Why Whatfix built a function-based org structure

When Whatfix’s Vara Kumar moved to the US about three years ago, he and co-founder Khadim Batti, who operates from Bengaluru, wondered how they would make their long-distance collaboration work.

Kumar relocated to California to be closer to the SaaS startup’s growing list of US clients, whose business makes up 75% of its topline.

Before the big change, the two co-founders had a well-settled process to arrive at decisions and end disagreements. They would take a walk every time their ideas about running Whatfix clashed. This always helped, Kumar told The CapTable.

Regular calls and periodic visits have replaced the tension-defusing strolls, though Kumar and Batti find themselves increasingly on the same page now.

One major discussion between them early on was how the company’s top rungs should be structured. Kumar, who is the chief technology and product officer, believes that innovation happens when leadership is functionally built.