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Jul 1, 2022 · 16m · top-founders

This is how I want to live. Buy 1/8th of a house, stay for 44 nights. Founder Raises $17.4m, $2m+ in revenue already.

Yanni Karkanen · 7m spoken Nathan Latka · 6m spoken
0:00 / 0:00

gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions

In this episode of Conversations with Nathan Latka, OneIO founder and former rock musician Yanni Karkanen details how his company scaled its managed enterprise integration platform to $3.6 million ARR and secured a $7 million Series A round. Yanni shares operational strategies for zero-churn enterprise retention, collaborative sales team incentives, and the creative parallels between touring with a major rock band and leading a global SaaS business.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Nathan holds 46.9% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 4.0 Guest teaching 2.2 Guest disagreement 0.7 Nathan pushing back 2.0
05100:0010:000:46–3:32 · Nathan as informed peer 3/10 Introducing Yanni Karkanen and OneIO's Value Proposition Nathan asks Yanni to define what an integration service provider is and clarifies whether it entails pure SaaS or software plus professional services. Yanni explains their hybrid model and offers an enterprise customer example with Bayer.3:33–7:07 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Revenue Metrics, Customer Count, and Pricing Expansion Nathan leverages historical data from previous interviews to test current ACV, customer count, and total monthly recurring revenue. Yanni shares updated numbers, clarifying that revenue is hovering near $300k monthly.7:10–9:16 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Founderpath Valuation Tool and SaaS Multiples Promotion Following the mid-roll ad read, Nathan estimates the Series A valuation at $55M to $60M based on standard 10% dilution. Yanni corrects him, stating the post-money valuation was actually around $30M.9:17–12:08 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Engineering Team Allocation and Collaborative Sales Incentives Nathan digs into headcount breakdown, sales quota structures, and rising customer acquisition costs. Yanni notes that sales incentives are shared company-wide and jokes about infinite LTV due to near-zero churn.12:09–14:19 · Nathan as informed peer 2/10 Rock Music Career and Core Parallels Between Bands and Startups Nathan pivots to Yanni's background playing guitar in Sunrise Avenue before large arena audiences. Yanni highlights the creative and commercial parallels between launching a band and building a tech startup.14:21–16:23 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Questions Nathan runs through the Famous Five questions and concludes with a comprehensive recap of OneIO's metrics, team size, and funding journey.0:46–3:32 · Guest teaching 2/10 Introducing Yanni Karkanen and OneIO's Value Proposition Nathan asks Yanni to define what an integration service provider is and clarifies whether it entails pure SaaS or software plus professional services. Yanni explains their hybrid model and offers an enterprise customer example with Bayer.3:33–7:07 · Guest teaching 2/10 Revenue Metrics, Customer Count, and Pricing Expansion Nathan leverages historical data from previous interviews to test current ACV, customer count, and total monthly recurring revenue. Yanni shares updated numbers, clarifying that revenue is hovering near $300k monthly.7:10–9:16 · Guest teaching 4/10 Founderpath Valuation Tool and SaaS Multiples Promotion Following the mid-roll ad read, Nathan estimates the Series A valuation at $55M to $60M based on standard 10% dilution. Yanni corrects him, stating the post-money valuation was actually around $30M.9:17–12:08 · Guest teaching 3/10 Engineering Team Allocation and Collaborative Sales Incentives Nathan digs into headcount breakdown, sales quota structures, and rising customer acquisition costs. Yanni notes that sales incentives are shared company-wide and jokes about infinite LTV due to near-zero churn.12:09–14:19 · Guest teaching 1/10 Rock Music Career and Core Parallels Between Bands and Startups Nathan pivots to Yanni's background