SaaS Unicorn Chargebee Lays off 140 Employees Amid Harsh Market Conditions The public announcement of the "difficult decision" was recently made by Krish Subramanian, co-founder and CEO, Chargebee, on LinkedIn

Chennai-based subscription billing and revenue management startup Chargebee has laid off 10 per cent of its workforce, namely 142 employees, as part of a reorganisation effort to manage its operational debt amid tough macroeconomic conditions.

The public announcement of the "difficult decision" was recently made by Krish Subramanian, co-founder and CEO, Chargebee, on LinkedIn. "We have made every effort to offer severance, equity and job transition support to ease some of the stress caused by these changes," said Subramanian, who also shared the internal email he had previously circulated among employees to inform them of the SaaS unicorn's decision.

"At the start of Q2, macroeconomic factors began impacting public companies and the financing environment," said the email, adding, "Since then, the global economic environment has continued to be uncertain but it is clear that this new reality will require companies to move toward profitability at an accelerated pace."

Facing a growing gap between revenue and expenditure, the high-growth company has been reducing its expenses across tools, consulting and contractors, among other areas, stated the email. But despite altering hiring practices, adopting stricter fiscal discipline and being generally well positioned in terms of market opportunity, the company is in an 'unfortunate situation' to make corrections to its scale and structure, it said.

"Today, the scale at which we are operating makes it very difficult to control expense with costs that increase with each individual," the mail further said, with Subramanian adding, "We have a responsibility to build a financially sound business for everyone involved. While historically, I have been philosophically opposed to layoffs, after careful consideration, it is best to act now to offer separation packages to affected colleagues."

The severance packages offered to outgoing Chargebee employees include the following main components: three months' salary; three months' extended medical benefits; outplacement career services, such as networking assistance, resume writing and interview preparation; and extended time to exercise the stock options granted under the company's stock incentive plan.

In his LinkedIn post, Subramanian also urged fellow organisations in the industry to reach out with their hiring needs so that outgoing employees could be connected with them. He later updated his post, sharing that over 250 companies, globally, had responded to his request and were being put in touch with interested individuals. "As a tech community, I am sure we will all get through these (times) together," he said.

Notably, the layoffs come months after Chargebee raised $250 million in a new funding round co-led by Tiger Global and Sequoia Capital.