Careers at DocuSign

Mission

DocuSign is a software-as-a-service company that provides electronic signature solutions and digital transaction management services for the facilitation of electronic contract exchange and delivery of signed documents.

History

DocuSign was founded in 2003 by Tom Gonser (“Gonser”). Gonser identified that the then current methods of providing electronic signatures were complex and inaccessible for many users, requiring technical knowhow and expensive software. He decided that a more efficient method would be to store files securely in the cloud and have users provide authentication in order to access documents, removing the need for specialist software by routing any complex encryption through a proprietary server.

Gonser acquired assets from document management and electronic signature company DocuTouch in 2001, and began developing DocuSign. The first build of the DocuSign platform, however, reportedly did not use any of DocuTouch’s original code. The Company began receiving venture capital investment in 2003 and underwent its first formal round of funding in 2006. To date DocuSign has raised more than $512 million in 3 rounds of funding, from investors including Accel, Comcast Ventures and Cross Creek Advisors.

Benefits at DocuSign

Business model of DocuSign

Customer Segments

DocuSign serves a range of customers, primarily from the corporate world, who require flexible and secure document delivery and digital transaction management services. The Company has customers from all sectors of business – including the financial services, healthcare, insurance, technology and government industries – currently numbering approximately 225,000.

DocuSign is in particular a popular service within the real estate sector, for both agents and brokers, where it purports to increase the speed with which transactions are completed. The Company consequently offers subscription packages specific to realtors.

DocuSign’s customer base is not limited to the US. On its website the Company claims to serve individual and business users across 188 countries. Among DocuSign’s customers are a number of large multinational companies, including Aon, Expedia, Du Pont and Yamaha, as well as small and medium business and start-ups.

Value Propositions

The DocuSign platform’s principal value is its flexibility, accessibility and ease of use. The Company’s software platform enables users to manage their transactions and document deliveries from any device at any time.

The platform’s flexibility is also apparent in the extent to which it is compatible with existing services and applications, integrating with products provided by popular tech companies such as Apple, Microsoft and Google.

The ability to sign documents electronically in itself eliminates the time and financial costs associated with traditional methods, including fax and mail and, with its encryption capabilities, DocuSign provides a more secure and reliable service to its users. The Company’s electronic signature comply fully with the US ESIGN Act and the European Union’s directive on electronic signatures.

Channels

DocuSign’s platform allows users to manage, sign and send documents from anywhere at any time. This service can be accessed via the Company’s desktop and mobile websites at www.docusign.com, or through its free iOS, Android and Windows apps.

DocuSign functionality has also been integrated into a number of third party applications, including those provided by Microsoft, Apple, Google and Salesforce.

Customer Relationships

DocuSign subscriptions are available on a self-service basis, with larger enterprise subscriptions requiring direct contact with the DocuSign sales team. Following registration and payment, DocuSign’s services are almost entirely automated, providing a digital transaction management and electronic signature service that requires no interaction with DocuSign representatives.

Customers are also able to make self-service support requests directly from the DocuSign app or website using forms that automate workflow and processes. In addition to handling individual support requests, DocuSign also provides online tutorials and webinars, as well as training and self-paced learning resources through the DocuSign University.

The Company collaborates in person with customers through its Executive Briefing Centre, where executives can discuss specific objectives and agendas, receive software demonstrations and attend presentations. DocuSign also keeps its users updated via its social media accounts and blog and interacts directly with customers through its community forum.

Key Activities

DocuSign develops and maintains a software platform through which users are able to manage digital transactions and utilise electronic signature services.

Its cloud-based platform enables individual and business users to manage approvals, decisions, contracts, and workflows digitally, from anywhere and at any time. The Company’s DocuSign Ink offering also allows users to annotate documents and save signatures to be used again later.

Key Partners

DocuSign collaborates with a variety of companies with a view to providing an efficient, fully-automated, cloud-based service for its customers, and expanding the reach of its partners. Its partners include professional services companies, trade organisations – notably regional and national real estate bodies – software companies, document and contract solutions firms, workplace solutions providers and business process companies.

The Company has also released its API, allowing developers to create third-party integration products for DocuSign customers. The Company currently lists several high-profile integration partners, providing distinct DocuSign for Microsoft, DocuSign for Salesforce, DocuSign for Google, DocuSign for Apple and DocuSign for Netsuite products.

Key Resources

DocuSign’s principal resource is its software platform, its intellectual properties, its personnel and its IT infrastructure.

