Dennis Woodside, Freshworks

This season features conversations with key decision-makers who have shaped the evolution of today's leading technology platforms and ecosystems. We talk to C-suite executives, board members, investors, and others who have been instrumental in driving platform transformation at scale.

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In our latest episode, Avanish sits down with Dennis Woodside, CEO of Freshworks. Freshworks Inc. (NASDAQ: FRSH) provides people-first AI service software that organizations use to deliver exceptional customer and employee experiences. More than 72,000 companies, including American Express, Bridgestone, Databricks, Fila, Nucor, and Sony choose Freshworks’ uncomplicated solutions to increase efficiency and loyalty.

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Dennis joined Freshworks as President in 2022 and has spent more than two decades at innovative companies in Silicon Valley. Previous roles include Chief Operating Officer of Dropbox and sales and strategy leadership roles at Google for more than 10 years, including CEO of Motorola Mobility after Google acquired the company.

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In this episode, Avanish and Dennis discuss:

• How Freshworks evolved from a single help desk product to a multi-product platform serving 74,000 customers globally, from small businesses to enterprises like Airbus and Nucor Steel
• The importance of being "pulled" by customers into new markets rather than pushing—recognizing when customers you didn't expect are adopting your products
• The challenges of building and scaling a multi-product company where products are at different maturity levels and target slightly different ICPs
• Why ecosystem strategy is critical at Freshworks, including both technology integrations with thousands of partners and a services ecosystem to source and implement solutions
• Freshworks' differentiated approach of building "uncomplicated" solutions in a market dominated by complexity—particularly for mid-market and low-enterprise customers (up to 20,000 employees)
• Dennis's philosophy of customer-centricity: "When in doubt, go talk to a customer"
• Building an ecosystem strategy that includes both technology integrations with thousands of partners and a global services network, with direct sales in nine countries and partner-led expansion everywhere else

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