326: The Startup Survival Guide—Avoiding Costly Mistakes, Scaling Smarter, and Planning Your Exit with Mona Sabet, SVP at GCG

Mona Sabet is the co-author of Sail to Scale: Steering Startups Clear of Mistakes from Launch to Exit and currently serves as SVP, Strategy, Projects, and Operations at GCG. With a track record of driving growth and strategic transformations, she has held executive roles at VulcanForms, UserTesting, and Cadence Design Systems. At UserTesting, she played a pivotal role in securing $100M in funding, leading acquisitions, taking the company public, and negotiating its $1.3B sale to Thoma Bravo. Beyond her corporate leadership, Mona is a passionate advocate for women in tech, law, and policy, having co-founded ChIPsNetwork.org and leading HiPower, a community dedicated to empowering executive women shaping the future of technology.

In this conversation, we discuss:

• The critical mistakes startups make at different growth stages—Mona shares insights from Sail to Scale • on why companies struggle to scale and how to avoid common pitfalls. • How founders should "fire themselves" to scale effectively—Why transitioning from founder to CEO requires a mindset shift, and the biggest mistakes leaders make in this process. • The AI bubble: hype vs. reality—Mona explains why overfunding in AI-first companies mirrors past tech bubbles and what it means for the future of the industry. • Why acquisitions should be a long-term strategy, not a last-minute decision—The importance of planning exits early and why companies that wait too long often fail to sell at the right valuation. • The evolving landscape of M&A and IPOs—How companies can differentiate themselves in a crowded market of late-stage startups waiting for an exit. • The unseen biases keeping women out of leadership—Mona’s perspective on why brand bias impacts diversity in tech and what leaders can do to create real change.

Resources:

Subscribe to the AI & The Future of Work NewsletterConnect with Mona on LinkedIn • AI fun fact articleOn How to how AI is changing the entertainment industry