Speakers from the best in tech
What to Expect at Our Conference
- AI in Action – Hear from thought leaders and innovators on how AI is transforming the way teams communicate, collaborate, and scale.
- Real-World Workflows – Learn how professionals across support, product, and sales are using async + AI to reduce busywork and focus on what matters.
- Practical Playbooks – Take away actionable tactics for documentation, onboarding, customer engagement, and more.
- The Future of Async Tools – See the latest product innovations, including upcoming AI-powered capabilities and roadmap highlights.
- Community Exchange – Connect with peers, share ideas, and explore how others are solving everyday challenges with async-first practices.
When
September 24, 2025Time
11:00 AM - 1:00 PM PSTWhere
Online - CrowdcastWho
For Zight UsersOur 2025 On-Demand Keynote Speakers
Why Intentionality Beats Brilliance
Sangram Vajre is a serial entrepreneur and three-time founder behind companies like Pardot (acquired by Salesforce for $2B) and Terminus, where he helped pioneer Account-Based Marketing. Now leading GTM Partners, Sangram shares how his experience building companies shaped his philosophy on scaling with intentionality, and why workflow-first thinking and AI are transforming modern business growth.
Leadership and growth
Join Jay Nathan, CEO of Balboa Solutions, as he shares over two decades of experience in enterprise software leadership. This session explores how to build and scale high-performing SaaS teams, stay agile in product development, and drive customer-centric growth. Learn how Jay shapes vision, navigates scaling challenges, and adapts to shifting market demands.
Customer-Centric Growth
Join Nick Francis, Co‑Founder and CEO of Help Scout, as he delves into building a customer-first culture and scaling a SaaS business with heart. With two decades of experience in customer support software, Nick reveals how Help Scout balances product innovation with empathy, fostering a team devoted to real customer needs.
Redefining Customer Success
Dave Blake, Founder & CEO of ClientSuccess, brings over 20 years of experience at Adobe, Omniture, and beyond to this insightful session on leadership, innovation, and customer retention in SaaS. From consulting to founding a leading CS platform, Dave shares how a competitive mindset and customer-first philosophy drive his approach.
Workflow and leadership
Join Melissa Rosenthal—former BuzzFeed and Cheddar exec, SaaS growth driver at ClickUp, and now founder of Outlever—as she shares her dynamic journey from media disruptor to tech visionary. In this episode, Melissa dives into the lessons she's learned while transitioning across industries, building impactful teams, and staying focused as a founder.
Bootstrapping, Leadership, and the Future of Remote Work
Colin Nederkoorn, Founder and CEO of Customer.io, shares his journey from niche side projects to building one of the most respected bootstrapped SaaS platforms in the industry. In this episode, Colin unpacks what it takes to evolve as a leader, scale a fully remote company, and stay laser-focused on customer needs.
Empowering the Next Generation
In this inspiring conversation, Hadi Partovi—Founder of Code.org—shares his journey from growing up in Iran to launching a global movement in computer science education. Hear how his personal story fueled the creation of the Hour of Code, which has reached over 1.8 billion students, and why he believes coding, creativity, and entrepreneurship are essential skills for the future.
How AI Is Reshaping the Support Experience
In this episode, Matt Bond—Director of Customer Support at Algolia—shares how a career that began at age 13 evolved into leading high-impact support teams in tech. From blending technical skills with customer empathy to embracing AI for scalable service, Matt offers practical insights on leadership, persistence, and the future of support.
Backing the Builders of Tomorrow
Ashley Smith—GP and Founder of Vermillion Cliffs Ventures—joins to share her journey from scaling iconic companies like Twilio and GitHub to backing the next generation of technical founders. From founder-led growth and AI infrastructure to the future of venture capital, Ashley offers bold insights on what it takes to build and invest in high-impact startups.
Leadership, AI, and Building Teams That Win
Dan O’Sullivan draws on his experience at Meta and in SaaS to share how transparency and intentional communication drive high-performing teams. He explores the evolving role of AI in enterprise collaboration, why partnerships fuel true customer success, and how he balances leadership with personal growth.
Designing with Vision in a Data-Driven World
Gil Lara—Co-founder of Sprout Social—shares his journey from graffiti artist to design leader at one of the top social media platforms. In this episode, Gil reflects on the early days of building Sprout, how customer feedback fuels innovation, the evolving role of AI, and the importance of balancing creative vision with business strategy.
Leading with Purpose in the Nonprofit Space
Todd Baylis—Chief Customer Officer at Bloomerang—shares how his passion for helping nonprofits has shaped his leadership journey. From building strong remote teams to transforming donor engagement through AI, Todd offers valuable insights on customer success, entrepreneurship, and leading with purpose in the nonprofit world.
The Global Playbook for Customer Success
Luke Ferrel—Global Head of Customer Success at Deel—shares his journey from military linguist to leading global customer success at scale. From designing Deel’s “Golden Deal” framework to scaling remote teams with AI, Luke brings sharp insights on leadership, systems thinking, and building customer success in a global-first world.
