The Commission Corner - with our first CFO guest ever: Christian (CJ), dialing in from Denmark.
From building his own startup as a developer to investment banking at Citibank in NYC, C.J. brings a unique mix of tech and finance to the table. Now, as CFO at Formalize (formerly Whistleblower Software), heâs helping scale one of Europeâs most promising compliance startups.
Whatâs the story behind Formalize?
â Started as a point-solution for whistleblower compliance, sparked by new EU regulations.
â Transformed into a compliance operations platform serving SMEs that now face enterprise-level regulation.
â Closed a âŹ15M Series A to expand across Europe.
What makes Christian (CJ) different as a CFO?
â Didnât âgrow up in financeâ - started in tech, pivoted into banking, then back to startups.
â Brings M&A and fundraising expertise from Wall Street straight into hyper-growth environments.
â Thinks in systems: from Quote-to-Cash to long-term product dynamics.
Revenue, not complexity
â For early-stage SaaS: ARR or MRR is the only metric that matters.
â C.J. avoids over-engineered KPIs and keeps dashboards focused on sustainable growth drivers.
How does he view commission?
â Strong believer in clear and simple commission plans - reps should instantly know what they earn per deal.
â Incentives go beyond money: team-wide milestones, symbolic rewards (like a shared espresso machine), and moments that stick.
â âYou want reps to feel success - not calculate it in spreadsheets.â
Fundraising mindset
â CFO isnât in the spotlight â but behind every deck, model, and investor call.