upwork q2 investor presentation
TRANSCRIPT
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Upwork Q2 Investor PresentationAugust 16, 2021
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation 2
This presentation and the accompanying oral commentary contain "forward-looking" statements based on the beliefs and assumptions of Upwork Inc. (the "Company") and on information currently available to the Company. Forward-looking statements include all statements other than statements of historical fact contained in this presentation, including information or predictions concerning the future of the Company's business, anticipated events and trends, potential growth opportunities, competitive position, technological and market trends, industry environment, potential market opportunities, the economy and other future conditions. Any forward-looking statements made herein or made elsewhere by the Company are made solely based on information available to the Company as of the date hereof and based only on the Company's current beliefs, expectations and assumptions. As such, they are subject to inherent uncertainties, known and unknown risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict and in many cases outside the Company's control, and you should not rely on such forward-looking statements. The Company makes no representation that the projected results will be achieved, and actual results may differ materially from the Company's expectations. Furthermore, the Company does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, to conform these statements to actual results or to make changes in the Company's expectations, except as required by law. In addition, any statements regarding the current and future impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on our business and current and future impacts of actions we have taken in response to the COVID-19 pandemic are forward-looking statements and related to matters that are beyond our control and changing rapidly. Additional information regarding these and other risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company's expectations is included under the caption "Risk Factors" in the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the three months ended June 30, 2021 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on July 29, 2021 and the Company's other SEC filings.
This presentation also contains estimates, forecasts and other statistical data made by independent parties and by the Company relating to market size and growth and other data about the Company's industry. This data involves a number of assumptions and limitations, and you are cautioned not to give undue weight to such estimates. In addition, projections, assumptions and estimates of the Company's future performance and the future performance of the markets in which the Company operates are necessarily subject to a high degree of uncertainty and risk.
Moreover, neither the Company nor any other person makes any representation or warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of the information herein. This presentation is made solely for informational purposes.
All third-party trademarks, including names, logos and brands, referenced by the Company in this presentation are property of their respective owners. All references to third-party trademarks are for identification purposes only and shall be considered nominative fair use under trademark law.
In addition to the U.S. GAAP financials, this presentation includes certain non-GAAP financial measures. The non-GAAP measures have limitations as analytical tools, and you should not consider them in isolation or as a substitute for the most directly comparable financial measures prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP. There are a number of limitations related to the use of these non-GAAP financial measures versus their nearest GAAP equivalents. Other companies, including companies in the Company's industry, may calculate non-GAAP financial measures differently or may use other measures to evaluate their performance, all of which could reduce the usefulness of non-GAAP financial measures as tools for comparison. The Company urges you to review the reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP financial measures set forth in the Appendix, and not rely on any single financial measure to evaluate the Company's business.
Safe Harbor
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation 3
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
To supplement our condensed consolidated financial statements, which are prepared in accordance with GAAP, we present non-GAAP cost of revenue (and as a percentage of revenue), non-GAAP marketplace cost of revenue, non-GAAP managed services cost of revenue, non-GAAP gross profit (and as a percentage of revenue), non-GAAP operating expenses (total and each line item, and total and each non-GAAP operating expense item as a percentage of revenue), non-GAAP income (loss) from operations (and as a percentage of revenue), non-GAAP net income (loss) (and as a percentage of revenue and on a per share basis), non-GAAP gross margin (total and for marketplace and managed services), and adjusted EBITDA in this shareholder letter. Our use of non-GAAP financial measures has limitations as an analytical tool, and these measures should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for analysis of financial results as reported under GAAP.
We use these non-GAAP financial measures in conjunction with financial measures prepared in accordance with GAAP for planning purposes, including in the preparation of our annual operating budget, as a measure of our core operating results and the effectiveness of our business strategy, and in evaluating our financial performance. These measures provide consistency and comparability with past financial performance, facilitate period-to-period comparisons of core operating results, and also facilitate comparisons with other peer companies, many of which use similar non-GAAP financial measures to supplement their GAAP results. In addition, adjusted EBITDA is widely used by investors and securities analysts to measure a company’s operating performance. We exclude the following items from one or more of our non-GAAP financial measures: stock-based compensation expense (non-cash expense calculated by companies using a variety of valuation methodologies and subjective assumptions), depreciation and amortization (non-cash expense), interest expense, other (income) expense, net, income tax (benefit) provision, and, if applicable, other non-cash transactions. For the three and six months ended June 30, 2021, other non-cash transactions included an impairment charge of $7.4 million.
