In 2021, Anjuna Security was growing fast, hiring aggressively, and chasing a market that seemed limitless. By the end of that year, the venture-backed cybersecurity company had scaled to around 75 employees, building out sales, customer success, and support teams in anticipation of continued hypergrowth.

From Hypergrowth to Hard Truths: How Anjuna Security Recalibrated for Resilience

The year 2021 was a whirlwind for many tech startups, and Anjuna Security was no exception. Fueled by venture capital and a seemingly insatiable market appetite for cybersecurity solutions, the company expanded rapidly. Its workforce swelled to approximately 75 employees, with dedicated teams for sales, customer success, and support—all geared towards an anticipated trajectory of continuous, aggressive growth. Yet, as the calendar flipped to 2022, the tech landscape shifted dramatically, ushering in an era of market volatility and economic uncertainty that few had truly prepared for.

Enterprise clients, once eager, became more cautious. Funding tightened. For Anjuna, like countless others caught in the wake of this sudden turn, the reality was stark: the company was overextended and, critically, underfunded for the new economic climate. What followed were painful, unavoidable decisions: two rounds of layoffs that cut deep into the organization. The challenge extended beyond mere cost-cutting; the more profound question became how to salvage morale, rebuild trust, and reignite purpose among the remaining team members.

Ayal Yogev, CEO and co-founder of Anjuna, recently shared Anjuna’s journey of survival and strategic recalibration with Isabelle Johannessen on TechCrunch’s Build Mode podcast. His insights paint a picture of a company that weathered the storm by acting decisively, making difficult cuts with an unwavering commitment to compassion, and, crucially, learning profoundly from its initial missteps.

The Hypergrowth Hangover: When Market Tides Turn

Anjuna Security’s experience is a microcosm of a broader industry trend. In the heady days of late 2020 and 2021, rapid scaling was often celebrated as the ultimate measure of success. Companies raced to capture market share, often prioritizing growth at all costs. Anjuna’s headcount of 75, with robust customer-facing teams, reflected this prevailing ethos. The implicit assumption was that the market would continue to expand indefinitely, absorbing new products and services without pause. However, the economic headwinds of 2022 quickly exposed the fragility of such assumptions.

When capital became scarcer and customers became more discerning, Anjuna found itself in a precarious position. The operational expenses associated with its expanded team became unsustainable, forcing leadership to confront the difficult reality of layoffs. The initial round was tough, but the subsequent second round, just months later, amplified the organizational stress and made the task of maintaining team cohesion and trust exponentially harder. It was a stark lesson in the difference between aggressive expansion and sustainable growth.

Culture as a Compass: Anchoring in “Care”

One of the most critical factors enabling Anjuna to navigate these turbulent waters was a strong internal culture, forged long before the market downturn. CEO Ayal Yogev distilled their cultural ethos into a singular, powerful word: “care.” “We have only one word when it comes to culture, and that’s care,” Yogev explained. “We care about our employees. We care about our customers.” This wasn’t merely a platitude; it was a deeply embedded principle that guided their actions during their most challenging period.

This commitment to “care” manifested in consistent, tangible behaviors rather than abstract values. Internally, it translated into radical transparency. Leadership communicated clearly and consistently about the company’s challenges, the reasons behind the layoffs, and the path forward. This proactive communication helped mitigate the fear and uncertainty that often plague organizations during such times, fostering an environment where understanding, however painful, could replace speculation.

Externally, “care” extended to those employees who were departing. Anjuna went beyond the standard severance package, actively supporting their former team members. This included sharing job opportunities through their extensive investor and partner networks and ensuring continued access to vital benefits like healthcare. Such gestures, while not erasing the pain of job loss, underscored a genuine concern for individual well-being, preserving relationships and Anjuna’s reputation in the wider tech community.

Navigating the Storm: Swift Decisions, Compassionate Communication

Crucially, Anjuna actively sidestepped common pitfalls that can catastrophically erode trust during periods of layoffs. They avoided prolonged uncertainty, which can paralyze a workforce with anxiety. Instead, decisions were made swiftly and communicated directly. Impersonal, mass announcements were eschewed in favor of one-on-one conversations. There was no leadership silence; Yogev and his team engaged directly, explaining the rationale and expressing regret.

While the initial round of layoffs was difficult, the second round months later presented an even greater challenge to rebuilding trust. Yet, the established culture of “care” and transparency provided a foundation. Rather than allowing an atmosphere of blame to fester, the company focused its energy on collective learning. “There’s kind of two things people do, like the kind of worst companies are looking for somebody to blame and that always ends up creating a culture of people are just trying to not make mistakes,” Yogev observed. “Just creates a culture of blaming, which is just completely counterproductive, right?” Anjuna consciously chose the opposite path: analyzing what went wrong and strategizing how to prevent future missteps, fostering resilience rather than resentment.

Rebuilding Smarter: A New Blueprint for Sustainable Growth

Today, Anjuna is not just surviving; it is actively rebuilding with a fundamentally different, more resilient approach. The lessons learned from the volatile market of 2022 have reshaped its operational philosophy. Hiring is now significantly more deliberate, driven by strategic needs and long-term vision rather than merely expanding headcount. Sales growth is meticulously tied to actual market demand and validated customer needs, moving away from a “land grab” mentality.

Furthermore, the company is embracing technological innovation to enhance efficiency. New tools, particularly those leveraging artificial intelligence, are being integrated to help the leaner team operate more effectively and achieve ambitious goals without the need for overexpansion. This strategic integration of AI allows Anjuna to maximize its output and maintain agility, ensuring that it can adapt quickly to future market shifts without repeating the mistakes of the hypergrowth era. The focus has shifted from sheer size to smart, sustainable, and impactful growth.

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Isabelle Johannessen is our host. Build Mode is produced and edited by Maggie Nye. Audience Development is led by Morgan Little. And a special thanks to the Foundry and Cheddar video teams.