Scaling SaaS, Messaging Platforms & Digital Influence | DisrupTV Ep. 25
In Episode 25 of DisrupTV, hosts R “Ray” Wang and Vala Afshar speak with:
- Roy Ng, COO of Twilio
- Keith Krach, CEO of DocuSign
- Brian Fanzo, change evangelist and social trendsetter
They dive into how platform businesses scale, the strategic role of messaging infrastructure (like Twilio), how contract/digital signature platforms (DocuSign) evolve, and how digital influence fuels growth in modern enterprises.
Key Takeaways
Platform & Infrastructure as Differentiators
Roy Ng illustrates how Twilio turns communications APIs into foundational building blocks for developers and enterprises. The infrastructure layer becomes a moat when it is reliable, scalable, and integrated.
Scaling SaaS via Trust & Ecosystem
Keith Krach underscores how DocuSign scaled by building trust in digital signatures, focusing on security, regulatory compliance, and embedding into business workflows.
Digital Influence & Storytelling
Brian Fanzo emphasizes that influence, authenticity, and social storytelling are critical to humanizing brands, cutting through noise, and building community.
Balancing Growth with Operational Discipline
The guests agree that hypergrowth must be paired with strong internal systems, feedback loops, and governance to sustain scale without collapse.
Interplay of Developer Demand & Market Adoption
The conversation shows that platforms succeed when they serve developer ecosystems first — making it easy to build — but also when they translate to business value and adoption downstream.
Final Thoughts
This episode reinforces that the future of software is built on platform thinking, trust, and influence. Roy Ng’s Twilio model shows that communication APIs aren’t merely features—they become foundational layers. Keith Krach’s DocuSign journey reveals that trust and integration into business processes differentiate SaaS. Brian Fanzo’s focus on influence demonstrates that narrative and authenticity bring emotional connection in digital markets.
To win in this era, companies must marry high-performance infrastructure with emotional connection; scale operations while rooting in trust; and serve builders while enabling business outcomes.
Related Episodes
- Ep. 27 – “Human Experience, Conversational Business & HR Innovation” — exploring how customer and employee experiences intersect
- Ep. 30 – “HR, AI & Workday’s Future” — how SaaS, infrastructure, and trust converge in the future of work