Investors are cautioned that there are material limitations associated with the use of non-GAAP financial measures as an analytical tool. In particular, (1) stock-based compensation expense has recently been, and will continue to be for the foreseeable future, a significant recurring expense for our business and an important part of our compensation strategy, (2) although depreciation and amortization expense are non-cash charges, the assets subject to depreciation and amortization may have to be replaced in the future, and adjusted EBITDA does not reflect cash capital expenditure requirements for such replacements or for new capital expenditure requirements, and (3) adjusted EBITDA does not reflect: (a) changes in, or cash requirements for, our working capital needs; (b) interest expense, or the cash requirements necessary to service interest or principal payments on our debt, which reduces cash available to us; (c) tax payments that may represent a reduction in cash available to us; or (d) expense from our common stock warrant issued to the Tides Foundation, which is recurring and will be reflected in our financial results for the foreseeable future. The non-GAAP measures we use may be different from non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies, limiting their usefulness for comparison purposes. We compensate for these limitations by providing specific information regarding the GAAP items excluded from these non-GAAP financial measures. A reconciliation of these non-GAAP measures has been provided in the financial statement tables included in this shareholder letter and investors are encouraged to review the reconciliation.
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation© 2021 Upwork Inc. Proprietary and confidential. Do not distribute. July, 2021Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Our Mission
Create economic opportunities so people have better lives.
© 2021 Upwork Inc. Proprietary and confidential. Do not distribute.August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation© 2021 Upwork Inc. Proprietary and confidential. Do not distribute. July, 2021Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Our Vision
Independent talent at the heart of every business.
© 2021 Upwork Inc. Proprietary and confidential. Do not distribute.August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Uniquely Positioned to Succeed
Massive TAM with secular tailwinds
Deep and expanding competitive moats
Proven and experienced management team
Multiple growth opportunities
Largest work marketplace at scale
1
6
1 As measured by gross services volume (GSV). See appendix for the definition of gross services volume.
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
~225 Million
Estimated number of global remote knowledge workers
1
Upwork Opportunity
$1.3T
7
Creating a Massive and Growing Opportunity
~$5,850
Average freelancer GSV 2
x =
1 2021 estimate from Gartner - Forecast Analysis: Remote Workers Forecast, Worldwide August 2020.2 TTM as of Dec. 31, 2020.
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Upwork Is the Most Comprehensive Work Marketplace
8
Direct Contracts
Payroll
Talent Marketplace TM
Bring Your Own Talent
Project Catalog TM
Talent Scout TM
...What’s Next?
Enterprise Suite
Multiple ways to Upwork = the “always on” solution for companies hiring and managing freelancer programs at scale
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
~50% of Fortune 500 companies are clients 2
Featuring the Most Robust Community of Clients and Freelancers
~40% of clients hired in multiple categories 2
73% of talent have college degrees 1
50+ categories with $10M+ in GSV 2
10,000+ skills
1 February 2021 Upwork internally conducted survey.2 Based on the trailing 12-month period ending March 31, 2021.
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Freelancer Stages of Adoption
10
Cus
tom
er V
alue
Freelancer Adoption Over Time
4
3
2
Freelancer-First
Companies change view from “why Upwork?” to “why not Upwork?”
Companies make investments to leverage freelancers as core to the way they get work done
Freelancers complement FTEs and become an option for additional projects
Freelancers evaluated and vetted on a project-by-project basis to solve specific needs on a one-off basis
1Project
Hybrid
Scaling
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Our Goal: 100% of businesses will have freelancers on their teams in the future
11
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Brand Awareness
Acquisition / Retention
Generating Abundant Growth Opportunities
Enterprise
Product Line Diversification
Share of Wallet
Long TermMid TermNear Term
Opportunistic M&A
Expected horizon for significant value creation
Internationalization and Localization
Talent Services
Product Integrations
Take Rate Expansion
12
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Local Staffing Cos
Regional Staffing Cos
Platform-first service model Traditional staffing service model
The Race to Win the $1.3T Work Marketplace Opportunity
13
“Platform when you want it – people when you don’t.”
