• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechBusiness Collaboration

Atlassian Co-CEO Stresses ‘Predictability’

By
Heather Clancy
Heather Clancy
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Heather Clancy
Heather Clancy
Down Arrow Button Icon
February 4, 2016, 9:02 PM ET
Courtesy of Atlassian

Business software company Atlassian (TEAM) is obsessively transparent about certain financial metrics. Just don’t ask executives to disclose details about how many people are using individual products.

During the company’s first earnings report on Thursday following its initial public offering in mid-December, they deflected questions about specific numbers that would give the outside world more perspective about Atlassian’s traction beyond its core customer base of software developers. The most they would reveal is that each product line is growing in excess of 30%, a number parroted from the company’s IPO prospectus.

“We consider that great growth across our entire portfolio,” co-founder and co-CEO Mike Cannon-Brookes told Fortune during an interview after the call. In its IPO filing, Atlassian said it had a total of 5 million monthly active users.

Atlassian’s flagship product is JIRA, which began as a bug-reporting tool and project manager for software programmers. That product was used to create two additional ones during the second quarter, as the company attempts to win over new non-technical customers.

The target audience for the original JIRA software remains development teams. Its siblings are JIRA Service Desk (services IT departments), and JIRA Core (meant for non-technical teams in human resources, financial, legal, and marketing roles). Atlassian’s other applications include Hipchat, a private messaging service akin to Slack, and Confluence, a project management and collaboration application.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s daily tech newsletter.

Aside from that mystery, Atlassian’s other numbers were almost boringly predictable. During the quarter, for example, it added 2,600 net new customers across all of its products, for a total of 54,262. That gain is in line with previous quarters.

The company’s big 45% growth in revenue seems less impressive when you consider that number is partly influenced by pricing changes adopted by the company during the past two years—a point Cannon-Brookes and other Atlassian executives took pains to discuss several times during the call. In the near term, the company’s growth rate will stabilize around average past percentage rates of around 35%, they said.

Unlike many business software companies that rely on spectacular, down-to-the wire sales to make their quarters, Atlassian’s sales are relatively stable. That’s not exactly a bad thing.

“We sell as much in the first week of the quarter as we do in the last week of the quarter. … We’re not going to have 10% to 20% beats,” Cannon-Brookes said, referring to the likelihood of his company beating its guidance by a big margin. He added: “A great quarter is a 2% to 3% beat.”

The reason for that is Atlassian’s sales model, which relies heavily on world-of-mouth sales rather than on a big sales team like traditional business software companies. There’s less overhead and fewer end-of-quarter blitzes to make a sales quota.

With that in mind, Atlassian forecast per-share income of 5 cents to 6 cents on revenue of $113 million to $115 million for its current current, which ends March 31. Its full year projection calls for revenue of $443 million to $447 million, and per-share earnings of 30 cent to 31 cents.

Attaining unicorn status may be a distraction.

Atlassian’s stock closed Thursday at $23.92. Its shares gave up nearly 4% of their value in after hours trading following the reported results. The company held a successful IPO in mid-December. On its first day of trading, the company’s stock closed at $27.78, a 32% increase over its IPO price of $21. Atlassian’s shares closed at a high of $31.10 on Dec. 29 but have trended down with the rest of the tech market for most of 2016.

About the Author
By Heather Clancy
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

farley
Future of WorkInfrastructure
Ford CEO Jim Farley says America is sleepwalking past its ‘essential economy’ crisis. Goldman Sachs just showed how big it really is
By Nick LichtenbergApril 2, 2026
2 hours ago
Nima Ghamsari smiles
NewslettersTerm Sheet
Blend’s post-IPO reset: CEO Nima Ghamsari bets that AI can turn it all around
By Lily Mae LazarusApril 2, 2026
3 hours ago
Photo: President Trump
Big TechMarkets
Trump hails ‘tremendous progress’ in Iran but all Wall Street heard was ‘back to escalation’
By Jim EdwardsApril 2, 2026
3 hours ago
Can Elon Musk take SpaceX IPO to infinity and beyond?
NewslettersFortune Tech
Can Elon Musk take SpaceX IPO to infinity and beyond?
By Alexei OreskovicApril 2, 2026
3 hours ago
Asia’s AI playbook gets a reality check as the Iran war sends energy prices higher and snarls supply chains
AsiaTech
Asia’s AI playbook gets a reality check as the Iran war sends energy prices higher and snarls supply chains
By Angelica AngApril 2, 2026
4 hours ago
The tax escape map: Billionaires are bolting for Florida from the West Coast and taking billions in tax revenue with them
Real EstateBillionaires
The tax escape map: Billionaires are bolting for Florida from the West Coast and taking billions in tax revenue with them
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezApril 2, 2026
7 hours ago

Most Popular

Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they're turning 'welcomer cities' into the next big tech towns
Real Estate
Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they're turning 'welcomer cities' into the next big tech towns
By Fortune EditorsApril 2, 2026
6 hours ago
Two-thirds of parents say their adult Gen Z kids still rely on them financially  for support—even though it's putting them under strain
Success
Two-thirds of parents say their adult Gen Z kids still rely on them financially  for support—even though it's putting them under strain
By Fortune EditorsMarch 31, 2026
2 days ago
Current price of gold as of April 1, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of gold as of April 1, 2026
By Fortune EditorsApril 1, 2026
1 day ago
Current price of oil as of April 1, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of April 1, 2026
By Fortune EditorsApril 1, 2026
1 day ago
Jerome Powell says the $39 trillion national debt is ‘not unsustainable,’ but warns the trajectory ‘will not end well’
Economy
Jerome Powell says the $39 trillion national debt is ‘not unsustainable,’ but warns the trajectory ‘will not end well’
By Fortune EditorsMarch 30, 2026
3 days ago
Hiring just hit a level not seen since the economy was ‘closed down literally’ during COVID, top economist says
Economy
Hiring just hit a level not seen since the economy was ‘closed down literally’ during COVID, top economist says
By Fortune EditorsMarch 31, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.