Meet Grant Kratz
Founder, SalesFlex
I’ve spent more than 30 years helping businesses grow — across enterprise, scale-ups, and founder-led companies in Australia, New Zealand, Asia Pacific, Europe, and the United States.
Along the way, I’ve seen the same story play out countless times: when growth takes off, structure starts to lag behind. The business still works — but it gets harder to run. Decisions keep bouncing back to the founder, execution slows, and revenue becomes less predictable.
That’s the moment I built SalesFlex to solve.
25+
Years Of Experience
$497M
Portfolios Manged
$497M
Portfolios Managed
25+
Countries
25+
Years of Exprrience
Where It Started
My career began at IBM Australia — one of the world’s most respected technology companies of its time. I thrived there, learning how real commercial discipline works.
Over the years, I ranked 3rd nationally among IBM’s top salespeople, achieved eight consecutive years of overperformance, earned a full MBA scholarship in Entrepreneurial Studies (Southern Cross University), and completed Executive Leadership Training at Harvard University.By the time I left, I was leading major IT and Managed Services portfolios across Asia Pacific — with sales responsibilities exceeding $5.5 billion.
That experience gave me a blueprint: world-class leadership, clear structure, and the discipline to execute under pressure.
From Big Business to Building My Own
After IBM, I wanted to put those principles to the test in the real world — not in
theory, but in ownership.
A few years later, I found myself sitting in a coffee shop in Brisbane when an old client walked by. He told me about a distressed biometrics company he had just bought and asked if I’d consider running it.
I wasn’t interested in running it for someone else — but I was interested in building something real.
That conversation led to Grabba — a company my partners and I bought and turned around. I left my job, moved to the United States, and led global sales and marketing.
Over three years, we grew revenue from $1.8M to $10M, expanded internationally, partnered with major Federal and Defence clients, launched in the UAE, and acquired a manufacturing business to scale further.
It was an intense, hands-on education in what it really takes to scale — the good, the bad, and the complexity that comes with growth.
The Pattern Became Obvious
Later, I founded Expat Refinery, a US-based sales outsourcing business. That’s where I started noticing something consistent — and troubling.
So many smart, passionate founders were building great products but struggling to build the commercial engine to match.
The numbers tell the story:
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90% of startups fail
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42% fail due to poor go-to-market strategy
The rest usually fail because they run out of cash — which is often the same problem in disguise. Busy founders, no structured plan, and a fragile revenue system.
Why I Started SalesFlex
I wanted to fix that problem — not as a consultant delivering a plan, but as a partner helping founders turn strategy into rhythm.
I started this business because I believe clarity and structure unlock sustainable growth. Because I’ve seen the difference between companies that run on hustle and those that run on rhythm.And because I love helping founders build something that actually works.
— Grant Kratz
Founder, SalesFlex
SalesFlex exists to help founders and teams:
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Build clarity around their go-to-market strategy
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Develop the operating cadence that keeps growth steady
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Create predictable revenue and reduce founder dependency