Tubi is the world’s largest ad-supported video on demand service with over 20,000 movies and television shows from nearly every major Hollywood studio. The service gives fans of films and television programs an easy way to discover new content which is available completely free. Currently available in the US, Canada, and Australia, Tubi can be accessed on over 25 devices including Amazon FireTV, Roku, Comcast Xfinity, Cox Contour, iOS, Android and many others.
In 2018, Tubi was in search for a new Chief Financial Officer to manage the hypergrowth expansion underway and to ensure that the company was sufficiently capitalized. FLG Partners was recommended at the Board level as an interim resource for an engagement expected to last 4 months. Tubi’s management team and board selected FLG Partner Bill Beyer for the assignment.
Bringing on an interim CFO resulted in a host of benefits for the Tubi team. The CEO was able to be super-selective in the CFO hiring process with an experienced CFO resource in place. In fact, over the course of FLG’s tenure, the company’s strategy for funding their growth shifted from venture fundraising to launching an IPO. The job spec for the CFO role consequently evolved from an ad tech/media and entertainment background with venture financing experience to one which included public-company CFO experience. The CEO was able to take the time to identify and vet candidates over a much longer timeframe (20 months) in order to ensure the management team had not just a CFO, but the right CFO.
As interim CFO, Bill was able to quickly add value at Tubi by planning and executing a substantial and significant debt financing transaction for the company, enabling the CEO to focus on driving their next equity raise. In fact, the debt financing amply generated the necessary capital to fund both Tubi’s growth and an increased marketing spend that the company then had tremendous optionality for any subsequent financings.
The original interim CFO assignment for Bill at Tubi ultimately extended from 4 months to 20 months as Bill worked to put in place the key hires and infrastructure to manage the rapid growth occurring at the company. The company tripled in size during his tenure.
The key hires that were added to the Finance team included a new Controller and a new Director of FP&A (Financial Planning and Analysis). A new budgeting tool was selected by the company after a comprehensive software review. In addition, the company completed its first time through financial statement audit resulting in a clean opinion and management letter; all of which are important foundations for the Tubi IPO.
“I couldn’t be more pleased with Bill’s contributions to Tubi as interim CFO during the hypergrowth stage of the company” notes company CEO, Farhad Massoudi. “His experienced management acumen, strategic insights, financial expertise allowed us to be super-selective in our CFO search. He owned a tremendous debt financing, providing Tubi with great optionality for further financings as well as the necessary resources to fund our growth. I wouldn’t hesitate to bring Bill and FLG in again on Tubi’s behalf.”
