1195: When Finance is at the Center of the AI Code Revolution | Jean Compeau, CFO, Sonar

Jack: Cfo thought leader is made possible by sage high performance finance software and intuit quickbooks bill pay. Say goodbye to manual bill entry.

Blake Grayson: Hello, this is blake grayson, cfo of docusign and you are listening to the cfo thought leader podcast. This is episode 1195.

Gene Campo: Yeah, so last year when I joined the company, um, AI coding wasn't being kind of um, talked about. And actually kind of last year, summer and fall really, AI coding has become really popular, right? So today AI agents, um, are writing massive um, volumes of complex code faster than any human can verify, right? And so the AI code is less uh, reliable and more complex. So only 3% of developers um, highly trust the accuracy of AI code. And so that makes Sonar really uh, in a mission critical position to verify this exponentially growing volume of code. Um, and this will help actually enterprise to have uh, to increase their reliability, maintainability, uh, and audibility and most importantly the trust in AI code.

Jack: Hi, it's Jack. On today's show we speak with Gene Campo, CFO of uh, Sonar. For years finance leaders have been asked to evaluate investments in software, cloud infrastructure and digital transformation. Today a ah, new challenge is emerging. AI is helping organizations generate more code, more content and more output than ever before. But how do you verify what's being created? It's an interesting question because speed has never been the problem. The real question may be whether trust can keep up with the velocity. As AI becomes embedded in business processes, success CFOs are increasingly being asked to assess not only the cost of these technologies, but also the risks, controls and returns. In this episode we'll explore what happens when finance finds itself at the intersection of AI, innovation and accountability. Our talk with Gene Campo begins after this. And so it's been said, growth in business comes from data driven forward momentum. And without time, clarity and control, it can be impossible to move when and how you need to intuit, uh, QuickBooks bill pay automates accounts payable so you can see clearly, act with intent and remain in control for your finances. Their powerful platform brings bills, vendors, payments and 1099s together so you can make smarter decisions and reclaim precious time and energy. With QuickBooks Bill Pay, you choose how and when money goes out instantly, see what's due, control who needs to approve it, and see how it hits your cash flow. Vendors add their own payment details so you don't spend time chasing them down. You stay in control and confident, making it easy to chart your own leadership path and move forward the way you need to. And so it's been said yet again, reclaim time and control so you can move forward. Making the switch to, uh, QuickBooks Bill Pay today. Learn more@quickbooks.com BillPay Again, that's quickbooks.com/bill pay terms apply. Money Movement services are provided by Intuit Payments Incorporated, licensed as a money transmitter

Blake Grayson: by the New York State Department of Financial Services.

Jack: Hello.

Blake Grayson: CFO Gene Campo is with us. Gene's career has spanned public accounting at Price Waterhouse, Finance, leadership roles during the rise of the Internet and technology companies, and more than a decade helping scale Palo Alto Networks through its growth as a cybersecurity leader. Today, as CFO of uh, Sonar, she is helping guide a company focused on code quality and software verification at a time when AI is rapidly reshaping how software gets built. Test it and trust it. Gene, welcome.

Gene Campo: Thank you, Jack. Very nice to see you and uh, you know, great to have this opportunity.

Blake Grayson: Yeah, we're, we're excited to have you participate, as always. Take a look back. Gene, what comes to mind when you think about those experiences that you feel prepared you best for this role?

Gene Campo: Well, I started in public accounting, and I, um, would say definitely I learned a lot of the nuts and bolts of the finance, um, knowledge there. But I think more importantly is actually the, um, friendship that I built in the firm. The um, network, um, that I've built as well. And the flexibility. You just learn how to be flexible and get things done in public accounting, um, and uh, the pace that we were trained to get things done as well. So I would say a combination of, well, you know, knowledge and then the network and the flexibility, uh, that I learned in public accounting.

Blake Grayson: Was there a career moment at Pricewaterhouse where someone had to point out to you how to network? I mean, did you come to it naturally?

