Seismic, a sales enablement software platform used by large go-to-market teams, is closing in on $400 million in annual recurring revenue and has already reached profitability. Behind that highly sought-after mark is an in-sync CFO-chief revenue officer relationship between Evan Goldstein and Hayden Stafford.
Goldstein, who joined Seismic as CFO in 2022 after leadership roles at Genentech and Salesforce, is a first-time finance chief focused on creating what he calls “structured chaos”— supporting innovation while enforcing financial rigor. Stafford, the company’s CRO and an enterprise sales veteran with prior stints at IBM, Salesforce and Microsoft, joined around the same time. Though they didn’t work together directly during their shared time at Salesforce, at Seismic, they’ve built a model for high-growth SaaS leadership that’s based on collaboration, transparency and shared ownership of growth and profitability.
“In many ways, [collaboration with leadership] is like parenting,” Goldstein said. “Disagreements rise to the top, and we have to present a united front. Hayden and I have invested in the relationship, and that’s made us far more effective at managing any tension and keeping the organization moving forward.”
Laying the groundwork
One of Goldstein’s priorities as CFO was rebuilding Seismic’s finance organization, moving it beyond accounting to become a forward-looking strategic partner. “The culture here was very accounting-driven,” he said. “I’m not knocking accountants, but you need a broader set of skills to really support decision-making at scale.”
He brought in a new controller, head of FP&A, a procurement lead and a VP of finance to unify the organization and embed it more deeply in go-to-market operations. “FP&A’s role is to be an effective business partner,” Goldstein said. “It’s about using data to help executives make better decisions.”
Those decisions include everything from sales capacity modeling and deal structure analysis to headcount forecasting and pricing alignment. “We’ve worked closely with the CRO to structure deals, analyze sales capacity, model headcount and understand what’s driving bookings growth,” Goldstein said.
Stafford said the finance team’s integration with sales has made them more than just gatekeepers. “I sell to nobody more than [Goldstein],” Stafford said. “But the way to ‘sell’ a CFO is not to just page in when you need something; that’s the used car salesman mindset. The proper way is relationship selling, establishing trust and building a genuine relationship.”
Upgrading the finance tech stack also played a role in Seismic’s journey to profitability. Goldstein said he implemented Workday Adaptive Planning to help cut forecast turnaround times and introduced Zip to overhaul procurement. “Procurement was the function most on fire when I joined,” he said. “Now it’s seamless, and we’ve seen strong ROI from day one.”
Developing alignment where it matters
One of the most impactful outcomes of the CFO-CRO relationship at Seismic has been a more disciplined approach to revenue operations. This includes commission planning for sales representatives whose deals involve deferred revenue recognition or extended payment terms, where commissions might otherwise be paid well before the company receives the cash. In order to develop this system, both executives say joint ownership is required.
Seismic now uses a standardized commission model, with few exceptions agreed upon by both finance and sales leadership. “Commissions can create a massive waterfall effect if you’re not careful,” Goldstein said.
The system was designed collaboratively with sales leadership and built for field alignment and fiscal control. “Evan came in with the law,” Stafford said. “But [Goldstein] is not a ‘no’ CFO. He says no some of the time and yes some of the time. That’s what a good, commercially oriented CFO is like.”
“I think of the CFO and CRO as having two very different lenses,” Stafford added. “The CFO’s world can be black and white — profit, loss, make or miss the plan. The CRO’s can be extremely dynamic and volatile. I’m looking two quarters out. He’s thinking three years out.”
That difference in horizon often creates tension, but both say that tension is both necessary and productive. “We work hard to resolve issues quickly, keep each other informed and make sure the organization sees that we’re rowing in the same direction,” Goldstein said.
Even during recent market pressure, the company preserved its President’s Club and top-performer rewards, which Stafford said was evidence of Goldstein’s commitment to rewarding sales representatives. “We didn’t cut our top performers’ club,” Stafford said. “I never had to defend it. Evan was already and always behind it.”
Building for profitability and flexibility
While much of Goldstein’s work over the last three years has focused on financial infrastructure, the goal wasn’t just to survive volatility; it was to build a company that could grow on its own terms. “My overarching goal is to create a durable growth company,” he said. “If we build that, the outcome, whether it’s going public, being acquired or taking additional investment, will take care of itself.”
“Sales wants to close deals quickly and more resources in the field. Finance wants predictability, visibility and control. The truth is, you need both.”
Evan Goldstein
CFO, Seismic
SOX compliance is the last major hurdle before Seismic is IPO-ready, Goldstein said. “That’s a significant investment of time and money,” he said. “But it’s something you can complete in six to 12 months. If we decided to go this year, we could move on it.”
The long-range planning process brings together Goldstein’s finance and Stafford’s revenue team and requires alignment on long-term strategy with near-term execution. The team refreshes its three-year plan annually, breaks it into quarterly goals and aligns on metrics like rep productivity, customer economics and bookings efficiency.
“Sales wants to close deals quickly and have more resources in the field,” Goldstein said. “Finance wants predictability, visibility and control. The truth is, you need both. That’s why this relationship works.”
For Goldstein, that balance — between pressure and alignment, growth and discipline — is exactly what defines a successful contemporary CFO. “You want R&D to experiment and try new things,” he said. “But you also need to protect the financial interests of the company. We’ve been able to strike that balance.”
