Richard Danforth
Alcolu,SC
Summary
Strategic SaaS operator with 12+ years of experience driving growth, transformation, and operational excellence across investor-backed and mission-driven companies. Trusted advisor to CEOs, boards, and private equity sponsors, including Apax and Camden Partners. Known for influencing without formal authority by building deep trust with cross-functional stakeholders. Proven success in leading M&A integration, GTM transformation, FP&A, and digital subscription transitions. Experienced in presenting to boards and PE partners with a focus on strategic planning, KPI visibility, and operational rigor.
Overview
9
9
years of professional experience
Work History
Vice President, Strategy & Analytics
Teachstone
Charlottesville, VA
02.2025 - Current
- Leading full-scale transition from professional services to digital-first subscription model; projected to increase enterprise value 8x over four years.
- Own strategy and cross-functional execution across product, go-to-market, finance, and operations without formal reporting lines.
- Developed a comprehensive plan to revamp business model, product strategy, and corporate strategy through customer discovery, product validation, and strategic financial modeling.
- Defined KPIs and reporting framework to track transformation milestones.
- Provide executive visibility into GTM strategy, product readiness, and revenue impact.
Chief of Staff to the CEO
Teachstone
Charlottesville, VA
02.2024 - 02.2025
- Leveraged robust external experiences to improve Finance, GTM, Product, and Operations functions by partnering with respective Officers overseeing those functions.
- Led budgeting, forecasting, and strategic planning; indirectly managed finance function.
- Acted as strategic advisor during executive transition and board engagement.
- Supported interim and new CEO with org design, planning cycles, and board prep.
- Implemented cross-functional alignment framework for operational continuity.
Senior Director, Revenue Strategy & Operations
Bonterra
Washington, DC
01.2023 - 01.2024
- Owned bookings modeling, quota design, and commission strategy across a $300M ARR portfolio.
- Led forecasting and pipeline health reporting; managed analytics team.
- Presented revenue outlooks directly to Apax board and operating partners.
- Partnered with Sales and Marketing to optimize funnel performance and identify GTM inefficiencies.
Director, Corporate Strategy
Bonterra
Washington, DC
12.2022 - 06.2023
- Partnered with the Chief Strategy Officer to aid in buy-side M&A strategy, financial planning, and company-wide resource allocation.
- Maintained a close partnership with the interim CEO and Apax operating teams.
- Developed executive dashboards and long-term planning models.
- Created a 5-year horizon planning financial model to inform short- and long-term business strategy.
Chief of Staff to CEO
Bonterra
Washington , DC
01.2022 - 11.2022
- Supported integration of seven+ acquired companies under Apax ownership.
- Attended and contributed to all officer meetings and board sessions, including presenting in board meetings.
- Provided strategic and operational coordination across the executive team.
- Facilitated alignment across legal, product, and operations during merger execution.
Acting CFO / Head of Finance
Network For Good
Washington , DC
06.2016 - 01.2022
- Led the company through a successful exit at approximately 6.5x ARR multiple.
- Sole finance operator managing board reporting, investor calls, and banking processes.
- Built financial models and diligence materials for the sale process while acting as CFO role from Management Presentations through confirmatory diligence during banking process.
- Served as a liaison between the CEO and a private equity firm during the transaction.
Manager, Operations & Analytics
Network For Good
Washington, DC
01.2019 - 01.2021
- Created company-wide KPI dashboards; aligned GTM, product, and CS on performance metrics.
- Drove a 62% CAC reduction and a 20% ARPU increase through strategic resource optimization.
- Acted as a cross-functional connector across Data Science, Finance, Product, GTM, and Success teams.
- Created updated corporate strategy to navigate COVID, which included buy, buy, and partner analysis for new product offerings. Resulting in the purchase of an online auctions company and in-house development of an online fundraising events product
Manager, Customer Success Onboarding
Network for Good
Washington, DC
06.2016 - 01.2017
- Designed onboarding tied to retention-driving product behaviors.
- Implemented "graduation" criteria for implementation team and aligned sales comp plans to align adoption incentives.
- Improved logo retention from 45% to 84%, and achieved over 100% NRR.
- Partnered with the CRO to define ICP criteria and reduce downstream churn.
Education
MBA - Corporate Finance
George Washington University School of Business
Washington, DC12-2021
Bachelor of Arts -
University of New Hampshire
Durham, NH05-2014
Skills
- 12 years of operational leadership in B2B SaaS businesses, including multiple investor-backed environments (Camden Partners, Boathouse Capital, Apax Capital)
- PE-backed experience at multiple stages — early-growth ($10M ARR) to scaled platforms ($300M), including full M&A lifecycle and post-acquisition integration
- Proven success driving GTM strategy including sales compensation design, ICP definition, pricing/packaging optimization, and sales enablement
- Built and led Revenue Operations functions, owning pipeline health, sales forecasting, bookings modeling, and board-level reporting
- Hands-on FP&A experience, including budgeting, forecasting, and scenario modeling; served as acting CFO during company sale process
- Boardroom-ready communication skills, with regular presentation experience to executive teams, PE sponsors, and high-profile board members (including Steve Ballmer)
- Led strategic planning and long-range modeling across Product, Finance, GTM, and Operations teams, aligning around measurable KPIs
- Cross-functional leadership without formal authority, consistently influencing decision-makers across product, data, finance, and revenue functions through relationship building
- Developed company-wide KPI dashboards used for executive and investor reporting; enabled data-driven planning and performance tracking
- Led transformation from services to subscription SaaS model, validating strategy through market and customer discovery; plan projected to 8x enterprise value
- Owned and executed M&A diligence and integration plans, coordinating with investors, executive leadership, and departmental stakeholders
- Managed multi-disciplinary teams, including onboarding, implementation, analytics, and finance; known for building high-trust stakeholder relationships
- Expert in customer lifecycle optimization, having improved logo retention from 45% to 84% and achieved >100% NRR
MBA with Corporate Finance concentration, complementing strategic and analytical responsibilities
Skills
- Strategic Planning • SaaS GTM • M&A Diligence & Integration • PE/Board Communication
Revenue Operations • FP&A • KPI Dashboards • Subscription Model Transformation
Cross-Functional Leadership • Influence Without Authority
Timeline
Vice President, Strategy & Analytics
Teachstone
02.2025 - Current
Chief of Staff to the CEO
Teachstone
02.2024 - 02.2025
Senior Director, Revenue Strategy & Operations
Bonterra
01.2023 - 01.2024
Director, Corporate Strategy
Bonterra
12.2022 - 06.2023
Chief of Staff to CEO
Bonterra
01.2022 - 11.2022
Manager, Operations & Analytics
Network For Good
01.2019 - 01.2021
Acting CFO / Head of Finance
Network For Good
06.2016 - 01.2022
Manager, Customer Success Onboarding
Network for Good
06.2016 - 01.2017
MBA - Corporate Finance
George Washington University School of Business
Bachelor of Arts -
University of New Hampshire
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