Searches of records held by the US Patent and Trademark Office identified 3 patent applications registered in DocuSign’s name: ‘Systems and methods for cloud data security’, ‘Systems and methods for distributed electronic signature documents’, and ‘Mobile solution for importing and signing third-party electronic signature documents’.

The Company also maintains a network of servers and data centres to host its platform, and employs sales and support and research and development teams.

Cost Structure

DocuSign’s principal costs relate to the development of its platform, the retention of its personnel and the maintenance of its IT infrastructure. DocuSign operates in a number of countries, with data centres and server space across the US, Europe, Asia and Latin America.

The Company also incurs fixed costs that relate to the operation of its network of 13 offices worldwide, including in San Francisco, London, Melbourne, Sao Paulo and Tokyo.

These offices are also staffed with sales and support employees, all of whom account for personnel costs in the form of salaries and benefits.

Revenue Streams

DocuSign operates under a freemium model, providing a basic, free service to its users, with the option to upgrade to more advanced packages that include a greater range of services.

The Company’s platform is available in five paid-for packages all of which are priced on a per user basis and billed either monthly or annually. The most basic paid subscription is the Individual package which costs $10 per month, paid annually. Professional, Business and Business Premium subscriptions are priced respectively at $20, $30 and $125 per user, per month when paid annually. Subscriptions for larger enterprises are negotiated on a case by case basis and are customisable to the client’s requirements.

DocuSign also offers subscriptions to the separate real estate edition of its platform, priced at $10, $20 or $30 per month. While DocuSign does not disclose its revenue figures, recent reports estimate that it generates more than $100 million annually.

Our team

Tom Gonser,
Founder and Chief Strategy Officer

info: Tom has served as DocuSign’s Chief Strategy Officer since founding the Company in 2003 and sits on the Company’s board of directors. Recent reports suggest that Gonser will step down as Chief Strategy Officer but will retain his seat on the board. Gonser is also a director of GPS Flight, a manufacturer of search and navigation equipment that he founded in 2004. Gonser has previously held a number of roles within the mobile telecommunications and technology sectors. In 1986 he joined Apple Computers as a solutions development executive. According to his corporate networking profile, he was appointed Director of Channel Development at McCaw Cellular in 1990, and briefly held Director of Marketing roles at Wildfire Communications and AT&T Wireless between 1993 and 1995. He left McCaw Cellular in 1996 serving for one year as Vice President of Business Development at home equity company Point.com. In 1998 Gonser founded NetUPDATE, a provider of mortgage origination technology, serving as its President and Chief Executive Officer, until leaving the company in 2002.

Keith Krach,
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

info: Keith has served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of DocuSign since 2010. Krach is best known as the co-founder of Ariba (now SAP Ariba), a software and information technology company that enables companies to facilitate procurement processes. Krach left the company in 2003 having served as its Chief Executive Officer and Chairman since its incorporation in 1996. Krach is also a former Vice President of General Motors and was a part of the founding team at mechanical design and analysis software company Rasna. Outside of his corporate positions Krach served as Chairman of the Board of Trustees at Purdue University from 2009 to 2013 and International President of the university’s Sigma Chi fraternity from 2005 to 2007.

Neil Hudspith,
President of Worldwide Field Operations

info: Neil joined DocuSign as its President of Worldwide Field Operations in 2013, under which role he oversees the Company’s sales and marketing operations. He has previously held a number of roles within the technology space, beginning his career in 1980 as a member of the Rank Xerox sales team. He later joined IBM where he held several roles, including Vice President of the UK and Ireland, and Head of Emerging Markets in the Middle East, Africa and Central Europe. His most noteworthy role, however, was as Vice President and General Manager of IBM’s Asia Pacific Group from 1990 to 2001. Prior to joining DocuSign, Hudspith served as Senior Vice President of Human Capital Management at Oracle, having previously served as Executive Vice President of Worldwide Field Operations and Chief Customer Officer at Taleo, a software company acquired by Oracle in 2004.

Gordon Payne,
Chief Operating Officer

info: Gordon was appointed Chief Operating officer of DocuSign in 2014. He has also been a member of the board and audit committee at cloud networking company Aerohive Networks since 2014. Payne is an experienced tech executive. He joined Nortel Networks in 1983 as Vice President and General Manager of its call centre business, a position he held until 2000 when he was appointed Chief Marketing Officer at communications solutions company Net6. In 2004 Payne joined Citrix as Senior Vice President of its Cloud and Desktop Division, leaving the company in 2013 to join DocuSign. During his time at Citrix, Payne also sat briefly on the boards of software companies Kabira Technologies and Vyatta.