Gene Campo: Well, it's part of the job because

Gene Campo: from the very beginning, from recruiting and all the way you joined the firm, and then there are tons of, uh, social activities, uh, and the bonding. I mean, you know, it's very long hours, as we all know. Uh, and a lot of times it's, you know, the ability to share your ideas and what you're going through, uh, with your colleagues. And then the bonding part is actually, you know, I feel it actually the most memorable. And that's just part of the. Part of the life. You know, it's kind of built in, built in the career. So, um, but I think that it's time allocation.

Blake Grayson: Right?

Gene Campo: You know, as our. As our life gets more complicated, um, more demanding in various areas, and it's just hard to maintain that friendship and uh, also, uh, the time to network.

Blake Grayson: You made a three year investment at pricewaterhouse. That seems to be a smart three years. Uh, you were ready to enter industry or when you moved on, what were you thinking?

Gene Campo: Yeah, so, um, actually I spent uh, two years in Los Angeles, uh, with Ernst and young, and then three years in the San Jose office m, uh with PricewaterhouseCoopers. At that time it was the uh, Internet boom. So sounds very exciting and uh, I would like to give it a try and to um, make at least a small difference, uh, in that Internet revolution at that time.

Blake Grayson: Were there stock options back then? We know the dot com era was famous for those.

Gene Campo: Yes, yes.

Blake Grayson: Um, did some of the partners at Price Waterhouse try to stop you or say, oh, I don't know, they might be able to give you options. Could get a little crazy easy out there.

Gene Campo: Well, definitely, uh, you know, talk to mentors in the firm. Uh, but they also respect my decision and would uh, like to give it a try. So, you know, it's always, if it doesn't work out, can always go back to the firm. And uh, and it's just very supportive environment, you know, in the firm.

Blake Grayson: Yeah, but you moved on. You moved on and you, you take on. Would you say you, um, you're thinking you want to become a controller? Is that the, is that the next sizable milestone for you?

Gene Campo: At that, at that point when I left the firm, I wasn't really thinking about controller. Um, and uh, it was, you know, that thought came after a few years, uh, in the industry. So I started in external reporting, technical accounting, and then more consolidation. So these are just nuts and bolts in accounting. And um, the thought actually came when I joined uh, um, Intuitive Surgical. It's a, um, medical, uh, robotic company, um, the Da Vinci. So probably a lot of uh, people um, are ah, aware of this brand, Da Vinci. And uh, so when I actually started in Intuitive, it was very small. Uh, it just went public under 100 million revenue. Uh, and then, uh, we continue to scale that company to now, uh, billions. Uh, and when I left it was about 2 billion revenue. But a very good learning experience. I learned a lot of actually the business transformation. I mean that is part of actually my transformation journey from a more kind of accountant type to now. Okay, um, at least in finance, how can we scale the finance department to enable the business? And then later on in Palo Alto, then that's how I actually, um, take a broader role to actually scale the business. Not just the finance department, but to enable the business.

Blake Grayson: I Like to sometimes ask because it seems so logical, your path so straightforward and so I'm hoping you'll indulge us here when I ask what's a, what's a mistake that taught you something during those early years and your entry into industry?

Gene Campo: Um,

Gene Campo: something I learned the hard way. Um, I was talking about actually just you know, continue to expand your network. Um, I don't think it was a mistake but it was just something that could pay attention earlier on of my career.

Blake Grayson: And again it was uh, I would say Price Waterhouse that first allowed you to understand the value of networking. Uh, but what else is the legacy there? I mean they do have uh, training programs. They do have sort of a, you know, a mindset that uh, in terms of service to the client and what have you.

Gene Campo: Yeah, well the training that you get from the firm is phenomenal. Uh, um, and um, you know the training about always doing the right thing and always being bit thoughtful. Um, you know you're always trying to help the clients and be the business advisor. And I think that is really um, like you know, invaded in my mind and continue on when I turn into like you know, work in the industry is try not to be Dr. No. You know, be that rigid accountant, always step back and ask what is the business problem we're trying to solve and how can we actually leverage our technical skill set to enable the business. Um, that there is actually some flexibility that we can apply in a situation and uh, what works for the company, um, and be able to work out some accounting position with the auditors. Um, but always making sure that you do the right thing and always be prepared. I think that is the training that you get from it for and to continue to apply that in the industry.

