Xing : NEW WORK SE reports stable development during first nine months of 2020

• Total revenues see slight growth of 4 per cent
• CEO von Strombeck: 'Long-term trends remain positive'
• Full-year guidance for revenues and margin confirmed

Hamburg, 5 November 2020 - NEW WORK SE (formerly XING SE) today released its figures for the first nine months of 2020. Compared to the same period in the previous year, revenues (excl. M&A effects) saw slight growth of 4 per cent to €204.5 million (9M 2019: €196.4 million). The pro-forma EBITDA following adjustment for one-time, non-operating special effects was €67.5 million, up 7 per cent compared to the same period in 2019 (€63.0 million). Pro-forma net profit for the period grew by around 21 per cent to €32.2 million (9M 2019: € 26.6 million).

B2C revenues for the first nine months of this year (€77.0 million) remained at the same level as last year (€76.9 million). Although potential new customers remain reluctant due to the sustained negative impact of the coronavirus, the B2B E-Recruiting segment saw its pro-forma revenues (excl. one-time M&A effects) rise to €114.3 million during the period under review, an increase of 12 per cent over the €101.8 million generated in 9M 2019. The B2B Marketing Solutions & Events segment continues to struggle amid the pandemic due to it being a transactional business, with revenues of €13.3 million equating to a 25 per cent decrease compared to €17.8 million generated in 9M 2019.

CEO von Strombeck: 'Long-term trends remain positive'

Petra von Strombeck, CEO at NEW WORK SE, said: 'The figures for the first nine months of 2020 show that NEW WORK SE continues to operate at the same level as this time last year. This is good news given the current situation. However, it also means the coronavirus pandemic is having a tangible effect on our business. We're nowhere near the growth rates we enjoyed before the onset of the coronavirus. Nevertheless, our outlook for the future remains positive as we've aligned our offerings with long-term trends such as digitalisation, demographic change, and shifts in societal values. In some cases, such as digitalisation, the pandemic is even accelerating these trends. Our non-financial KPIs confirm that we're continuing to grow.'

Against this backdrop, XING, the leading online business network in German-speaking countries, also reported strong member growth during the first nine months of this year. Compared to 9M 2019, XING reported growth of 1.7 million new members, taking total platform membership to 18.5 million. Subsidiary kununu, a leading employer review platform in Europe, saw its workplace insights (company ratings and culture and salary data) grow by 34 per cent and now delivers users a total of 4.3 million insights.

In recent months, the XING editorial team has been busy expanding its portfolio. One such example involves the soft launch of 'Zukunft.machen.', a place where experts from a wide range of different disciplines can post video interviews, articles, interviews and podcasts to share their views and ideas on how society can thrive in the future. As part of a Klartext debate focussing on education, Verena Pausder, Frank Thelen and Ralf Rangnick voiced their opinions to spark a debate on new ideas all about education.

The B2B arm of the company has also been very busy. At this year's leading HR trade fair, Zukunft Personal Europe, NEW WORK SE's B2B subsidiaries rolled out new products and solutions that included the XING TalentService (XTS). With this solution, companies can call on XING E-Recruiting's expertise to find the right candidates much faster than going about it themselves. In addition, a new content format developed especially for the trade fair was rolled out. NWXnow HR-Special offers pioneers such as Dr. Martina Weifenbach and Matthias Horx the opportunity to share their experience on a range of different HR topics, e.g. employer branding and recruiting, with others from the industry.

XING also rolled out a new marketing feature at the virtual DMEXCO@home trade fair that enables customers to book video ads in the XING AdManager. On top of that, as of the end of the third quarter, around 43,000 organisers were using the data-driven events platform provided by XING Events, which also acquired a major new customer in the form of the Bits & Pretzels conference.

Full-year guidance for revenues and margin confirmed

Despite the challenging economic situation in general, NEW WORK SE again confirmed its revenue target of €275 to €285 million, along with a target EBITDA margin of around 30 per cent. To prepare the company for the future and to free up capital for investment in core areas and future projects, the Executive Board has introduced a range of measures that include cost savings in certain areas of the business.

About NEW WORK SE

The NEW WORK SE Group builds upon the XING SE success story by offering brands, products and services that foster a more fulfilling world of work. Founded by Lars Hinrichs as the OpenBC professional network, the company was renamed XING in 2006. In 2019, the company was renamed again to New Work SE as a reflection of its commitment to a better working world and to bring all of its business activities under the umbrella of New Work. The company has been listed on the stock exchange since 2006. NEW WORK SE is a central leadership and management holding, serving as a service department for its subsidiaries. The Group is headquartered in Hamburg and currently employs 1,900 people at offices including Munich, Vienna and Porto. Visit https://new-work.se and https://nwx.new-work.se/ for more information.