Quietly replacing the old way: customers are switching to the company from an entrenched alternative, and the switching
The model's full reasoning — Q1 2023 call → NOWe need to determine if management describes customers switching from an entrenched alternative to the company's products, and that this switching is still early with most potential switchers not yet converted. Looking at the transcript: Kyle Loudermilk discusses the industry trend towards nuclear power, and specifically mentions that older nuclear power plants have analog control systems, and as they get extensions, they will transition to digital control systems. He says: "As older nuclear power plants obtain operating extensions, we believe we’re going to go through a transition where those old control systems that our analog are going to transition to digital control systems. These upgrades will require investments in the hundreds of millions of dollars per reactor. This is exciting for industry as the digital control systems allow the operator to produce more power reliably, efficiently, and safety. This is a good news for GSE as this creates significant opportunity to sell our solutions across the Board from simulation to engineering design and analysis and programs and performance. This is a long-term trend that is only now emerging and in the planning stages and we are eager for industry broadly move forward." This describes a transition from analog to digital control systems. GSE sells solutions for digital control systems, simulation, etc. So customers are switching from analog (legacy) to digital (GSE's offering). And it's described as "only now emerging and in the planning stages" — so early stages. Also, the installed base of analog is large because many older plants are getting extensions. So this fits: switching is happening (they are transitioning), and it's early. Also, he mentions that the industry is moving from decommissioning to extensions, which means more plants will need upgrades. So the old way (analog) is still prevalent. Thus, answer YES. But check if it's actually happening now or just anticipated. He says "we believe we're going to go through a transition" — that's future. But he also says "This is a long-term trend that is only now emerging" — so it's starting. However, is there evidence of actual customers switching? He mentions the Vogtle plant is new with digital control rooms, but that's a new build, not a switch.
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| ILMN | Illumina, Inc. | Q1 2018 | 2018-04-24 | A |
| INST | Instructure's | Q4 2017 | 2018-02-12 | B+ |
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BLKB · Q1 2017 → YESThe question is: Does management describe that customers are currently SWITCHING TO THE COMPANY FROM AN ENTRENCHED ALTERNATIVE THEY PREVIOUSLY RELIED ON, and that this switching is still in its early ...YES Management describes customers switching from entrenched alternatives (legacy hardware systems, older Raiser's Edge versions, standalone point solutions) to Blackbaud's cloud solutions like NXT, with examples of recent replacements and migrations already occurring. They also note that much of the potential remains, as the installed base of legacy methods is still large 25% of subscription revenue, and they describe the opportunity as "really early days" with substantial distance left to run. This fits the criteria of a present-tense substitution pattern in the market, not just future hope. The high retention on their own base (93%) combined with declining maintenance revenue shows the shift is active and ongoing, while new wins against competitors and legacy alternatives are happening now. The TAM of $7 billion with hundreds of thousands of addressable customers reinforces that switching is early-stage relative to the total opportunity. The answer is YES. The question is answered with YES. The question is answered with YES.
BLZE · Q3 2022 → YESThe question is: Does management describe that customers are currently SWITCHING TO THE COMPANY FROM AN ENTRENCHED ALTERNATIVE THEY PREVIOUSLY RELIED ON, and that this switching is still in its early ...YES The transcript shows management describing current customer switches from entrenched alternatives (AWS for urlscan.io; Synology NAS/on-prem for Fiture; broader AWS and on-prem users), with these as real, ongoing patterns. They explicitly note that much of the potential remains ("so much of the world's data is still on-premises" and "customers that are inside of AWS and others"), confirming the substitution is early-stage relative to the large installed base. This is conveyed directly in Gleb's responses as a present-tense reality, not merely anticipated. The two examples plus the broader opportunity framing establish a coherent substitution underway, with the company being substituted in. The investor question on percentages and Gleb's reply reinforce the pattern without contradicting the current movement. No single-event or future-only framing applies here. Thus, both conditions are met.
APPS · Q1 2024 → YESThe question is: Does management describe that customers are currently SWITCHING TO THE COMPANY FROM AN ENTRENCHED ALTERNATIVE THEY PREVIOUSLY RELIED ON, and that this switching is still in its early ...YES The transcript shows management describing customers shifting from Apple/Google app stores to DT Hub and SingleTap-enabled alternative distribution as an ongoing, early-stage substitution. Bill Stone notes the company has already launched DT Hub with four U.S. operators and is generating revenue today, while highlighting "increasing pressure on the duopoly" and 5 monetization ways for SingleTap that enable publishers to direct-download apps outside traditional stores. He explicitly calls it "very early days and not yet material to our overall results" and "early innings," confirming the installed base of the old way remains large and the switch is just beginning with incremental RPD gains from devices engaging the new platform. This meets the criteria of a present-tense substitution underway, with the company positioned as the alternative being adopted.