Blake Grayson: What about FP&A, did controllership allow you to. You know we always hear from FP&A professionals how they got to be cross functional, how they had different aspects of the business. What about you? Because sometimes controllership can be very focused on the uh, reporting in the accounting.

Gene Campo: Of course. Yeah, I'll say. I'm not a very uh, traditional accountant. I would say early on, yes, I focus on the foundational uh, reporting, financial reporting and control, that type of uh, areas. But later on, especially when I um, started my journey in Palo Alto Networks, it's all about um, growth. Right. You know, going back to leveraging your expertise and how to grow the top line.

Blake Grayson: All right.

Gene Campo: And ah, how to increase profitability and um, working with the cross functional team is not just staying within finance but go outside of finance. Working with product leaders, working with go to market leaders. And that's how you continue to expand your knowledge, uh, and to become a truly well rounded business advisor rather than just uh, operational accountant.

Blake Grayson: When you were at uh, Palo Alto Networks, um, did you have to sort of assert yourself sometimes? Uh, and by that I mean raise your hand so you can get into that go to market meeting. Did you find yourself at any time being, you know, it perhaps is up to the professional at many levels to say I can add value here, let me just sit in. It'll help me understand better. I mean is this something uh, were you raising your hand to do that or would you describe it differently or tell us something about how you were

Gene Campo: able to do that? So in the beginning the company was still small. I mean, you know, a big part of it is um, I leverage my uh, revenue recognition expertise. Right. I mean it's how we can structure a revenue contract to um, maximize bookings, maximize billings, that type. Right. Uh, I think it's a combination of uh, push and pull. Once people realize the value that you add, they will come to you and then you will also be, continue to be flexible to think about how to enable business going back to cannot be a rigid accountant. You always need to think about what is a value. Add that if the company's focus is to grow top line, then think about all the things that you touch, uh, on how you can enable the business to grow top line. Um, so I think it's a combination of push and pull. You have to demonstrate a value and then you continue to maintain that relationship with those business partners and they will continue to bring you in to the table and uh, to see you know, what, what value that you can add. I think the having um, finance department being involved early on in any initiative, it will reduce the cycle.

Blake Grayson: Right.

Gene Campo: For small things like revenue contracts that you don't want to be the, oh, the worst case would be after the revenue contract is signed and then you're being told that okay, you know how to operationalize it. Right. That would be not so good case. Right. The best case will be when the business actually ah, has an initial thought on oh, how should we think about it then finance also be involved in it help shape that structure of that transaction. Um, so I think that will reduce the cycle time and reduce the price for everybody.

Blake Grayson: So tell us about when you begin to sort of identify the path beyond controllership, the path to the CFO office. Uh, tell us something about what was your mindset when you finally began to develop as a Leader and had aspirations for the C suite.

Gene Campo: Yeah. So, um, I started at Palo Alto Networks as controller and then eventually uh, became the Chief Accounting Officer. And in a bigger company, chief accounting officer role is not so much just accounting, it's actually helping uh, shape the future. Um, and after a few years of being the Chief Accounting Officer, um, I uh, felt like, okay, I'm ready to try something new. Right. Uh, and I've been working with business partners a lot already, uh, outside of you know, finance departments. So I would like to continue uh, with that journey on um, really making even a bigger impact to an organization. So um, I really um, really grateful to have um, uh, the current CFO of Palo Alto Networks, Deepakalacha being my mentor and gave me an opportunity to uh, acknowledge, take on FP and a, um, uh, and have the deputy CFO role.

Blake Grayson: So we um, might have a few more career related questions a little later. Right now we want to talk to you about Sonar, where you stepped in as CFO in March of 2025. Tell us about this company. What's it about today?