playing guitar in Sunrise Avenue before large arena audiences. Yanni highlights the creative and commercial parallels between launching a band and building a tech startup.14:21–16:23 · Guest teaching 1/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Questions Nathan runs through the Famous Five questions and concludes with a comprehensive recap of OneIO's metrics, team size, and funding journey.0:46–3:32 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Introducing Yanni Karkanen and OneIO's Value Proposition Nathan asks Yanni to define what an integration service provider is and clarifies whether it entails pure SaaS or software plus professional services. Yanni explains their hybrid model and offers an enterprise customer example with Bayer.3:33–7:07 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Revenue Metrics, Customer Count, and Pricing Expansion Nathan leverages historical data from previous interviews to test current ACV, customer count, and total monthly recurring revenue. Yanni shares updated numbers, clarifying that revenue is hovering near $300k monthly.7:10–9:16 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Founderpath Valuation Tool and SaaS Multiples Promotion Following the mid-roll ad read, Nathan estimates the Series A valuation at $55M to $60M based on standard 10% dilution. Yanni corrects him, stating the post-money valuation was actually around $30M.9:17–12:08 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Engineering Team Allocation and Collaborative Sales Incentives Nathan digs into headcount breakdown, sales quota structures, and rising customer acquisition costs. Yanni notes that sales incentives are shared company-wide and jokes about infinite LTV due to near-zero churn.12:09–14:19 · Guest disagreement 0/10 Rock Music Career and Core Parallels Between Bands and Startups Nathan pivots to Yanni's background playing guitar in Sunrise Avenue before large arena audiences. Yanni highlights the creative and commercial parallels between launching a band and building a tech startup.14:21–16:23 · Guest disagreement 0/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Questions Nathan runs through the Famous Five questions and concludes with a comprehensive recap of OneIO's metrics, team size, and funding journey.0:46–3:32 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Introducing Yanni Karkanen and OneIO's Value Proposition Nathan asks Yanni to define what an integration service provider is and clarifies whether it entails pure SaaS or software plus professional services. Yanni explains their hybrid model and offers an enterprise customer example with Bayer.3:33–7:07 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Revenue Metrics, Customer Count, and Pricing Expansion Nathan leverages historical data from previous interviews to test current ACV, customer count, and total monthly recurring revenue. Yanni shares updated numbers, clarifying that revenue is hovering near $300k monthly.7:10–9:16 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Founderpath Valuation Tool and SaaS Multiples Promotion Following the mid-roll ad read, Nathan estimates the Series A valuation at $55M to $60M based on standard 10% dilution. Yanni corrects him, stating the post-money valuation was actually around $30M.9:17–12:08 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Engineering Team Allocation and Collaborative Sales Incentives Nathan digs into headcount breakdown, sales quota structures, and rising customer acquisition costs. Yanni notes that sales incentives are shared company-wide and jokes about infinite LTV due to near-zero churn.12:09–14:19 · Nathan pushing back 1/10 Rock Music Career and Core Parallels Between Bands and Startups Nathan pivots to Yanni's background playing guitar in Sunrise Avenue before large arena audiences. Yanni highlights the creative and commercial parallels between launching a band and building a tech startup.14:21–16:23 · Nathan pushing back 1/10 The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Questions Nathan runs through the Famous Five questions and concludes with a comprehensive recap of OneIO's metrics, team size, and funding journey.

