From SMB to Enterprise: Building for Scale and Selling Upmarket
As startups scale, the shift from serving SMBs (small and mid-sized businesses) to winning enterprise customers becomes one of the most pivotal — and complex — transitions in their journey.
This session will explore how founders can successfully navigate that leap, with real-world lessons from someone who’s seen it all: Avanish Sahai, one of the most respected voices in the global SaaS and enterprise ecosystem.
About Avanish Sahai
Avanish Sahai is a seasoned SaaS and enterprise technology leader, investor, and board member with over 25 years of experience at the intersection of product, partnerships, and platform ecosystems.
He served on the Board of Directors at HubSpot for over 5.5 years, where he helped guide its transformation from a marketing automation tool for SMBs into a full-fledged enterprise platform. He currently serves on the boards of Birdie.ai, Flywl and Meta (a Brazilian tech and services company).
Previously, Avanish held senior leadership roles at Salesforce, ServiceNow, and Google Cloud, where he built and scaled global ISV and partner ecosystems. At Salesforce, he helped expand the AppExchange ecosystem — a major growth driver for the company. At ServiceNow, he led global technology alliances, and at Google Cloud, he was Vice President for the ISV and Apps Ecosystem.
He started his career as an engineer at Oracle, later joining McKinsey & Company as a Senior Engagement Manager before becoming a repeat founder, advisor, and board member.
Avanish also hosts The Platform Journey podcast, where he discusses platform strategy and ecosystem building with leaders across the SaaS world.
He holds degrees from Boston University (MS in Computer Engineering), UCLA Anderson (MBA), and University of São Paulo (BSEE).
Key Takeaways
How to evolve your GTM motion as you move upmarket
What changes across product, sales, and customer success when targeting enterprise clients
Common pitfalls founders face when transitioning from SMBs to enterprise customers
Q&A with Avanish Sahai
Who Should Attend
Founders and leaders from Elevation Capital’s portfolio companies
Early-stage SaaS and B2B startup founders looking to scale
GTM and product leaders driving upmarket expansion