Sarah Jeanneault: The Operating System Behind Sustainable Growth #238 | SaaS District

Hello, hello everyone. This is your host, Akhil Jabbar, and welcome back to another episode of SaaS District. In today's episode, we'll be talking about the operating system behind sustainable growth. Today we have our guest, Sarah Genot, joining us. Sarah is the head of marketing and strategy at ProcedureFlow. Where she builds scalable growth systems that align strategy, go-to-market, and customer operations across regulated industries. She has led end-to-end commercial ecosystems supporting multi-billion-dollar AUM growth, improving acquisition, retention, and lifetime value through disciplined data-driven execution. She is also a fintech founder with 2 successful exits, and where she now focuses on turning strategy into durable operating models that drive sustained revenue and long-term enterprise value, which we'll talk about today. So welcome, Sarah. Super excited to have you on the show today.

Hi, thanks, Akeel. I'm excited to be here.

So for people who are maybe first, if you can just help out with our audience, maybe they don't understand too much of how ProcedureFlow works, but you have something called visual knowledge, which is turning kind of the written knowledge and then translating it for the team to use. How does that help? Maybe if you can talk a little bit about that and share with our team, how does that help teams and employees use that? especially when navigating their complex internal processes on a day-to-day basis?

Yeah, thanks. And thanks for saying that. I think knowledge management, everybody, it's the word that everybody assumes they know but doesn't always actually understand what the practicality of what that looks like from day to day. And so I kind of start with an analogy of at least thinking about your home. And you have things like a heater and a furnace. And the furnace keeps things warm or cool depending on where you're living. And it's something that you need. And you don't notice you don't have it until it breaks. And so, it's kind of the same thing about what ProcedureFlow does. ProcedureFlow layers in with existing flows that you have in your workplace. So, let's say, an example, a contact center, and somebody is responding to questions to a client. There would be step-by-step processes that someone would need to follow to help answer their questions.

Mm-hmm.

Our tool comes in and layers into that to take all of the big SOPs, all of the big processes, put them in something that's very tangible and usable for that person to be able to communicate what to do, to understand what the steps are. We do it visually. And then we also have the ability, depending on where people are in terms of their AI journey and how that's supporting their technology, we can layer in and link into that also. So we can support either your AI chatbots or the human, depending on where that organization is today.

Interesting. So maybe just chatting a little bit about results. I haven't seen this process, the visual knowledge management, used a lot in the SaaS industry, but curious to know with How, what have you seen when people have used this system when compared to companies who have, maybe don't have this in their internal process?

Yeah, and because it's taking something that's so complex, sometimes it's hard to be like, and this is the one piece. And so I think if you think about it in terms of the AI especially, we are all utilizing AI for everything right now. And there is a perception out there that AI knows it all. and always gets it right. But I'm sure we all have an experience where we've used an AI tool and it has come back with an answer that's made us think like, I'm not sure, is that right?

Right.

And then we notice that, wait a second, I think it's lying or making it up just a little bit. And you and I can recognize that when we're doing AI because we know that the answer should be. But when you're working in an organization, you don't really want employees using information from an AI tool that, that is making it up. That can really open up a lot of liability, especially in very regulated industries. So we do— while we want AI to be able to help us with efficiencies for some answers, we do need to make sure that that tool is kept in an area where it knows what the rules are and where the steps are and making sure that they're not just making things up so that you're not transferring knowledge that's the wrong knowledge. The other reality of what our company does and surfaces is that a lot of companies are go-to-speed, go-to-market. You got to get there as fast as possible. And so, what can happen over the years is, as you're trying to get to market so quickly, your office drawer, if you will, gets a little full with, okay, we'll just push through here. Okay. Yeah, no problem. We'll just go to the next, go to the next. And so, that drawer, that shelf can start getting pretty full. And so, when you add AI to it, it doesn't know what is the outdated SOP and what is the new SOP. What is something that we actually made that change a year ago? We never actually went back to change it. Most companies don't have the time to go back and do that kind of editing. And that process is essential, especially as we layer on AI more and more in so many more areas in our organization. We need to make sure that the data is clean and is correct that's being fed into AI so that we don't have bigger problems. And sometimes what happens is we think everything is okay and we've integrated AI for a long time and it's all good. And then it gets, it goes wrong and it goes wrong so far down the pipeline. So the idea that we are here to help support is that process piece, the cleaning of data, making sure things are aligned and current and accurate for those customers that you're looking for, and that meets the needs of what you as a business is actually looking for also.