Talent pool
Vetting & talent management
Match & reputation
Platform & payments
SalesShortlisting & success management
B2Bmarketing
Payroll
Hybrid service model
Work Marketplace
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Freelancer Basic
Freelancer Plus
Agency Plus
• Access to quality projects
• Quickly apply and get hired
• Get paid securely and on time
Includes all Freelancer Basic features +
• Customized profile URL
• Insight into competitorbid ranges
• Monthly Connects package* *not included in Agency Plus
Includes all Freelancer Plus features +
• Unlimited team members
• Shared Connects functionality
14
Three Talent Plans
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Basic Plus Enterprise:Standard
Enterprise:Compliance
• Access to a globaltalent pool
• Safe and easy payments
• Payment protection plan
• Customer support
Includes all Basic features +
• Invites to talent
• Featured Jobs upgrade
• Connects package
• Recruiting services
Includes all Plus features +
• Custom reporting
• API access
• Expert-vetted talent poolsand talent clouds
• SSO / permissions
• Purchase order management
• Consolidated invoicing and billing
Includes all Enterprise: Standard features +
• Compliance services
• Worker classification
• Misclassification indemnification
• Work protection program
15
Four Client Plans
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Find work quicklyAccess to quality, flexible projects from our global network
Get paid on timeReceive security and peace of mind with Upwork Payment Protection
Build reputationEstablish long-term credibility and relationships with roster of clients
Growth opportunitiesInsights on in-demand skills and emerging areas
FlexibilityExpanding number of ways to Upwork
Value for Freelancers
Quality talentGlobal access to a verified Virtual Talent Bench™ across categories and price points
Fast access to talentReceive proposals within minutes; 3 days average time to contract
Cost-effective projectsTake hiring budgets further with average 50% savings vs. hiring locally
Work efficiently, effectivelyEnd-to-end suite of workflow tools
FlexibilityExpanding number of ways to Upwork
Value for Clients
Creating a Virtuous Cycle
This engine results in:Highly sticky double opt-in platform with long-term relationships and recurring use, leading to increasing scale and recurring revenue
Value for Upwork
Cross-selling
More freelancers
More skills / categories
More clients
Increased GSV
More / bigger projects
16
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation 17
Infinite Personas and Categories
• Build and maintain my website
• Build and maintain my mobile app
• Do QA testing on my product
• Augment or replace my internal UI / UX team
• Maintain a safe and secure dev environment for me
• ...
• Augment my design staff
• Translate my marketing assets
• Build my new landing page
• Develop my campaign strategy
• Develop my social media strategy
• Execute my social media strategy
• ...
• Recruit and manage my customer support operations
• Recruit and manage a skilled tech support team
• Let me outsource my accounting to a trusted accountant
• Provide me project-based accounting support
• ...
Tech & Product LeadExample: VP, Engineering
Marketing & Creative LeadExample: VP, Marketing
Operations LeadExample: COO
Growth through breadth
Gro
wth
thro
ugh
dept
h∞
∞
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
1 2 3 4Launched our work marketplace marketing efforts to build awareness and drive demand
Expanding paid acquisition reach by:
Improving conversion rates by:
Automating and scaling SEM and social through proprietary bidding tool:
Key Marketing and Acquisition Growth Levers for 2021 and Beyond
• Expanding SEM keywords and mobile SEM conversion optimizations
• Growing international presence +40% YoY via keyword expansion globally
• Shifting to new brand messaging across channels to improve CTRs
18
• Matching intent to best product lines
• Improving CLTV model to optimize client keyword bidding
• Increasing registration-to-Start conversions through better client onboarding
• Aggressively supporting Enterprise Sales land and expand efforts
• Optimizing reactivation and retention efforts by moving to more holistic marketing automation
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
The Enterprise Opportunity
19
1,600
8K
200+
Target ideal customer profile (ICP) accounts
Target ICP customers with spend currently in the Marketplace
Current Enterprise clients
250+ employee US-based companies assigned to sales teams (both inbound and outbound)51K
1,000 accounts could deliver $1-2B in GSV
+ Many more globally
© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation August 2021
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation 20
Focus Area Initiatives Achievements to Date
Environment • Reducing emissions by limiting our physical corporateoffice footprint through our remote-first working model
• Reducing unnecessary commuting and travel• Purchasing carbon offsets that promote environmental
sustainability
✓ Enabled team members to avoid over 1 million commuting miles in 2019✓ Achieved carbon neutrality for 2019 and 2020✓ Committed to remaining carbon neutral going forward
Social • Building a more robust diversity, inclusion and belonging(DIBs) infrastructure
• Leveraging data to inform strategic talent process decisions• Preparing quantitative disclosures to demonstrate our progress on
DIBs-related initiatives
✓ 50% of Board is female✓ 3 of our 8 directors are from underrepresented communities
1
Governance • Evolving Board and governance practices to reflect our maturation as a public company
• Focusing on and responding to stockholder feedback• Acting to protect and grow long-term stockholder value
✓ Implemented majority-vote standard for director elections and adopted proxy access
✓ The Board’s Nominating and Governance Committee oversees all ESG functions
Commitmentto StrongESG Practices
1 As defined under California law AB 979, underrepresented communities includes certain racial, ethnic, and LGBT identities.
