Subject area:                      Corporate Level Strategy, Growth Strategy, International Business Strategy

Region:                                   United States, United Kingdom, Belgium

Industry:                                Educational Technology

Company:                              DataCamp, Inc.

Decision Maker:                Nicholas Colafemina, Chirag Kulkarni, Jacob Moody, Diego Salas, Rachel Worthman

Dilemma: The Company has struggled to meet headcount in the past and Jo knows that this issue will require significant focus. In addition to struggling with lead generation in their recruiting funnel, the company has also experienced notable employee turnover. Over the past 18 months, the Company hired 26 people, but saw 10 of them exit (nine were fired, one left voluntarily). Because of this, DataCamp had to shift focus to become a more desirable place to work.

On the last day of January 2017, Jo issued a “Hiring Manifesto” (Exhibit F, cover page) during a Company-wide bi-weekly meeting in which he addressed this particular issue and framed possible solutions. In the document, Jo highlighted that despite growth in many areas, DataCamp had “failed at building a smart recruiting strategy and, consequently, a healthy company culture.” In the document, Jo outlined several areas where he thought DataCamp could improve including fixing the top of the recruitment funnel, improving their hiring process itself, creating a better streamlined onboarding for new hires, improving management, and formalizing the firing process for when the Company does need to exercise that option. Jo tasked everyone in the Company to review the document and send him feedback directly by the next bi-weekly meeting. He is eager to hear his Company’s feedback and develop a solution for their hiring issues. What option provides a more sustainable growth trajectory for DataCamp?