Yeah, that makes sense. So if you're, you know, we're talking about here the era of AI and automation building into your workflow. Now, as a, a leader of an organization, how can you think about, as you're including AI and you want to avoid this mess of this pile that builds up over time, especially in these regulated industries, which, as you said, this is so complex, so much data, so much liability, insurance, finance, et cetera. What are some things you could share with these leaders who are managing these complex processes to help them maybe be more proactive or work towards it?

Yeah. So I mean, I think everybody is looking for efficiency, right? We all have our budget lines. And we know these are our goals that we need to get out to market. This is how fast I need to do it. And this is the money I have to spend. And it almost seems like there is a line item to say AI, and where can AI be most efficient here? And that's a really important question to ask yourself. Where within your team can we implement this? But ensuring, what have I done to bring me to the step of which I can then hand things over to AI? What is that area there? And making sure that that data is clean. And I know that that sounds, oh, it just sounds like data. But It really is thinking through a holistic approach of why do we do what we do? What are the steps that we use to get there? What are our timelines to get there? Sometimes when we're so quick to check the box, we haven't stopped and been very mindful of how do we do it. Then the other side of the coin of technology efficiency are people. The other part of us as leaders is we still lead people. I'm sure we all at some point, it'll all be robots, we'll see. But for now, we still have this interchange between technology and human.

Right.

And that is a real part of making sure that people aren't afraid or understanding how to embrace this within their workplace and to find areas where it makes sense. AI is not a Band-Aid solution for everything. It really should be an intentional discussion. Where are we putting this and why? And how are we using it? And then how do we back that up and set up? And I do encourage leaders not to just plow ahead and say, oh yeah, let's tick the box. Where is AI going? But why are we doing this? What is the intent here? Where is the revenue? Where is the efficiency we're looking for? Let's create goals and objectives that we can then anchor against as we implement this to make sure that this is something that's effective, what we're looking for. And that's very much where ProcedureFlow comes in because it is about making sure that your, whatever your implementation is, is the most efficient way possible to hit the goals that you're looking to achieve.

Yeah, yeah. And so that's a big piece of this also, that we have our goals to achieve, we want to grow. And as you work in the marketing team, I'm curious to know what's kind of something you believe right now strongly with these modern SaaS solutions. We have technology, we have the AI, we have robots and humans we're all trying to manage. What are maybe leaders you're seeing that are— or leadership teams that are maybe misunderstanding on how to navigate it while still maintaining that growth?

Well, I think that there is a misconception, and maybe I fall into it too. I think we probably all do. There isn't really a finish line to this. And I think that sometimes, especially when we're reporting into boards, sometimes I think they think, you know, come Q4, we should be fine, or, you know, whatever that is. And I don't think there's a finish line here. There is a stop and pause and reflect, and let's see how we have done and where are improvements, where are areas that we can celebrate. But assuming that this will be done at a certain time, I think, is something something that we as humans, because we're used to having that kind of mentality, like we'll set a goal for ourselves, we're going to achieve this much revenue, we're going to get this many sales, this many contracts, and there's a number to it and it ends. But when we're thinking about the integration of AI and its new evolution of how we work, how we have outputs of our products, I mean, it completely changes everything. But it does require us to shift our process in that there isn't a spot in time where it's over because AI will also continue to change and evolve. So it's almost like we need reminders of that growth mindset as opposed to a fixed mindset in this space. I also think— I mean, I'd be curious what you think too. When we layer in AI, does that change our goal of perfection? Are we trying to now achieve something that's something we never would have been able to achieve before or ever thought that for ourselves? Are we creating a bar that's too high? What do you think?

I think it gives you space to explore. I think that's what I think. I think maybe we're limited on what we can achieve by ourselves sometimes, and we think that this is the bar with what we know. And then I think AI maybe just gives us a tool to maybe expand that thinking a little bit more and maybe try new things, right? And some things we couldn't think by ourselves. So if we have a goal here and we think, okay, this is how we would do it normally, now we have a new way of doing it. Um, it's probably, yeah, way more efficient, uh, maybe better than I can do it by myself. And, and maybe more, a bit more creativity to, you know, some thoughts to it, to how to approach it.

Yeah. And how cool is that, especially as we're, we coach teams, um, to have a bit more of that growth mindset also to say, you know what, this, using this tool today might change some of our answers and it might change the process that we're going to implement. to help support our customer tomorrow. And so, where is our sandbox? And are we creating a sandbox in an organization where it's safe to say, we're going to try to use AI in this area here just to see what it does and to have goals, but to be also okay with it, maybe that part doesn't work?

