How Joe Walsh is Pivoting a $4B Legacy Business into a SaaS Model

SaaS growth strategy, legacy business transformation, SMB software, AI in SaaS, private equity, business scaling, and digital transformation all come together in this episode of SaaS That App featuring Joe Walsh, Chairman and CEO of Thryv. He joins Aaron Marchbanks and Justin Edwards to share what it really takes to transform a legacy business into a high-growth SaaS company multiple times over. Joe unpacks how he helped grow Yellowbook from a $20M company into a $4B global business through acquisitions, operational discipline, and a repeatable scaling model, then explains how those same principles apply when reinventing companies for new markets. This podcast is brought to you by Delta Systems, your one-stop shop for front-end, back-end, and full-stack software development. At Delta, Justin and Aaron share the same philosophy when it comes to clients: they treat people like colleagues, not just customers. Maybe that’s why Delta typically spends years working with the same companies: how many software engineering firms can you say that about? So, if you’ve got a big SaaS project in mind but have no idea where to start, come and get a free scope and estimate from Delta Systems on their website. Got a burning idea for an episode, or a SaaS question you absolutely must know the answer to? Leave us a voice memo at SaaSThatApp.

What You’ll Learn:

How to use strategic financial partnerships as growth fuel
The "manifest destiny" acquisition playbook
Why pivoting a legacy business beats shutting it down
How to rebrand criticism as curiosity to drive innovation
Why AI adoption is the cost of staying competitive

Joe Walsh is Chairman and CEO of Thryv, a cloud-based SaaS platform serving hundreds of thousands of small and medium-sized businesses with integrated marketing, sales, and growth tools. With over two decades of experience scaling businesses from startup to multi-billion-dollar enterprises, including transforming YellowBook into a $4 billion global powerhouse and pivoting Thryv from a legacy directory publisher into a modern SaaS platform, Joe brings proven expertise in organizational transformation, strategic pivots, and sustainable growth.

This podcast is brought to you by Delta Systems, your one-stop shop for front-end, back-end, and full-stack software development. At Delta, Justin and Aaron share the same philosophy when it comes to clients: they treat people like colleagues, not just customers. Maybe that’s why Delta typically spends years working with the same companies: how many software engineering firms can you say that about? So, if you’ve got a big SaaS project in mind but have no idea where to start, come and get a free scope and estimate from Delta Systems on their website.

Got a burning idea for an episode, or a SaaS question you absolutely must know the answer to? Leave us a voice memo at SaaSThatApp.

Chapters:

[00:00] Introduction
[01:41] The Drive Behind Joe’s Success
[07:44] Why Joe Replaces Investors Every 2-3 Years
[12:28] The “Manifest Destiny” for Business Expansion
[15:40] From Early-Stage Investing to Operating at Scale
[19:22] Managing a Painful Pivot
[22:08] The Thryv Opportunity: Betting on SMB SaaS
[30:40] The Reality of Rebuilding SaaS Platforms
[34:00] The Simplest Leadership Rule Most People Break
[37:39] How Curiosity-Driven Leadership Fuels Faster AI Innovation
[40:05] Why Small Businesses Win with Thryv
[41:39] The Real Drivers of Success
[45:02] AI Is Reshaping SaaS and Only the Builders Will Win

Episode Resources:

Joe Walsh on LinkedIn
Thryv Website
Aaron Marchbanks on LinkedIn
Justin Edwards on LinkedIn
Delta Systems Website