If you’re a SaaS founder, let me tell you – the SGx is not just a program, it’s an experience that transforms the way you think, build, and grow. As a proud graduate of SGx Winter’24, I can confidently say it’s one of the most impactful communities I’ve ever been part of.
In this blog, I’ll take you through my journey, the game-changing lessons I learned, and why I believe SGx is a must for every ambitious SaaS founder.
How I found out about SGx (and why I had to apply)
It all started with the AI Bootcamp.
In June 2024, SaaSBoomi organized its first-ever AI Bootcamp for SaaS+AI founders in Bangalore. A two-day deep dive at a resort. I went to meet other founders, soak in all the learning, and just be in the mix of things.
At the very first day of the bootcamp, something caught my eye. There was this one group. They were ridiculously happy to see each other, taking a ton of pictures, and having the time of their lives.
I remember thinking: How do they know each other so well? And why are they SO happy to see each other?
The next evening, after all the sessions and before the dinner party, Pallav Nadhani stood up to talk about SGx, the SaaSBoomi GrowthX program. He described it as a stellar program for SaaS founders to scale their GTM. But what stood out to me was when he said this program was very close to his heart and that every mentor and alum would tell you the same.
Then he asked all the previous SGx cohort companies to raise their hands.
That’s when I saw them.
The same tight-knit, high-energy group from before. They were all SGx alums. That moment made me realize that SGx wasn’t just a program. It was a khaandan, a family.
Later that night, during dinner, I went up to a few of them to ask about their experience. Everyone I spoke to had only incredible things to say about how much it helped their startup, the depth of learning, and the relationships they built. That’s when I knew I had to be part of SGx.
I went home and immediately told my co-founders, Akash and Prajwal, that we needed to apply. A couple of weeks later, the applications opened. I filled out the form, got shortlisted for interviews, and soon after, we received the email. Clueso was in.
The SGx Experience
Once we got in, I received an email from Amrutha with the best news. Our mentor was going to be Pallav Nadhani, and our Saarthis, or wingmates, would be Akshay (Adbrew) and Abhishek (WeCP).
Our kickoff call was on August 10th. That was the first time we met all the mentors, introduced ourselves, and got a feel for what was ahead. The energy was incredible. There was no fluff, no generic introductions—just a bunch of founders, each at different stages, but all driven by the same goal. By the end of the call, it was clear that this was going to be super intense, but also deeply rewarding.
The first two weeks were all about getting clarity. We had to define our ICP with real data, not just gut feel, and set OKRs for what we wanted to achieve in the next four months. That exercise alone was a wake-up call. Clueso was already working with over 150 customers at that point, but we were just a four-person team—three founders and one engineer. We had gotten this far on pure hustle, but it was obvious that we needed systems, scale, and a repeatable GTM strategy.
For us, the biggest challenge was figuring out how to scale beyond founder-led sales. Up until then, every single customer had to book a demo with me before they could access Clueso. That meant I was personally involved in every deal. It worked in the beginning, but it wasn’t going to get us to the next level. We needed a scalable GTM motion and a better CRM and analytics setup to track customer interactions and product usage.
Here’s what we achieved during the cohort:
Launched Self-Serve PLG for Clueso
Before SGx, we onboarded 150 customers manually. It took hours of my time and was just not scalable. During SGx, we built our PLG motion, and now hundreds of companies sign up on Clueso every month. This would never have been possible if we stuck with our demo-led approach.
Migrated from Google Sheets to HubSpot
Google Sheets couldn’t keep up with our growing customer base. HubSpot became our single source of truth for all things customer and deals. Huge shoutout to Kalyan (Almabase) for an incredible session on HubSpot implementation.
Implemented detailed Product Analytics
We started tracking customer journeys from sign-up to their first video export, identifying confusing workflows, proactively fixing bugs, and analyzing how features are being used.
Started focusing on SEO
Started working on SEO strategically to 10x our website traffic over the next few months.
Grew our team
We expanded from a team of three founders and one engineer to a 10-member team.
I’m beyond grateful to all the amazing mentors, but a special shoutout to Pallav, Akshay, and Abhishek—our direct mentors—who went out of their way to guide us, push us, and help us level up.
Pallav is hands down the best PLG founder I have ever met and we’ve learned so much. His data-driven decision-making and lightning-fast execution helped us move miles. He has pushed us to think harder about every product decision, from what screens to show and what messaging to use to how to build a seamless customer experience, helping us build a much stronger, customer-first product.
And here’s what blew my mind. All these mentors are founders of massive SaaS companies themselves, yet they take out hours every week to help us. They get nothing in return.
It honestly didn’t make sense to me at first. Why would they spend so much time on us? But by the end of SGx, I finally understood.
Graduation in Goa: When we became family
SGx ended with an in-person graduation ceremony in Goa, and that’s when the real magic happened.
For many of us, this was the first time meeting in person. And let me tell you, these two days were some of the best of my life. The retreat was full of raw, unfiltered conversations. One hundred percent vulnerability, no filters, no pretense.
One of the most powerful moments from the retreat was when everyone opened up about the toughest times in their startup journeys.
The level of vulnerability in that room was unreal. Hearing these stories—of struggles, near failures, and the sheer resilience it took to keep going—was incredibly humbling. It made me realize just how much grit it takes to build something, and it left me deeply inspired.
And of course, the retreat wasn’t just all deep and serious. It was an absolute blast— an incredible sundowner and intense indoor games that went on till the early hours, and so much more. It was the perfect mix of fun, bonding, and unforgettable memories.
Final thoughts
At the retreat, I finally understood what “paying it forward” truly meant. Seeing our mentors dedicate their time and energy to help us—without expecting anything in return—was eye-opening. You could see the pure joy they got from watching us succeed. By the end of the retreat, every founder in our cohort felt the same. We knew we wanted to do the same for future batches, to give back in any way we could.
SGx isn’t just a program. It’s a family, a khaandan, and as everyone at SGx says – Growth Friends Forever.
If I could go back in time and ask myself whether I’d do SGx knowing everything I know now, my answer would be a loud, resounding YES. Every. Single. Time.