Right.

And maybe the use of AI in this area isn't something— I do need to go back to a human for this process, for this step, and to have a real reasoning why. That really opens up the conversations, I think, of what you can have with teams. But that can be scary also for leaders because that element of control can be given up in a boardroom now because we're all having conversations that are elevated. We've all integrated AI in our conversations. They all have different points of view and perspectives, hopefully. And now, because that is higher, I mean, are we changing the dialogue and conversations we're having in a boardroom? It's very exciting.

It's interesting stuff, right? And I think the challenge is just always learning what to trust, right? From that, it's like, okay, we're giving this trust, we're giving this process with AI as part of our lives as a way to expand ourselves. But like you said, we have to have that, maybe it's discernment or our judgment to be able to say, this is actually better than what we actually think that it will be. So, Sarah, you've mentioned you've scaled organizations through multiple stages of growth. And the point of this conversation is really talking about sustainable growth. Yeah, maybe you can share us— can you share some maybe leadership lessons that maybe changed the way you operate today as an executive and running a marketing team?

Yeah, so in all of my experiences, I do think it's so important that you still take time to listen to people who are on the front line. And that can be one of the hardest things to do. Because when you are looking at a jammed calendar, and you have, you know, competing priorities, it's very easy to Decline the meeting with someone who's on a front line of a conversation because you can say, you know what? I just don't have time. But those are the critical pieces, and so I do think thinking through the prioritization of your calendar and making sure within that is a well represented messaging system and structure of your organization. You do need to be hearing people that are out with customers and clients that you know maybe some sales calls that are working and are not working. Hearing both sides of it are so essential. Because when you're trying to come up with the strategy, or you know how are we going to allocate some budget behind what we're doing next? It's so important that you know where are the speed bumps that we're working through, and where are the areas that up at the top we thought this was a great idea, but we need to make sure that this is actually something that's efficient and actually building revenue. I mean, it's one thing to do something because you want to do it, but you also have to make sure that this is linking back to something you're really actually trying to get done, which is. build the company, build revenue. So, I do think that that is incredibly important to be very, very like a multidisciplinary mindset almost of ensuring that we're talking to different people at different levels of an organization to make sure that you're making those great choices. I also think in the world of AI too, and I alluded to it before about perfection, we can't forget that we still have to be human beings. In an organization, working should be fun. We should be pushing ourselves to be our best selves, but we also need to stop and celebrate when we've done a great job. We need to be open to saying, you know what, I tried this and this part, this idea didn't work, and that's okay. And I think that's also so important. And we always, you know, everyone evaluates themselves based on the numbers in an organization, super important. But the people, the work culture, what people can produce, and then how that links in to our revenue targets, I believe, are what's incredibly important. And if I look back on the people I've worked with over the years, it's that incredibly strong team that's made me here where I am today. I mean, I've worked hard too, but I also know that I have been surrounded by some incredible people who have helped me get there. And it's my responsibility to help move that forward and to help to continue to bring other people and give them opportunities too. When I look back at my success, and I've had both that entrepreneurial founder, done this myself, sold, and I've also worked in really large financial organizations at the top, and it's a very different experience and perspective. I do wish for more C-suite executives that they found ways to talk to frontline, and that I wish that frontline had more opportunities to build that bridge up with the C-suite. Because when you're a founder, as you know, you, you have a connection and a pulse to an organization in a very different way than someone else who, let's say, comes in as the president of an organization.

Right.

It's your baby. And when, you know, when you sell, you're excited, but at the same time, it's still your baby and you have to let this go and you have to hand this over to somebody else and say, geez, I hope you do a great job with it because I put all my blood, sweat, and tears in this thing. And then when you work for a large organization, as much as you want to say you put your blood, sweat, and tears, you do, but it's not the same.

It's not the same. No.

No.

Yeah, that's interesting. So, yeah, I guess it's really being able to listen and make time, like you said, to really care with your team, listen to everybody around you. And I'm wondering if that could be replaced or built in with AI. I don't know if that's a process that will be built at some point, but—

See, so that's the part that I hope doesn't get built into AI. And not that I want to be a downer on AI. Clearly, there's an efficiency tool for everything in an organization, but I do hope that we don't lose the fun and the emotional side and the connection of what work can bring. AI can help us with that, certainly help bridge conversations and, or even conflict resolution perhaps. But it's, you know, I hope our souls as we work in places still exist.

