile
$16M $30M $44M $54M
$76M
$101M
$10M $26M
$56M
$100M
$154M
$230M
0 1 2 3 4 5
25. 25
Notes: Information provided accurate as of August 2022
Source: Quarterly operating and financial data from the companies included in Topline Growth & Operational Efficiency report, dated September 2022
As healthy enterprise
companies scale, they
can increasingly rely
on existing logos to
generate new ARR
opportunities through
upsell or expansion.
Downsell / logo churn
mix stays relatively
consistent as
companies scale.
Gross New ARR
Distribution
Gross Churn
Distribution
70% 65%
54% 51%
30% 35%
46% 49%
<$25M $25-$50M $50-$100M $100M to IPO
Expansion
New Logo
Average
59% 63% 56% 56%
41% 37% 44% 44%
<$25M $25-$50M $50-$100M $100M to IPO
Downsell
Logo
Churn
26. 26
Notes: Information provided accurate as of August 2022
Source: Quarterly operating and financial data from the companies included in Topline Growth & Operational Efficiency report, dated September 2022
We consistently see
companies with top-
quartile NDR achieving
120%+ even at scale.
These companies have
exceptional NDR from
very early stages,
underlying the importance
of growing the existing
customer base at any
stage.
Gross and Net Dollar Retention, Years after $10M
98% 95% 94% 94% 93% 96%
128% 130%
124% 126%
120% 123%
0 1 2 3 4 5
Net Dollar
Retention
Gross Dollar
Retention
Top Quartile
27. 27
Notes: Information provided accurate as of August 2022
Source: Quarterly operating and financial data from the companies included in Topline Growth & Operational Efficiency report, dated September 2022
Productivity and
efficiency are not
mutually exclusive –
we have seen multiple
examples of
companies that have
meaningfully
increased FTE
productivity while
maintaining FTE
efficiency.
ARR and Annualized OpEx per FTE, Years after $10M
$97K
$128K
$163K
$177K
$199K
$230K
$207K
$215K
$192K $196K
$198K $205K
0 1 2 3 4 5
Annualized
OpEx per FTE
ARR per FTE
~$100M ARR
Median
28. 28
Notes: Information provided accurate as of August 2022
Source: Quarterly operating and financial data from the companies included in Topline Growth & Operational Efficiency report, dated September 2022
0 1 2 3 4 5
237%
175%
146%
119%
103% 94%
Over time, revenue should outpace operational spend.
R&D tends to make up an
increasingly smaller
proportion of overall spend
as leverage is achieved
while S&M increases in
share as companies scale
and fuel their GTM engine.
G&A
R&D
S&M
OpEx as a % of Revenue by Function, Years after $10M
Average
29. 29
Roles impacted by Hiring Slows by Function1
Of companies that have or likely will slow hiring vs. budget; % of respondents
Impacted
by Hiring
Slows
Not
impacted
Implementing Hiring Slows
in 20221
% of respondents
Already have
Likely will
Considered but
likely won’t
Not Considered
72%
53% 50% 47%
28%
47% 50% 53%
Marketing Sales Customer
Support
Customer
Success
S&M
72%
56% 53%
31%
28%
44% 47%
69%
Software
Engineering
Design Product Data Science
/ Machine
Learning
R&D
75%
63%
53%
47%
25%
38%
47%
53%
HR /
Recruiting
Finance IT Legal
G&A
77%
3%
3%
~80% of companies participating in the survey reported slowing headcount growth versus plan
in 2022, implementing hiring slows and/or freezes across all teams. Roles most impacted by
hiring slows include Software Engineering, Marketing, HR / Recruiting, and Finance.
Source: Survey of 38 CEOs, CFO,s and CROs from ICONIQ Growth companies and other private SaaS companies in November 2022 regarding cost management strategies
and go-to-market impact
30. 30
2023 budgets will further scrutinize discretionary spend relative to past years
How do you expect your 2023 people-spend budget to change relative to 2022?1
% of respondents
DECREASE
SIGNIFICANTLY
DECREASE
SLIGHTLY
STAY THE SAME INCREASE
SLIGHTLY
INCREASE
SIGNIFICANTLY
3%
3%
3%
6%
6%
9%
3%
6%
6%
26%
26%
26%
37%
54%
37%
40%
34%
14%
17%
23%
3%
3%
3%
14%
Variable pay
Cash salaries
Benefits
Travel
Entertainment & meals
Contractors
Source: Survey of 38 CEOs, CFO,s and CROs from ICONIQ Growth companies and other private SaaS companies in November 2022 regarding cost management strategies
and go-to-market impact
31. 31
Companies that missed 2022 topline plan also saw larger-scale declines in GTM health, with an
11% increase in sales cycles, 13% decrease in net retention, and 21% decrease in quota
attainment for the year.
Degree of impact to GTM KPIs by 2022 topline attainment cohort1
% change from 2021 to 2022; as of 2H 2022
Missed 2022 Topline Plan2
HEALTHIER
LESS HEALTHY
Hit or Exceeded 2022 Topline Plan
Leading
Indicators
Lagging
Indicators
Inbound as a % of pipeline
Sales Cycle
Weeks
% Gross New ARR from New Logos
Gross ARR Retention
Logo Retention
Win Rate
Net ARR Retention
Deal Size / ACV
AE Quota Attainment 4%
4%
0%
2%
17%
7%
-7%
0%
5%
Notes: (1) Topline attainment reflects incremental net new ARR vs plan; forecasted attainment as of November 2022
Source: Survey of 38 CEOs, CFO,s and CROs from ICONIQ Growth companies and other private SaaS companies in November 2022 regarding cost management strategies
and go-to-market impact
-21%
-13%
3%
-4%
12%
24%
-3%
11%
0%
Attainment by year
2021: 92%
2020: 81%
2019: 95-100%
% companies that missed plan each quarter:
Q1 = 53%
Q2 = 68%
Q3 = 81%
Q4 = 86%
Median cumulative topline attainment landed at 62% as of fiscal year end 2022 (compared to 69% in Q3). Whereas companies regained momentum in Q4 2020 as the macro environment rebounded quickly with stimulus, most companies seemed to struggle to make inroads in 2H this past year.
Median attainment of topline base (% of ending topline) landed at 86% compared to 99% in 2021.
Top Gray: 56%
Green: 10%
Orange: 27%
Bottom Gray: 7%
Based on FYE 2022 results, most (56%) companies landed in the top-left quadrant, missing topline plan with less burn than anticipated. Notably, only 10% of companies were able to beat both original topline and bottomline plans. These include companies who saw strong tailwinds from cybersecurity / infrastructure as well as others who have implemented exceptional forecasting rigor and a consistent beat-and-raise motion.
Median runway stayed level around ~30 months for most companies each quarter in 2022, with many focused on finding additional ways to cut down spend to maintain runway going into 2023. Based on preliminary budgets for 2023, companies expect to have median runway of 2 years at the end of 2023.
More so than prior years, companies are backloading incremental topline into the latter half while frontloading burn into the first half of 2023, suggesting that many companies are looking at 2023 as the year to achieve or get closer to profitability
Median for companies who implemented RIFs in 2022 as actually 0% YoY compared to 15% for those who didn’t implement a RIF
Companies with metrics-based bonuses typically include 2-3 formal metrics in their program, often balancing both top- and bottom-line incentives.
Select Finance leaders also reported Gross Margin and CAC Payback will be included in their company’s 2023 bonus plans.