Tien Tzuo is the founder and CEO of Zuora (NYSE: ZUO). Beginning in 2007, Tzuo evangelized the shift to subscription-based business models coining the phrase “Subscription Economy.” In an effort to empower this new economy, Tzuo spent 10 years building an award-winning subscription management platform capable of powering any subscription business, and to solve the complex billing structures they inherit. Before Zuora, Tzuo was one of the 'original forces' at Salesforce, joining as employee number 11. In his 9 years at Salesforce (1999-2008), Tzuo built its original billing system, later serving as chief marketing officer (2003-2005), and chief strategy officer (2005-2008). He now holds a patent for the on-demand application abilities key to Zuora’s proprietary SaaS platform.
Tzuo is the author of the USA Today, LA Times and Amazon best selling book, “SUBSCRIBED: Why the Subscription Model Will be Your Company's Future - and What to Do About It,” and a sought after speaker by the world’s largest companies to present his definitive playbook for thriving in this new business era.
As the world's foremost authority on the Subscription Economy, Tien has been on the cover of Forbes AI, profiled in stories by Forbes, Fortune and the Wall Street Journal, and interviewed live on CNBC, Mad Money and Sky TV. Tzuo was named Entrepreneur of the Year by EY in 2016, CEO of the Year by The Silicon Valley Business Journal in 2018, and a CMO of the Year finalist by the CMO Council and BusinessWeek Magazine while at Salesforce. He has spoken at the G-20 Summit, Web Summit, Dell World, SaaStr and more.
Tzuo holds a BS in electrical engineering from Cornell and an MBA from Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, where he is a regular presenter in the classroom. He is currently on the Board of Directors for Network for Good and Vonage.