Karim Damji

Observer
DISC Type : ci

Chief Financial Officer at Substack

Menlo Park, California, United States

Overview

Karim Damji is the Chief Financial Officer at Substack, bringing deep expertise from senior finance roles at WorkBoard and SurveyMonkey, where he was involved in an IPO. A Chartered Accountant, he specializes in building finance functions, M&A, and has successfully led major funding rounds, including a $100M Series C for Substack.

Outside of work, Karim prioritizes time with his wife and three sons. He took a personal sabbatical to focus on family, travel, and his interests, which include attending concerts and coaching youth basketball. He also managed a house renovation during this time off.

Unique fact: He is actively working on expanding his repertoire of eye-rolling dad jokes.

Personality Overview

Example Seeker

Assertive

Curious

They can sound friendly and charming but can quickly change gears to become inquisitive and probing.  They are likely to ask many questions and look heavily for supporting information. They are generally good communicators and can be hard to convince.

Topics They Care About

Creator Economy
As CFO of Substack, he is central to building a new economic engine for culture and empowering independent writers and creators.
Venture Fundraising
He has a proven record of securing significant capital, having successfully completed a $100M Series C at Substack and Series C & D rounds at WorkBoard.
Strategic Finance
His posts about hiring for FP&A and his experience building finance teams from the ground up at Substack highlight his focus on financial strategy and growth.

Media Appearances

Karim has no verified media appearances

Work History

5-2024
Chief Financial Officer at Substack
1-2023 - 5-2024
Personal Sabbatical at Career Break
9-2019 - 12-2022
Chief Financial Officer at WorkBoard Inc.
8-2016 - 9-2019
Vice President, Finance at SurveyMonkey
3-2012 - 7-2016
Senior Director, Finance at SurveyMonkey

Education

Bachelor of Business Administration from Southern Methodist University
Chartered Accountant from Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants

More Information

Social Presence :

Prographics :

Exp : 21 Location : Menlo Park, California, United States Job Level : Leadership Designation : Chief Financial Officer at Substack
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Insights For Selling To Karim

During A Call Or A Meeting

DO's

  • Persuade objectively how your product will help them achieve their goals
  • Build rapport, it will come handy to handle hard questions later
  • Ask them questions to understand their needs better while staying affable

DONT's

  • Don’t brush off any concerns, take all questions seriously
  • Don’t try to rush them into a decision, provide all necessary information first
  • Don’t rely excessively on your relationship with them to win the deal

When Cold Calling

When Writing An Email

While Negotiating & Closing

    The secret to closing fast with Karim is

  • Proven value, strong testimonials are important to them, relationships will have some weightage.
  • Will you ever get a clear answer from Karim

  • They are practical and friendly, don't expect a clear-cut response often.

Insights For Deal Planning

    How fast (or slow) will Karim move?

  • They like to perform full analysis and can take time to make any decision.
  • Can Karim take some risk or not?

  • They evaluate their decisions systematically and are less likely to take risks.

You And Karim

Personality Compatibility


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