Exactly. I think that's the part that still makes it interesting, right?

Yeah, absolutely. And changing. Like, that's the most fun part is that every year, I think everybody would be able to relate to that, that You know, you're, as the market shifts and changes, so does your job and so do the goals of the company. Um, and all of that means the shift and evolution of everything that's happening on your day-to-day. And that part I find very fun and exciting. So I hope that continues.

Yeah, that continues. That part can continue to evolve. Um, so when you're thinking about aligning, you know, go-to-market, product, and customer operations, I guess you work among all those. What do you see as where most companies will make, maybe most commonly break down? And maybe how can leaders fix it beforehand before it impacts growth?

So, I'd probably say to you that I don't think they'll fix it before it'll impact growth.

Probably not.

Because the reality is, is so many leaders are trying to push, push, push and hit it. So, I think what's most realistic is that you identify when there are risks that do come up and then figure out, okay, do I need to pivot here? Or how can I make some adjustments? Because I, most of your viewers or all of us out there have already made a ton of decisions ahead of time and said, we're just going down this path and doing this. But to just recognize those moments of feedback and, you know what, this is working, this isn't, this is where I need to pivot, this is where I need more help. Operationally, I think that's one big thing in ProcedureFlow is we're not only providing a tool to layer in with your tech stack or within your organization depending on how many SOPs you have, But also just like, how can we work through the process of understanding why are you working the way you are and where are there areas to be most efficient? How can we help map that out so that you can continue to be more? And it will be an evolution as also those organizations continue to shift and change. So, we're kind of with you along your journey. And what's unique about ProcedureFlow also is its ability to be so adaptable. We've been around a long time, So we've been very relevant for a human-only office and organization. And now as we move into AI and this agentic AI piece that's also helping us, this is a whole new conversation and a new evolution and opportunity for organizations. And we're here to kind of service both. You know, we believe in AI, but we're not forgetting about the humans that also work in this space.

Absolutely. Yeah, it's interesting. You know, you've built, you know, and worked on both the enterprise, you know, operating systems. Then you also mentioned, you know, fintech startups. So you've seen both worlds. Can you share maybe what have you seen as the differences between maybe scaling efficiently and then scaling responsibly? Maybe those are maybe 2 words. And why does that distinction matter more today, even more so with integrating AI into that process?

So I think that founding organizations or smaller entrepreneurial companies are just so good at being efficient. And one thing that drove me crazy being in a larger enterprise, if I'm allowed to say it, is that they can solve problems by throwing money at a problem. But there are so many organizations that we can't do that. We need to solve for it, and we need to be creative, and we need to sit in a room with a whiteboard sometimes and old school, like, what are some possibilities here? And that drive and willingness to constantly improve is something that I wish for more large organizations to work through, to have that. Like, I know there isn't more dollars in this bucket, this pocket to pull out to fix this problem. Like, how do we organically work through this? But to me, that's the energy and the excitement and the fun part of figuring it out. Because when you do figure it out as a team, not only you as a team have you completely built an incredible team that can create some good efficiencies, and that builds bonds, long-term health in terms of the work culture, but you've also solved a problem and you've done it without the money. Because then the money does come and it is that creative process. That's just an incredible piece that I wish that entrepreneurial or smaller organizations, I hope they value that because that is why you're here. You're special because you're able to figure that out. And for the companies that have hit it big or have been around for years and years and years, I hope they maybe hire a few more founders so that they can get more of that mentality of, like, how do we actually solve for this without just throwing, you know, let's just hide it with more money.

Exactly. It's more kind of disciplined capital and then the way you manage it and, and not being a little bit more reckless, but, you know, open with your spending and how you think of approaching a problem. But it's always nice to have extra capital to be able to do things and just spend money. But when you have more constraints, I think that you're right. That's where a lot of the creativity comes out. So, and do you see that any, any of that integrating with AI as well? Do you see And I would imagine AI eliminates a lot— like, you're more efficient, so you have more time. Do you think teams are more creative when they're integrating AI in their process? Or do you think it makes them a little bit more boring? I hope so.