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Innovating the work marketplace1
21
Our Winning Strategy
2 Becoming a world-renowned brand
3 Augment SMB by winning the enterprise
4 Building an extraordinary hybrid team of employees and freelancers
5 Investing aggressively for long-term value creation
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Financial Highlights
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
2019
$7.4
2020 Q2’21
$14.0
-$1.2
$7.3
Q2’20
$301
$374
Upwork at a Glance
Client Spend Retention
114%Active Clients
725kGSV per Active Client
$4,198
As of June 30, 2021
162kCore Clients
Gross Services Volume (GSV) ($M)
$2,087
2019 2020 Q2’20 Q2’21
$2,524
$582
$876
50%↑21%↑
Revenue ($M)
$301
2019 2020 Q2’20 Q2’21
$374
$88
$124
42%↑24%↑
Adjusted EBITDA ($M)
714%↑89%↑
Note: Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP measure.
23
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation 24
TTM Active ClientsYoY Growth
Note: 1 See appendix for the definition of active clients.
0k 0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
100k
200k
300k
400k
500k
600k
700k
Active client count growth hasaccelerated for 5 consecutive quarters
17%
12%
9%
7%
9%
10%10%10%
TTM
Act
ive
Clie
nts 1
YoY
Gro
wth
Q4-2019 Q2-2020 Q4-2020Q3-2020Q1-2020Q2-2019Q1-2019 Q3-2019 Q1-2021
30%
Q2-2021
27%
25%
Strong Active Client Growth
24
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
GSV PerActive ClientIs Increasing
$3,000 0%
5%
15%
10%
$3,250
$4,000
$3,500
$3,750
GS
V 1
YoY
Gro
wth
14%
12%
10%
9% 9%
6%
4%3%
YoY GrowthTTM Avg GSV / Active Client(1)
8%
2%
Note: 1 See appendix for the definition of GSV per active client.
Q4-2019 Q2-2020 Q4-2020Q3-2020Q1-2020Q2-2019Q1-2019 Q3-2019 Q1-2021 Q2-2021
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
% of Revenue FY2018 FY2019 FY2020 YTD2021 LT Target
Marketplace Gross Margin
175% 77% 78% 78% 80-85%
Managed Services Gross Margin
2
17% 17% 19% 20% 20%
Total Gross Margin
68% 71% 72% 73% 80-85%
R&D 21% 19% 20% 20% 15-20%
S&M 28% 31% 34% 35% 20-25%
G&A 16% 18% 15% 14% 8-10%
Transaction Losses
2% 1% 1% 1% 1-2%
Adjusted EBITDA 1% 2% 4% 6% 30-35%
26
Our Compelling Margin Structure• High and expanding gross margins
• Industry-leading investment levels in R&Dto extend competitive moats
• Opportunities for leverage in R&D and G&A
• Will invest aggressively in sales and marketingto drive growth and maximize economicvalue added
Notes: 1 Marketplace gross margin is defined as total gross profit, excluding revenue from Managed Services and cost of freelancer services to deliver Managed Services, divided by Marketplace revenue.
2 Managed Services gross margin is defined as Managed Services revenue less cost of freelancer services to deliver Managed Services, divided by Managed Services revenue.
Numbers are non-GAAP. Non-GAAP here excludes SBC, amortization, and non-cash charitable donations. All numbers reflect depreciation expense, except for Adjusted EBITDA.