Gene Campo: Yeah, very excited to share. So uh, Sonar is the global leader in AI code verification and govern the agentic centric development life cycle. So we call it AC dc just like uh, you know, just like the band. So just a little bit information on uh, the scale of sonar. Uh, so we're trusted by 7 million developers. We process 750 billion lines of code daily. Uh, uh, and with 25,000 paying customers and of that so 75% of Fortune 100 customers, uh, uh, our customers, so very proud to be part of this journey.

Blake Grayson: Could you tell us a little bit more about the growth journey? How has that evolved over time?

Gene Campo: Yeah, so last year when I joined the company, um, AI coding wasn't uh, that being kind of um, talked about before. Right. And actually kind of last year, summer and fall really, AI coding has become really popular. Right. So today AI agents, um, are writing massive um, volumes of complex code faster than any human can verify. Right. And so the AI code is uh, less reliable and ah, more complex. So only 3% of developers um, highly trust the accuracy of AI code. And AI tools are also generating more uh, vulbous uh, code. So that means expanding lines of code. Um, AI code tools are generating like 50% more lines of code than developers to complete the same task. So just give a magnitude. And so that makes Sonar really uh, in a mission critical position to verify this exponentially growing volume of code. Um, and this will help actually enterprise to have uh, to increase their Reliability, maintainability, uh and audibility and most importantly the trust in AI code.

Blake Grayson: So tell us something about what numbers are you looking at to understand how the company's performing or growing. What are these metrics?

Gene Campo: Yeah so um, we measure actually quite a few metrics but financially we look at um ARR, um uh annual recurring revenue, um you know NRR and grr. These are pretty common uh uh financial metrics and of course uh profitability we look at ebitda, um but we also look at actually a lot of leading uh indicator. Right. And the KPIs that I mentioned, those are all kind of lagging indicator. The leading indicator I looked at actually in various areas. So for example in product I will look at um utilization. Uh they would drive basically driving adoption. Then eventually your ARR and uh, NRR will grow. So that's product. Um I also look at some marketing data uh in terms of leads and pipe generation. Uh we also have actually free trial online business like the traction in online business, the free to pay conversion. These are all early indicators of um, actually how the business will do.

Blake Grayson: And are these being watched weekly or give us a sense of the frequency?

Gene Campo: Yeah, at least weekly. I mean we have regular dashboard and actually regular reporting monthly. Um uh they are actually dashboard that management team um all looked at um closely uh to analyze the data. So um, I would say that is a big part of the finance organization. Right. You know to, to monitor and to kind of um uh look around the corner to see what, what could go wrong and then be able to uh work with business to um, you know get ahead before the problem really becomes a problem.

Blake Grayson: Could you tell us how maybe when there's a, A a major product investment is going to be made and you know can you share with us how is that done? Departments come forward or product areas come forward and asked for this sizable investment. They see an opportunity what unfolds.

Gene Campo: So like for example um, you know this AI shift.

Gene Campo: Right.

Gene Campo: So definitely we um, the product team Asona we've been working on this uh, uh agentic products actually for some time. Um actually it's been ah, uh in open beta since actually late March and the process is well you see the market shifting. Um and it's actually really critical to ensure that there is actually uh, um the gap in our product that you want to address it proactively. So um, in any product organization there will be organizations that work on actually new features, uh new products or um actually support maintaining uh the current products. So um, in a high growth technology company like Sonar we actually invest heavily on um, new features and new products. And so that is actually the standard but in terms of uh finance at the decision table so we definitely look at okay, what's the return? Right, so the return in terms of not just bookings but return on the company's position in the AI revolution. Right. And how we're going to track our AI ARR, AI revenue. Um, so all that it is part of actually finance responsibility as part of our new product introduction in addition to how to operationalize um you know the entire uh, process from taking the order all the way to collecting cash. And another big part of it is also pricing and packaging.

Blake Grayson: Right.

