Martin Afshari-mehr
Strategic Operator & Advisor | Ex-Salesforce Ventures Director | SaaS Growth | GTM Strategy | Investor & Builder
United Kingdom
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Work Experience
Independent Strategy Consulting, Investing and Trading
2023
Consulting Work: • Provided strategic advisory to the executive leadership of a publicly listed software company during a pivotal transition. • Advised on external threats, blind spots, and growth opportunities, helping shape product, market, and competitive direction. • Recognized by senior stakeholders for clarity of thinking, commercial insight, and practical, high-impact recommendations. Investments & Trading: • Conducted deep research into SaaS, AI, and digital platform trends to shape long-term investment theses. • Developed and actively refined trading strategies across U.S. equities and futures markets. • Applied structured decision-making frameworks to improve risk management, timing, and return profile.
2017 - 2022
Director, Salesforce Ventures & Corporate Development
2017 - 2022
• Led end-to-end investments across enterprise SaaS, AI, cybersecurity, and DevOps, overseeing sourcing, diligence, deal structuring, and portfolio growth. • Partnered closely with founders and executive teams to refine commercial models, scale go-to-market strategies and navigate critical inflection points. • Acted as a strategic sounding board to Salesforce’s CxO suite and co-investors, advising on product fit, market expansion, and competitive positioning. • Conducted deep market and competitive analysis to surface high-leverage opportunities, mitigate expansion risks, and assess defensibility. • Co-built the European operations team: hired, trained, and developed junior investors; implemented decision frameworks to streamline investment processes and improve internal alignment. • Notable investments included Snyk (developer security), GoCardless (payments infrastructure), and Copado (DevOps automation).
2018 - 2021
Board Observer
2018 - 2021
2018 - 2020
Board Observer
2018 - 2020
2015 - 2017
Partner
2015 - 2017
• Evaluated early-stage software and tech investments, conducting rigorous due diligence and market analysis. • Provided strategic and operational advisory to portfolio companies, focusing on scalability, product-market fit, and revenue models. • Served as a board advisor to multiple startups, including Attest and Passfort (acquired by Moody’s). • Played a key role in fund operations and fundraising, crafting financial models and investor presentations.
2015 - 2017
Board Observer
2015 - 2017
2015 - 2017
Board Observer
2015 - 2017
2015 - 2017
Board Observer
2015 - 2017
2015 - 2017
Board Observer
2015 - 2017
2012 - 2015
Director, Investments & Development
2012 - 2015
• Responsible for managing a family-owned residential real estate portfolio in London and the South East. • Developed and executed investment strategy, financial modeling, and asset development plans