Mike Sanders
Co-founder and CEO of CereTax
GET TO KNOW MIKE...
Hometown:
Alpharetta, Georgia
Alma Mater:
Mississippi State University
Q: Tell us a little bit about your career journey.
A: I have a degree in Information Systems, so I'm a technologist by trade. My first job out of college was at a boutique sales tax outsourcing firm, where I programmed sales tax forms and returns. I really enjoyed it, and for whatever reason, the whole sales tax process just clicked and made a lot of sense to me.
About four and a half years later, I launched my first company as CPO—a sales tax compliance firm called Tax Partners. My business partner was a CPA, so it was a strong collaboration of skill sets. We sold that firm in 2005. Then, in 2010, I started a second company, again as a founding CPO. This time around, it was a SaaS company in the sales and tax space that later sold in 2015.
CereTax is my third company in the sales tax industry, but my first time leading as CEO.
Q: How did you meet S3 Ventures?
A: Another VC firm introduced us to Aaron, and we clicked right away. He looked at where we were as a firm at the time and pointed out a few key areas to focus on. We then took his advice to heart, incorporated his feedback, and re-engaged with him about six months later.
Once we started fundraising conversations for our Series A, we spoke with a multitude of VCs. Most chats felt like they were trying to fit us into a box or working through a checklist. In contrast, our conversation with Aaron was much more substantial: "Tell me about your business. What problem are you trying to solve? Why did you build it?" He really dug into the whys and hows.
Q: Fundraising is a tricky gambit for many entrepreneurs. What was it like navigating that process for the first time?
A: I’d say the toughest part was the time it consumed. Fundraising directly with VCs was new to me, so every conversation came with some unknowns. I had to be ready to answer anything on the spot, and everything from detailed metrics to big-picture strategy was fair game. And it wasn’t just the time; it was the mental load too. Preparing, pitching, and following up all takes a good bit of energy and focus to execute. That said, the process taught me how to clearly communicate our vision under pressure and that is something I’m grateful for.
Q: How has your leadership role evolved over time?
A: Since this is my first time as a CEO, I’m more focused on the team overall, including hiring good people that are self-governing and know how to get results. What I’m here to do is remove bottlenecks, eliminate roadblocks, and think through tough decisions. Overall, I serve more as a coach, ensuring everyone's doing their best, has what they need to succeed, and fostering a spirit of cross-team collaboration.
Q: As a former technologist, are you still pretty hands-on when it comes to product?
A: Actually, I think it's the opposite. I gravitate to the non-technical now because I enjoy a sprinkle of differentiation. Today I tend to work a lot more with sales, product marketing, and the marketing team, refining our go-to-market strategy. For the first time, I’ve had the opportunity to dive into all parts of the business, which is something I didn’t have in prior leadership roles.
Q: How would you describe your leadership style?
A: As a leader I am a servant to my team, focused on fostering a collaborative environment. Instead of making decisions by committee, we ensure we have inputs and buy-in from the whole team. I believe this ultimately empowers better decisions across the board.
Q: What attribute is most important when hiring your leadership team?
A: The easy answer would be integrity. But for me, it is integrity with a focus on excellence for our clients and what’s best for our clients. We can build great products, but if we're not serving the client and thinking about them in all that we do, it's not the right approach. Our team must have that kind of mentality rather than building their own kingdom. There are a lot of people that have their own agenda; but for our team, we will always focus on how we serve our clients with excellence.
Q: Looking back, is there anyone that's been influential in helping you get started as an entrepreneur?
A: With my first endeavor, we had a set of local angel investors that shared great insights and made introductions into the Atlanta entrepreneurial community. For me, having angel investors early in my career was extremely helpful and kept me accountable. That was probably the best experience I had coming out of the gate.
Q: Do you have any habits or routines that contribute to your success?
A: I'm very much a creature of habit, so I keep things consistent. I keep a recurring calendar of tasks that I need to do. I like to “plan the work and work the plan” – making sure everything is methodical. I know a lot of entrepreneurs are more dynamic and don’t work this way, but for me, it works pretty well. It allows me to optimize my day and control for as much as I can.
Q: If you were to give advice to a young entrepreneur, what wisdom would you pass along?
A: Number one, trust your gut. You're going to get many opinions that may steer you off course, but if you have conviction in what you are doing, trust your gut. At the same time, however, find some good business mentors – either entrepreneurs that have started and sold companies, or even started companies and had to shut down. Get every perspective possible. When I was just getting started, someone told me, "Best thing I can tell you to do is get a great attorney, a great accountant, and a great banker." And to be honest, that has held up truer than anything else.
Q: Are there any learnings you would like to share with other entrepreneurs?
A: My biggest lesson was realizing that just because there was a prior successful exit, it doesn’t mean your next company will follow the same trajectory. Each new venture is a fresh start. I’ve made this mistake before thinking, "Oh, we're hot right now, things are going to continue on." But the reality is things can quickly change. Each endeavor is net-new and assuming otherwise is a fool’s errand.
Q: What do you like to do for fun?
A: I’ve always loved sports, especially college football season. There’s just something about being outside on a fall Saturday with my grills and smokers going. I’m the guy cooking the brisket, hosting friends, and turning it into a whole experience. And to top it off, I’ve got five amazing kids. With four boys and one girl, there’s never a dull moment between their lives and mine!
CereTax is the first tax automation solution built to take advantage of the countless technological advancements over the last decade and engineered in a way that truly transforms the way tax calculation platforms operate. We threw out the old paradigms and designed CereTax to handle the challenges many companies face with legacy solutions from speed and scalability, to dependability and throughput.
More info: ceretax.com
“Instead of making decisions by committee, we ensure we have inputs and buy-in from the whole team.”