speaking balance: gold is Nathan, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)

0:00 · Nathan 48.6% · guest 51.4%0:00 · Nathan 48.6% · guest 51.4%3:00 · Nathan 41.1% · guest 58.9%3:00 · Nathan 41.1% · guest 58.9%6:00 · Nathan 56.7% · guest 43.3%6:00 · Nathan 56.7% · guest 43.3%9:00 · Nathan 32.8% · guest 67.2%9:00 · Nathan 32.8% · guest 67.2%12:00 · Nathan 40.2% · guest 59.8%12:00 · Nathan 40.2% · guest 59.8%15:00 · Nathan 80.5% · guest 19.5%15:00 · Nathan 80.5% · guest 19.5%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 11:17 Infinite LTV reframe

Yanni playfully reframes Nathan's metric inquiry by pointing out that calculating LTV with zero churn technically requires dividing by zero.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 4:05 Insisting on average customer pricing

When Yanni gives a vague answer about price expansion without a ceiling, Nathan presses him to give a specific monthly average figure.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 8:11 Valuation reality check

Nathan assumes a standard Series A dilution math leading to a $55M-$60M valuation, but Yanni clarifies that the actual valuation was $25M-$30M post-money.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 4:56 Real-time revenue calculation

Nathan instantly multiplies the customer count by average contract value to pinpoint the monthly run rate at roughly $320,000.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Introducing Yanni Karkanen and OneIO's Value Proposition 3212 Nathan asks Yanni to define what an integration service provider is and clarifies whether it entails pure SaaS or software plus professional services. Yanni explains their hybrid model and offers an enterprise customer example with Bayer.
Revenue Metrics, Customer Count, and Pricing Expansion 6213 Nathan leverages historical data from previous interviews to test current ACV, customer count, and total monthly recurring revenue. Yanni shares updated numbers, clarifying that revenue is hovering near $300k monthly.
Founderpath Valuation Tool and SaaS Multiples Promotion 4412 Following the mid-roll ad read, Nathan estimates the Series A valuation at $55M to $60M based on standard 10% dilution. Yanni corrects him, stating the post-money valuation was actually around $30M.
Engineering Team Allocation and Collaborative Sales Incentives 5313 Nathan digs into headcount breakdown, sales quota structures, and rising customer acquisition costs. Yanni notes that sales incentives are shared company-wide and jokes about infinite LTV due to near-zero churn.
Rock Music Career and Core Parallels Between Bands and Startups 2101 Nathan pivots to Yanni's background playing guitar in Sunrise Avenue before large arena audiences. Yanni highlights the creative and commercial parallels between launching a band and building a tech startup.
The Famous Five Rapid-Fire Questions 4101 Nathan runs through the Famous Five questions and concludes with a comprehensive recap of OneIO's metrics, team size, and funding journey.

Statements from this episode (9)

Disclosure
Karkanen: OneIO client Bayer runs a €1B IT outsourcing contract
“For example, we have a good reference case buyer is a big pharmaceutical company. They have this like the most biggest outsourcing bid there has been in Europe. I think maybe globally, but it's a one billion dollars or euros is outsourcing. So they need to ope…”
Yanni Karkanen Jul 1, 2022 ▶ 3:07
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Karkanen: Average OneIO customer pays $3,000 to $4,000 per month
“I think it's like a, between the three or four.”
Yanni Karkanen Jul 1, 2022 ▶ 4:11
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Karkanen: OneIO currently serves between 80 and 100 enterprise customers
“I think we're like short of a hundred. So 80 to a hundred.”
Yanni Karkanen Jul 1, 2022 ▶ 4:25
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Karkanen: OneIO generates nearly $300,000 in monthly recurring revenue
“I think it's quite close to 300.”
Yanni Karkanen Jul 1, 2022 ▶ 5:05
Disclosure
Karkanen: OneIO raised a $1M seed and a $7M round in 2022
“We had like a minor seed funding for about one million. It was 2019, 2018. And this year we raised our first round of seven million.”
Yanni Karkanen Jul 1, 2022 ▶ 5:24
Disclosure
Karkanen: OneIO uses joint team bonuses rather than individual quotas
“And I think when it comes to these sort of quotas and then things to measure this kind of sales, I think in, in our case, particularly it is a team effort. We don't really, we feel that it's kind of like a weird or our bonus mechanisms are more kind of like jo…”
Yanni Karkanen Jul 1, 2022 ▶ 10:22
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Karkanen: Near-zero churn makes OneIO's LTV impossible to calculate
“LTV is quite, quite extensive since we don't have really sure. So, so the calculation would, if you need to divide by zero, it's a bit of a tricky.”
Yanni Karkanen Jul 1, 2022 ▶ 11:19
Disclosure
Karkanen plans to rejoin rock band Sunrise Avenue on farewell tour
“Sunrise Avenue is having a farewell tour at the moment, and actually I'm planning to join the guys on the stage in July, so it's going to be exciting stuff.”
Yanni Karkanen Jul 1, 2022 ▶ 13:02
Insight
Karkanen: Running a rock band is identical to building a startup
“Maybe not directly playing, but actually like doing a band. I think that there's a lot of similarities. So it's kind of like you need to build the prototypes, do demos, sell it to a separate company, kind of like a market yourself, like question yourself all t…”
Yanni Karkanen Jul 1, 2022 ▶ 13:50
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