Gene Campo: In terms of how we are going to package these uh agentic products, um you know sell it separately or um, like you know bundle um and actually supporting the analysis of which like say accounts they are appropriate, you know for this agentic products. Right. Um and also doing competitive analysis on pricing. Um so it's cross functional teamwork you know between product ah go to market and finance um to make sure that especially for new products everyone needs to get comfortable in terms of um, the position that we are taking uh in the market and also like from a pricing point of view.

Blake Grayson: So the agentiq product that you're speaking of has you know finance. Have you realized that finance has to be more a part of the discussion at the start or I'm just wondering if finance behaved differently as we, as you entered this new realm of agentic product be less constrained perhaps. I don't know.

Gene Campo: Yeah, um, I always believe finance being in the beginning of the process, not just like you know, AI product launch, but especially for AI product launch, um, we need to think about actually all the, all the kind of hidden costs. Right. Uh, a lot of the token costs that uh, a lot of CFOs now are paying attention to because a lot of enterprise now, now they have uh, blown through their whole year of um, AI budget in just like one quarter. Right. And um, how you're going to actually articulate the value and the ROI to our customers that actually using the entire sonar platform will help you uh, to be more efficient in your token usage. Um, that actually is part of our focus as well. Knowing that kind of CFO CFO talk that we understand. I understand how the um, concern of the CFO in terms of oh if we use more AI products it's going to cost us more.

Blake Grayson: Right.

Gene Campo: But at the end it is going to boil down to co development velocity. Right. And as you actually use uh the sonar AI code verification Tool then your co development cycle will become um actually you know more secure and faster and at the end is speed to market. Right. We can actually prove okay developer to become more um, uh efficient and we increase the developers productivity and hence like you know faster speed to market and all that. You know how we're going to articulate that to our customer is critical.

Blake Grayson: How has AI perhaps improved your planning or forecasting inputs?

Gene Campo: Yeah. So um, right now stepping back in finance for Sonar, we have actually um given everyone um uh uh uh cloud access. We always have actually Gemini. But um, in the beginning of the year uh it's a uh very intentional investment to certain departments um within Sona. So finance is one of them. And team uh actually has been really uh uh uh welcoming the use of AI and um in fact actually for our company we have an AI kind of AI day to demonstrate um the different use case that different departments are using AI and gaining efficiency already. So for finance um, we have actually quite a few great uh use cases for example in commission uh so there are a few, I would say events, ends, users in finance. In using cloud uh one use case is a commission. In terms of commission processing you understand how complex that commission process is. You have to get information from uh the HR department, right? There's the HR system and you also have uh, your own comp plan, you also have bookings information from sfdc. So it's various inputs from different business apps that you have. And um, our uh commission is a team of one um uh so really advanced uh uh cloud user able to actually build skills to pull information and be able to cut down our permission processing time. And now you can actually spend time on doing a lot more ad hoc uh commission uh analysis. Because now we have new products and we have new go to market programs, new incentives. So this type of ad code analysis he will be able to actually do it faster and to enable decision making um, much faster. So I think that's how we are seeing um Sonar Finance is using AI to enable um speed to data and also faster decision making

Blake Grayson: is there. As you have explored and experimented with uh how AI could help with workflows and what have you. Is there a place where AI has fallen short of expectations or you realize later now that's just not the right approach with this technology, uh anything you've kind of pulled in the oars.

Gene Campo: So first I would want to stress whenever you use AI you always have to verify, right? Just like our company, as long as Vibe then verify human will always have to be in the Loop I will focus on from a cfo, um, organization I will focus on actually the commercial technology. Uh, using AI on commercial technology to actually bring in um, a high rate of return is how can you use AI to uh, for example enable your sales team to become more efficient before they see the customer. Okay. How can they use AI to basically do prep work, uh, to identify uh, based on the latest SEC filing or the press release or um, any uh, media that you know, media work that the executives actually they speak about what's the company's focus and to look at basically identify white space.

Blake Grayson: Right.