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
$ and share counts in millionsPercentages and per share data as stated
Q2 2021 Q2 2020 6M 2021 6M 2020
GAAP Net Loss (16.5) (11.0) (24.4) (21.0)
Stock-based compensation expense 13.5 7.1 24.8 12.7
Depreciation and amortization 2.6 2.5 5.7 4.8
Interest expense 0.1 0.3 0.3 0.5
Other (income) expense, net - (0.3) (0.1) 0.5
Income tax provision - - - -
Tides Foundation common stock warrant expense 0.2 0.2 0.4 0.4
Impairment expense 7.4 - 7.4 -
Non-GAAP Adjusted EBITDA 7.3 (1.2) 14.2 (2.2)
Marketplace cost of revenue, GAAP 25.3 18.1 48.5 34.7
Stock-based compensation (0.2) (0.2) (0.4) (0.4)
Marketplace cost of revenue, non-GAAP 25.1 17.9 48.1 34.3
Marketplace gross margin, non-GAAP (%) 78% 77% 78% 78%
2727
GAAP to Non-GAAP Reconciliation
Note: Figures have been rounded. Marketplace gross margin is using Marketplace revenue and total cost of revenue less Managed Services cost of revenue. Managed Services gross margin is using Managed Services revenue and Managed Services cost of revenue.
$ and share counts in millionsPercentages and per share data as stated
Q2 2021 Q2 2020 6M 2021 6M 2020
Managed Services cost of revenue, GAAP 7.8 7.3 15.0 14.2
Managed Services cost of revenue, Non-GAAP 7.8 7.3 15.0 14.2
Managed Services gross margin, non-GAAP (%) 20% 20% 20% 19%
Cost of revenue, GAAP 33.1 25.4 63.5 48.9
Stock-based compensation (0.2) (0.2) (0.4) (0.4)
Total cost of revenue, non-GAAP 32.9 25.2 63.1 48.5
Total gross margin, non-GAAP (%) 26% 29% 27% 28%
Research and development, GAAP 28.1 20.5 54.7 39.9
Stock-based compensation (4.0) (2.8) (7.3) (4.7)
Research and development, non-GAAP 24.1 17.8 47.5 35.2
Sales and marketing, GAAP 45.8 34.4 85.4 65.1
Stock-based compensation (1.6) (1.3) (2.9) (2.2)
Sales and Marketing, non-GAAP 44.2 33.1 82.5 62.9
2828
GAAP to Non-GAAP Reconciliation (Cont.)
Note: Figures have been rounded. Marketplace gross margin is using Marketplace revenue and total cost of revenue less Managed Services cost of revenue. Managed Services gross margin is using Managed Services revenue and Managed Services cost of revenue.
$ and share counts in millionsPercentages and per share data as stated
Q2 2021 Q2 2020 6M 2021 6M 2020
General and administrative, GAAP 32.4 17.1 55.9 34.9
Stock-based compensation (7.8) (2.9) (14.2) (5.3)
Amortization of intangible assets - (0.7) (0.7) (1.3)
Tides Foundation common stock warrant expense (0.2) (0.2) (0.4) (0.4)
Impairment expense (7.4) - (7.4) -
General and administrative, non-GAAP 17.0 13.4 33.3 27.9
Loss from operations, GAAP (16.4) (11.0) (24.1) (20.0)
Stock-based compensation 13.5 7.1 24.8 12.7
Amortization of intangible assets - 0.7 0.7 1.3
Tides Foundation common stock warrant expense 0.2 0.2 0.4 0.4
Impairment expense 7.4 - 7.4 -
Income (loss) from operations, non-GAAP 4.7 (3.0) 9.1 (5.7)
Net loss, GAAP (16.5) (11.0) (24.4) (21.0)
Stock-based compensation 13.5 7.1 24.8 12.7
2929
GAAP to Non-GAAP Reconciliation (Cont.)
Note: Figures have been rounded. Marketplace gross margin is using Marketplace revenue and total cost of revenue less Managed Services cost of revenue. Managed Services gross margin is using Managed Services revenue and Managed Services cost of revenue.
$ and share counts in millionsPercentages and per share data as stated
Q2 2021 Q2 2020 6M 2021 6M 2020
Amortization of intangible assets - 0.7 0.7 1.3
Tides Foundation common stock warrant expense 0.2 0.2 0.4 0.4
Impairment expense 7.4 - 7.4 -
Net Income (loss), non-GAAP 4.6 (3.0) 8.8 (6.7)
Weighted-average shares outstanding used in computing loss per share, GAAP
Basic 126.7 116.5 126.0 115.3
Basic loss per share, GAAP $(0.13) $(0.09) $(0.19) $(0.18)
Weighted-average shares outstanding used in computing income (loss) per share, non-GAAP
Basic 126.7 116.5 126.0 115.3
Diluted 1 134.0 - 134.2 -
Basic loss per share, GAAP $(0.13) $(0.09) $(0.19) $(0.18)
Diluted income per share, non-GAAP 1 $0.03 - $0.07 -
3030
GAAP to Non-GAAP Reconciliation (Cont.)