Inventing the PDF: A Story of Innovation and Impact
Mike Pell—Director at Microsoft—joins the Zight Podcast to share the untold story behind one of the most transformative tools in digital history. From solving platform inconsistency to exploring the future of spatial computing, Mike offers powerful lessons on creativity, collaboration, and redefining what’s possible in tech.
Redefining What Great Support Looks Like
Laura Bedoya—Senior Technical Support Manager at Vitally.io—shares her journey building the company’s first B2B support team and championing inclusive leadership. From redefining support metrics to leveraging AI and fostering mentorship, Laura’s leadership blends strategy, documentation, and fun to create lasting impact across her team and community.
Designing Customer Service with Empathy
Romain Rothier—Principal Platform Architect at Zendesk—joins the Zight Podcast to explore how empathy, design, and global experience shape modern customer service. From AI automation to building beautifully simple software, Romain shares lessons from a decade at Zendesk and a life spent blending technology with human connection.
Empathy in an AI-Powered World
Fernando Duarte, a seasoned leader in customer success and support, shares how his journey—from video game enthusiast to national trainer—shaped his people-first approach to leadership. In this episode, he explores the power of celebrating failure, the shift toward digital support models, and why empathy and lifelong learning are key to the future of customer experience.
Solving Real Problems with AI and Analytics
Akhil Agrawal—SVP and RevOps at InfoCepts—shares his 20+ year journey from data enthusiast to transformation leader. With a player-coach approach to leadership and deep roots in analytics, Akhilkumar dives into AI’s impact on real-world problems, the shift from technical to customer-facing roles, and the power of consistency and listening in building credibility.
Building Trust in a Tech-Driven World
Ben Rosenberg—Senior Director at ChurnZero—shares his journey from hospitality to SaaS leadership, blending mentorship, adaptability, and strategic vision. From supporting SMBs at scale to leveraging AI without losing the human touch, Ben offers fresh insights on leading high-impact support teams in today’s evolving customer landscape.
From Developer to Director: A Journey in Tech Leadership
Arturo Suarez Martin—Senior Director of Customer Success at PagerDuty—shares his journey from developer to tech leader and the lessons learned from building mission-critical systems. With a focus on curiosity, humility, and the power of AI, Arturo offers thoughtful insights on leadership, innovation, and the evolving future of work.
Customer Success, Redefined
Aaron Woods—former Director of Strategic Post Sales at LaunchDarkly—shares lessons from a decade in customer success at leading SaaS companies like Datadog, Catalyst, and Fidelity. From shifting from sales to CS, leading remote teams, and setting bold goals, Aaron explores how adaptability, technical fluency, and human connection define the future of customer success.
The Strategy Behind Retention
Philippe Mesritz—Fractional Chief Customer Officer and former GM at Community Brands—joins us to share how he’s led SaaS organizations through major CX transformations. From boosting NPS by 40 points to embracing AI in customer success, Philippe dives into building high-performing teams, navigating career pivots, and why sometimes the best CX move is letting go.
Shaping the next era of cybersecurity
(2024) David Faugno, President & COO of 1Password, discusses his leadership philosophy, mentorship, and the evolving cybersecurity landscape. He highlights the growing need for digital security, 1Password's competitive edge, and the role AI plays in shaping the future of cybersecurity.
AI and the future of customer experience
(2024) Join us for a chat with Nick Mehta, CEO of Gainsight, as he shares insights on leadership, the future of customer success, and his CEO playbook. Discover how AI, remote work, and tools like Zight are shaping the customer experience. Don't miss Nick’s expert advice!
Building the Future of Video AI for Developers
(2024) Mokshith Voodarla—Co-founder and CEO of Sieve—joins the Zight Podcast to talk about his journey from engineering at NVIDIA and Scale AI to building developer-first video AI tools. We dig into the founding story of Sieve, the future of accessible AI, and how Mokshith sees video, APIs, and spatial computing reshaping the developer landscape.
Scaling cloud infrastructure and AI
(2024) Thomas Balden, a staff tech lead at Google, discussing his work on large-scale systems like Firebase app hosting, Cloud Functions, and his contributions to scaling infrastructure at Google and Facebook. He shares technical insights on challenges such as scaling for billions of connections, innovations in cloud infrastructure, the evolution of Edge Computing, and the importance of building easily adoptable, well-documented systems.
The craftsman mindset
(2024) Talin Wadsworth, Principal Designer at Adobe and co-creator of Adobe XD, shares his journey in transforming the design industry. With over a decade of experience, Talin discusses his leadership style, emphasizing a craftsman mindset and collaboration, and how real-world feedback drives innovation. He explores the evolving role of design tools, scaling creativity globally, and the future of AI in shaping digital workflows.
Building human centered AI
(2024) Erica, Chief Customer Officer at Storytel, discusses the role of AI in enhancing communication. She emphasizes how AI can create more personalized and meaningful interactions, helping businesses better understand customer needs while maintaining a human-centered approach in technology.
Keys to marketing in the tech space
(2024) Chris shares how his experiences at Adobe and Box shape his vision for Twilio’s marketing, the role of AI in personalization, and his approach to leadership, creativity, and team alignment. Don’t miss his insights on driving marketing innovation and business growth!
Conference Schedule
Wednesday, September 24, 2025