Gene Campo: And more target and intentional message going to a customer. So from a ah, CFO office point of view, that's what, that's where I would invest on commercial technology to help grow top line. Of course, like finance department, we should also use AI as well. Um, at the same time you look at actually the rate of return, I mean, you know, saving a few ap, uh, specialists or collection specialists. That is to me that is not where the return is. The return is going to be deploying AI in commercial technology stack and be able to drive top line.

Blake Grayson: Well, thank you, thank you for uh, sharing some thoughts on AI with us. We are up to what we like to refer to as our finance strategic moment. And Gene, this may have happened anytime during your career. It might have happened 20 years ago or it might have happened last week.

Gene Campo: Yeah, a strategic moment, um, I would say that moment is not like one week or like you know, one month at type. That moment um, actually is um, over a few years I would say is my experience at Palo Alto Networks transforming from a single firewall platform to a multi platform with SaaS business and that we went through a long period of continuous M and A. In fact actually Palo Alto is still doing M and A. But uh, it started with actually you know that moment started with okay, we needed to change our company not just as a firewall company. The world has changed. So we need to change to make sure that you know, we are serving our customers with a platform of um, products that contains firewall and also like, you know, with cloud products. Right. And from a finance point of view, that involvement and you know in terms of helping shape that change is actually very impactful.

Blake Grayson: Right.

Gene Campo: From M and A integration, uh, to all the way to business model and revenue recognition model change. Right. And then to also understand what is the strength of the company. If the strength of the company is cash flow. Okay, how are you going to use your cash to drive top line, to drive product profitability? Right. Um, and these are all the um, you know the levers to identify the levers and the knobs that you can dial at different times um, and to get different results. Finance actually being the middle of the company seeing actually all the, at the end all transactions come down to the financials and finance being the independent central department. And that's how you can actually, you can see what you should leverage and how to leverage it and when to leverage it and what results that you will get and how do you measure the results results and then hold people accountable for delivering the results. And that's I would say that strategic moments, that moment is not one week. This journey takes a, takes a few years to accomplish but it's a continuous discipline and you know, working great working relationship with various business partner. And I early on I talk about the give and take when you know to give, when to take to get results for the company. That is my strategic moment in how to transform from an operational finance person to a strategic business enabler.

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Blake Grayson: While you were at Palo Alto Networks there was quite a few acquisitions I believe. Can you tell us um, when one didn't, perhaps one was more successful than another. What was often the reason?

Gene Campo: Um, the reason could be like a combination. So for one we will look at companies that at the end the culture of the two companies have to be compatible because at the end usually there's a product gap and uh, the company would like to go to market quickly to address the product gap and uh, would actually decide to buy uh, technology. But usually it's together with the founders and all the technology leaders because there will be a lot of product integration after the acquisition. So at the end, your existing product team and the new acquired founders and technology leaders will have to work together. So to me, it's at the end is okay, you know, the culture of the two companies, are they compatible then? Two is the pace of integration because, you know, you continue to sell it as two different products and then you do not realize the synergy of, um, the two technology, you know, combining together to create that platform. So we focus a lot on the pace of integration, especially in the product side, and then make it easy for the customer to buy it. You know, as a platform.

Blake Grayson: We wonder about what the first time you step in, uh, to the CFO office, you had observed CFOs, you had worked, you know, in lockstep with your other CFOs, uh, professionally, but there was still one piece of advice you wish someone had told you before you received that appointment. What would that have been?

Gene Campo: Um, I would say, you know, to be at the CFO office, you would like to be able to see the big picture, be able to elevate, um, and not just about your current department, your department, but to look at holistically how you grow the business and to also incorporating the competitive analysis, looking at what is happening in the market and then now, not just right now, but foreseeing that what will happen in the market. And then be able to advise your CEO and the management team on how to address it, it proactively. Because all this transformation, it takes time to see results. So you need to be able to kind of foresee the future a bit and then working backwards and be able to address, um, and advise your. Your company, uh, and then you hopefully, you know, to, to see the results and then the market timing will also be right. Be able to position the market, position the company to serve the market.

