‘It was the right decision, but…’: How one sale made 400 employees millionaires overnight

Since the sale, Jyoti Bansal has continued his entrepreneurial journey, co-founding two new startups: Traceable and Harness. When asked if he would sell these ventures like he did AppDynamics, his answer was clear: “No—unless something crazy happens.”

When Jyoti Bansal sold his software startup, AppDynamics, for a jaw-dropping $3.7 billion in 2017, he didn’t just cash out—he made 400 of his employees millionaires overnight. But despite the massive payday, the San Francisco-based entrepreneur, originally from India, says the sale was “the hardest decision” of his life.

Speaking to CNBC, Bansal revealed that AppDynamics was just days away from going public when Cisco came in with a multi-billion-dollar offer. He knew he’d be rich either way, but the deal meant a better future for his nearly 1,200 employees. “It was the right decision, but it wasn’t easy,” he said.

However, Bansal’s decision wasn’t just about the money. He weighed the risks of taking AppDynamics public against the certainty of Cisco’s offer. He estimated that it would have taken years of flawless execution to reach the same market cap. “By opting for the sale, I mitigated that risk, securing the financial future of my employees while aligning AppDynamics with Cisco’s expansive portfolio,” he said.

“We could be part of a bigger platform, like Cisco, and their customer base and market. That’s one factor. The second is culture, what kind of home your employees get. Cisco, to their credit, did an excellent job giving a high degree of independence to the AppDynamics unit,” Bansal explained.

Source: bt Business Today

About The Author

admin

See author's posts