So one thing I do encourage the teams, especially with AI, is to come— let's come at a problem, but I want each of you to ask AI a different way. So I want one person to be pro this, and I want one person to be against this. And then go ask AI. You each have different answers. You've used AI for that. But then we're going to have a conversation about then what do we think? So, what parts of both of those perspectives is something that we actually want to integrate in our next campaign or our next feature that we're going to build out or launch? Where are we staying connected? We want to make sure with AI that we're not just always creating the same perspective, the same angle on how we're going to deal with something. Opposition is really where their most creativity will come out of, and actually understanding why we're doing something is so critical. And that goes the same thing when you're creating processes within an organization, asking like, why are we doing it this way? What are the steps that could be a little bit more efficient than the last? And where are the gaps and holes that we do need to add in a little bit more information so people do know what to do and they can be more independent within an organization? Also, you know, AI can help with that in terms of helping you like what those steps are. But We also just want to make sure that it's still being built out in a way that's holistic for the entire organization to be healthy.

Yeah, I love that. That's actually a really good idea, brainstorming with your team, giving them challenges to go out and come back with their AI response, and then brainstorming and coming up with a better creative solution. Love it. This has been great, Sarah. I'm excited to hear— happy to hear everything you've shared with us, and I'm excited to hear a little bit more on the personal rapid-fire questions. Um, you ready for those ones?

I'm ready.

Yeah. All right, let's do it. Uh, Sarah, what's one activity you enjoy outside of work that gets you into a flow state?

Trail running. I love being in the forest by myself, running and figuring out something. So you'll know if I'm stressed, I don't have an answer, I need to run first and then I'll come back to you.

Okay, awesome. With music or without music?

No music. Sometimes podcasts, but no, no music.

Love it. Sarah, what's one piece of advice you wish you had known? And if you can go back, you would tell your, say, 25-year-old self today?

No isn't a hard word to hear. It's only 2 letters, and it's not a reason to not do something. It just means to figure out a different way to go after something you really want to.

Love it. What are some of the biggest challenges and goals maybe you are most excited about and for ProcedureFlow going, you know, into 2026?

I am, because of what we are doing in the marketplace and the place where AI is today. I'm so excited as more and more organizations adapt ProcedureFlow of actually how this can make this more efficient for you or I when we call up a bank or an insurance or just everywhere where we're finally getting answers faster and they're right and they're efficient. And I didn't have to stay online for an hour waiting for someone to tell me they didn't know. Um, I, that will make me a happier human being and I think it will make many more people happy.

Absolutely. Reducing all that friction that we normally face in the bureaucracy. Yeah. Yeah. Sarah, who or what are some of the best 3 resources? These can be books, mentors, or people you follow in the space who you'd say have been most instrumental to your success over these last few years.

Oh, there's been so many. I would say that, um, I don't have a good answer.

Any books you read?

Okay, I love Dax Shepard, Armchair Expert. I'm going to throw out a totally different answer. He actually has some really great guests on there that I think really help change perspective. I think some people on my team, like, shout out to Lisa Brody, just people that help push your thinking on a day-to-day basis. I'm very appreciative of that.

Mm-hmm.

Um, and, oh, the book Hard Things About Hard Things.

Oh yeah.

Oh, that's a good one.

That's a good one. Yeah. Yeah. Love it. Hard Things About the Hard Things. Yeah. The Horowitz. Love it. Sarah, what does success mean to you today? Whether that's personal, business, financial, life, I guess there's no right answer.

Well, I, I think I've had some financial success in my life today. I really look for impact. Like, how can I be the most impactful with the people that I work with? with in work where I can feel like each day was like, yeah, that was a good day. I actually did something. I contributed and I made a positive influence.

Love it. So, feeling the meaning in your work and your impact of what you do and your creativity. Love it. This has been great, Sarah. I appreciate everything you've shared with us. Where can founders, anybody listening into our audience get in touch with you, learn more about you, learn more about ProcedureFlow? Where's the best place to get in touch with you?

Yeah. So, company is procedureflow.com. But yeah, reach out on LinkedIn. Happy to connect and look forward to hearing all the stories that people Awesome.

Thank you. We'll add the links to the show notes and also the books you mentioned and suggestions. And yeah, make sure to say hi to Sarah and check her out on LinkedIn as well. So thank you so much for your time today.

Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you all for watching this episode and joining SaaS District today. Don't forget to like, subscribe, and hit the bell for future episodes where we interview top leaders in the SaaS industry. If you're a SaaS company looking to grow and unlock the true value of your business, Get in touch with us at Horizon Capital, and myself or one of our consultants will provide a free assessment to help you get there and hit your goals. If you have any feedback or suggestions for this podcast, please comment down below and help us improve our content for you all. Thanks again, and see you on the next one.