Blake Grayson: Gene, we always like to ask our guests to reflect a little on the personal side for us. Is there something you've been there just over a year, something your business colleagues might not know about you yet, Something from your past, uh, pursuit, an interest that you have, Anything?

Gene Campo: Yeah. Um, well, I actually, I'm a foodie now. Uh, I'm new in Austin, so I try to go to different places. Um, and I always believe in actually food has this magic. It brings people together. And, um, you know, you might be able to solve some business problems while you're at a dinner table. And at least you build relationships. Like, you know, when you have a group of, uh, colleagues like, you know, uh, trying new. Try a new restaurant, for example. So, um, uh, that's Kind of like my trick on. Okay. You know, in a new city, you know, trying new things at the same time, like, you know, building relationships with colleagues, with business partners, um, and uh, just to know more people and be able to be productive.

Blake Grayson: Can you give us a, a favorite restaurant or a place for takeout often?

Gene Campo: Um, we have actually a Peking duck place in Austin that is actually very famous. Um, and um, I'm thinking about to actually, you know, gather the team here to try because for Peking duck you need to kind of eat it as a, as a group. Like you cannot just have one person eating a pooduck. So, um, you know, absolutely is, ah, you know, hopefully I can put it together. It's a team event that, uh, I hope people will enjoy the food and also like, you know, enjoy spending time together.

Blake Grayson: Okay, so if anybody wants to join Jean as she takes everyone out to dinner. What about a book or a resource for us? Is there some, uh, something you've read along the way that you found influenced the way you think or maybe you just like to escape? I don't know. But any book or resource you, you'd care to recommend?

Gene Campo: Yeah, yeah, I always actually go back to um, Good to Great by Jim Collins.

Blake Grayson: Imagining you drilling down on the culture piece of that. I wonder if you ever had a gut feeling like, well, the numbers look fine but uh, there's something strange about these two companies. They're not eye to eye.

Gene Campo: Ah, yeah, yeah, we, you know, definitely there were companies that we looked at and you know, we did not pursue and well, you know, not solely because of culture, uh, but you know, the founders kind of like how they uh, interact with management. Um, and definitely it demonstrates how it's going to work out in the future.

Blake Grayson: How they lead could be different as well. So we are up to our final question and this is where we're going to ask you to look forward and we want to know what your priorities are as a CFO for the coming 12 months. What would those be?

Gene Campo: Yeah, my number one priority will be continuing to scale the business in this AI revolution. In this AI era. I feel so lucky to be, um, part of Sonar and be able to help shape the future of software development life cycle in the AI era. Um, now everyone talks about AI code verification. It is really the right time at the right place and we have a, ah, bunch of agentec products rolling out and it's going to uh, ga very soon. Um, and finance now plays a really critical role. Right. We talk about new product introduction earlier and what is finance, um, responsibility now is the time. Now is the time to ensure that um, there's accountability within the the company to ensure that we will deliver. Um, so that is big part of this scale, how to scale the company. I can see that increasing demand in that and how we're going to capture this demand, continue with new product and acquisition as well. Uh, last month we actually completed uh, an acquisition of Guitar which is an AI code review company. And so now with the combination of sonar deterministic co verification and Guitar AI code review that will actually give our customers the best outcome, um, you know to drive uh, productivity and efficiency and also you know um, the velocity of code development. Um, so scalability is one and um, you know we need to continue to grow top line and, and maintain profitability. So that will be really the three focus areas.

Blake Grayson: Gene Campo, thank you for joining us on CFO Thought Leader.

Gene Campo: Yeah, thank you Jack.

Gene Campo: Foreign.

Jack: The CFO path join 500 finance leaders helping define how today's CFOs rise and lead. If you're a CFO or senior finance executive, contribute your experience. It takes just a few minutes and you'll receive early access to the findings. Visit cfothoughtleader.combenchmarking.