Dec 09, 2023 14:00:00

How did GitLab grow so much with open source products and a completely remote work system?

GitLab is an open source project that started in 2011, became a corporation in 2014, was listed on NASDAQ in 2021, and is a large company with annual revenue exceeding $400 million (approximately 58.8 billion yen) as of 2023. has grown into Community Inc., a media outlet that conveys the power of community, has summarized how GitLab, which has unique characteristics such as its main product being open source and completely remote work, has grown.

Community Contribution at: GitLab - Community Inc.

https://community.inc/deep-dives/contribution-gitlab

GitLab is an open source platform that hosts closed source code, and although it was sometimes referred to as ``just a GitHub clone'' right after its launch, it has now grown to a fully remote team of over 2,000 people, 10 years after its establishment. It has grown into a company with an estimated 30 million users and annual revenue of 400 million dollars (approximately 58.8 billion yen).

GitLab calls its business model the 'OpenCore model.' The OpenCore model is a so-called freemium model, where most of the product is free and open source, but some features are monetized. Most of the revenue comes from large enterprises, and while many companies offer services entirely on SaaS, by continuing with the self-hosted model for many years, we have responded to the demand for 'self-hosting in private clouds or hybrid clouds.' We have acquired customers through this process. On the other hand, GitLab is also developing SaaS services, which account for 16% of annual revenue as of 2021. In addition to these subscription and license fees, we also generate revenue from training and technical support.

GitLab's market development approach is divided into two stages: product-based efforts targeting developers first, followed by top-down sales efforts targeting executives. Each GitLab instance has three pricing levels: Free, Premium, and Ultimate, with Free targeting developers, Premium targeting managers and directors, and Ultimate targeting executives. This pricing was intentionally set based on analysis of many open source companies that have tried and failed to monetize their products, and GitLab sells its products directly to the developer community. They hope that developers will first try using GitLab in their own projects, and then recommend GitLab to their employers if necessary.

GitLab also states that the following three are ``common mistakes made by open source companies'' and that they are intentionally trying to avoid them.

・Lack of transparency regarding project direction
・Prioritizing company profits over projects
・Reduced corporate involvement and support for open communication channels

Since 2016, as part of GitLab's efforts to promote transparency, GitLab has

published a handbook that covers everything from corporate strategy and product strategy to marketing and how to run a sales team. It's so voluminous that it will take over 2000 pages if you print it all out, and it's not only publicly available, but you can also suggest changes through merge requests.

This handbook describes the standards for charging features and the standards for features included in the Enterprise Edition, as well as ``not charging for free functions'' and ``not artificially restricting or delaying free functions.'' Community Inc. analyzes that GitLab has built a trusting relationship with the community by adhering to these promises over the years, outlining current priorities and future release roadmaps. .

GitLab advocates a 'dual flywheel approach' as the core of its community strategy. By investing in development, functions are added, which in turn attracts many users, creating a virtuous cycle in which more functions are added through user contributions.

GitLab also runs a GitLab Heroes program that recognizes community members who have made outstanding contributions, selects contributors as MVPs for monthly releases, and hosts meetup programs and hackathons to reward community members. We are maintaining and expanding. There are many benefits that can be obtained by developing the community in this way, but the biggest benefit is recruitment, and it is said that there are as many as 3000 applications every week.

In this way, GitLab has tackled head-on the concerns developers have about open source companies and continues to encourage and improve the 'contribution experience.' They grew by building a community that was a competitive advantage.