Note: Figures have been rounded. Marketplace gross margin is using Marketplace revenue and total cost of revenue less Managed Services cost of revenue. Managed Services gross margin is using Managed Services revenue and Managed Services cost of revenue. 1 Not applicable when in a net loss position.
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation 31
Q3 2021 FY 2021
Revenue $125 million - $127million $490 million - $494 million
Adjusted EBITDA $4 million - $5 million $16 million - $20 million
Diluted Weighted-Average Shares Outstanding
134 million - 136 million 133 million - 137 million
Non-GAAP Diluted EPS $0.01 - $0.03 per diluted share $0.05 - $0.07 per diluted share
Guidance
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Upwork Team
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation 33
Proven management team with decades of experience at Upwork and other marketplace and technology companies
Saty BahadurChief Technology Officer<1 year
Hayden BrownPresident & CEO9 years
Sam BrightChief Product & Experience Officer<1 year
Eric GilpinSenior Vice PresidentSales5 years
Brian LeveyChief Business Affairs& Legal Officer8 years
Zoe HarteChief People Officer8 years
Jeff McCombsCFO<1 year
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Appendix
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Marketplace
Upwork Basic Freelancers Tiered service fees ( 5% / 10% / 20% ) and other
Clients Payment fee, FX, and other
Upwork Plus Freelancers Service fees (5% / 10% / 20%) and other
Clients Monthly subscription, payment fee, and other
Upwork Enterprise & Other Premium Offerings Freelancers Flat service fee
Clients Service fees, annual subscription, and other
Managed Services
• Upwork is responsible for the deliverable• Engage freelancers on behalf of the client• Directly invoice the client
35
Our Business Model
Clients Markup on pay rate to freelancers
Gross Accounting TreatmentGSV = Revenue
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation 36
Illustrative Revenue Recognition and Margin Profile
Marketplace Client Spend Revenue Revenue Less COR
Upwork Basic and Plus $100 ~$121 ~$9
3
Upwork Enterprise
Compliance $100 ~$30
2 ~$23
3
Standard $100 ~$15
2 ~$113
Managed Services
$100 $100 ~$19
4
75-80%
75-80%
75-80%
~19%
Notes: 1 Revenue does not include FX, payments, and freelancer subscription fees. 2 Illustrative rate assuming enterprise customer pays list price for enterprise compliance and standard. 3 Marketplace COR based on 2020 COR minus costs of freelancer services to deliver Managed Services as a percentage of 2020 Marketplace revenue. 4 Cost of freelancer services to deliver Managed Services based on 2020 cost of freelancer services to deliver Managed Services as a percentage of 2020 Managed Services Revenue.
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Metric Timing
Client spend retention Deprecating after Q2-2021
Core clients Deprecating after Q2-2021
TTM active clients Quarterly disclosure starting Q2-2021
TTM GSV per active client Quarterly disclosure starting Q2-2021
Summary of Changes to Our Publicly Disclosed Metrics
37August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
August 2021© 2021 Upwork Inc. Q2’21 Investor Presentation
Key Metric Definitions
38
Active Client
Gross Services Volume (GSV)
A client who has had spend activity during the trailing 12-month period is considered active.
Gross services volume, or GSV, includes both client spend and additional fees charged for other services.
GSV per Active Client
GSV per active client is calculated by dividing total trailing 12-month GSV by the number of active clients at the date of measurement.
Core Clients
A core client is defined as a client that has spent in the aggregate at least $5,000 since beginning to use our platform and also had spend activity during the 12 months preceding the date of measurement.
Client spend retention is calculated by dividing our recurring client spend by our base client spend. We define base client spend as the aggregate client spend from all clients during the four quarters ended one year prior to the date of measurement. We define our recurring client spend as the aggregate client spend during the four quarters ended on the date of measurement from the same clients included in our measure of base client spend.
Client Spend Retention