What New Work does

New Work SE is a Hamburg-based technology company that operates an integrated portfolio of HR, recruiting, and professional networking platforms serving the German-speaking (DACH) market. The company was founded in 2003 as OpenBC, listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in 2006 as XING, renamed to New Work SE in 2019, and taken private in August 2024 after Burda Digital SE accumulated approximately 74% ownership. Its core B2C assets are XING, a professional jobs network with 21+ million members, and kununu, an employer review platform hosting 9-11.7 million workplace insights including salary data and culture assessments. Its core B2B asset is onlyfy by XING, a SaaS talent acquisition suite launched in 2022 that bundles active sourcing, passive sourcing, applicant tracking (inherited from Prescreen), and multi-channel job ad distribution reaching up to 900 external job boards and social media platforms via the TalentBait integration.

The underlying technology combines AI-based candidate matching and recommendation systems, a generative-AI review summarizer on kununu, and an applicant management workflow engine. Supporting brands include InterNations (4.8M-member expat community in 420 cities), Honeypot (IT specialist recruiting, planned for discontinuation), Jobbörse.com (jobs search engine with 2.5M+ jobs), and XING Marketing Solutions (B2B advertising). Content and event properties include the New Work Experience (NWX) platform, the New Work Award, and the New Work Pier co-working space in Hamburg.

The business model is a hybrid of B2C subscription (XING Premium membership) and B2B SaaS subscription (onlyfy platform with 14,489 corporate customers as of H1 2023, adding 810 net customers YoY), supplemented by B2B advertising revenue (XING Marketing Solutions) and transaction-based job ad distribution. FY2023 pro forma revenue was €305.6M with €97.1M pro forma EBITDA, but H1 2024 revenue declined approximately 12% YoY to €133.7M. Following a January 2024 restructuring that reduced headcount from ~1,900 to ~1,200, the company is operating under new CEO Henning Rönneberg (appointed May 2025) with a strategic focus on repositioning XING as a jobs network and consolidating around the XING and kununu brands.

Name

New Work

Legal name

New Work SE

Website

https://new-work.se

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

New Work SE operates XING, kununu, and onlyfy by XING — an integrated portfolio of professional networking, employer review, and B2B talent acquisition SaaS platforms serving the DACH region's HR and recruiting market with 21M+ members and 14,000+ corporate customers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Online Recruiting & HR Technology

NAICS

Employment Placement Agencies (561311), Employment Placement Agencies and Executive Search Services (56131)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361)

akta.pro primary industry

Administrative, Clerical & Office Support Direct Hire (BPACAFAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Skilled Trades & Industrial Direct Hire (BPACAFAG), Remote & Global/Multilingual Direct Hire (BPACAFAO)

Keywords

• Online recruiting platform
• Professional networking
• Talent acquisition software
• Employer branding solutions
• HR technology

Headquarters

HQ city

Hamburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. XING Premium Subscriptions (B2C): Paid membership subscriptions for individual professionals on XING platform offering enhanced profile visibility, ad-free experience, and exclusive features to help with job search and career development.
2. E-Recruiting Solutions (B2B): Recruiting solutions for corporate clients including onlyfy by XING talent acquisition platform, job postings, and active sourcing tools. Revenue from subscription-based B2B E-Recruiting segment which grew to €218.6 million in 2023.
3. Employer Branding (B2B): Services helping companies present themselves authentically on kununu, including employer branding profiles, culture analyses, and targeted recruitment marketing solutions.
4. Advertising (B2B Marketing Solutions): Modern advertising formats for companies in professional environment through XING Marketing Solutions. Native advertising and integrated campaigns targeting professional audience.
5. Job Listings Distribution: Job ad distribution across multiple channels including XING Jobs, kununu, and up to 900 external job boards and social media platforms through the onlyfy platform.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

New Work SE operates the leading DACH professional jobs network through the XING platform (over 21 million members) and the kununu employer-review platform (over 9 million workplace insights), connecting job seekers with employers. For corporate customers it sells the onlyfy by XING B2B talent acquisition suite—including the onlyfy one platform, applicant tracking, talent pool management, job ad distribution, and employer-branding products—on a subscription basis to more than 14,000 corporate customers.

Product overview

New Work SE operates a multi-platform portfolio of products serving the HR and recruiting market in German-speaking countries. The core B2C platforms are XING (jobs network with 21+ million members) and kununu (employer review platform with 9+ million workplace insights), complemented by InterNations (expat community). The B2B portfolio centers on onlyfy by XING, a unified talent acquisition platform that includes onlyfy one (core ATS/sourcing platform), onlyfy TalentManager, onlyfy TalentpoolManager, onlyfy Job Ads, and onlyfy Employer Branding products. The ecosystem also includes XING Marketing Solutions (B2B advertising), XING Events (event management), and specialty offerings like Honeypot (IT recruiting, being discontinued). Content initiatives include the New Work Experience (NWX) content hub with podcast, magazine, and NWX Circles workshops, plus the New Work Award. The company emphasizes AI-powered features including candidate matching in onlyfy one and the kununu Review Summariser for automated review analysis.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• XING: Leading jobs network in German-speaking countries with over 21 million members, helping professionals find jobs that fit their lives
• kununu
• onlyfy by XING
• InterNations

Products and services

• XING The leading jobs network in German-speaking countries with approximately 21-22 million members. Helps professionals find jobs that fit their lives and enables companies and recruiters to find suitable candidates, matching candidates to company culture fit in addition to CV criteria.
• kununu Leading employer review platform in German-speaking countries with over 9 million workplace insights, including employer ratings, salary information, and company culture assessments. Helps job seekers find authentic workplace insights and enables employers to present themselves transparently.
• onlyfy by XING (brand) B2B talent acquisition brand bundling XING E-Recruiting and Prescreen services. Provides holistic recruiting solutions including active sourcing, passive sourcing, and applicant management under a unified brand for corporate HR customers.
• onlyfy one Core talent acquisition SaaS platform combining active sourcing, passive sourcing, and efficient applicant management. Provides AI-based candidate recommendations from XING's 21+ million member network, WhatsApp application capability, social media campaign integration via TalentBait, and multi-channel job publishing to 900+ channels.
• InterNations World's largest global community for expatriates with over 4.8 million members in 420 cities. Offers online networking, discussion forums, and local events for people living and working abroad.
• Jobbörse.com Largest jobs search engine in German-speaking countries with over 2.5 million jobs, providing an aggregated search portal for employment listings.
• XING Events Event management and ticketing platform (formerly amiando AG), enabling organizations to manage professional events and sell tickets online.
• Honeypot Platform specializing in IT specialist recruitment. Originally a transactional model, transitioned to subscription-based monetization. Note: planned discontinuation as part of strategic realignment.

Quantifiable outcome

• 179% increase in applications from paid XING job ads
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

AI capability6 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• Baller LeagueflagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2023XING is founding partner and main sponsor of Baller League football league. Multi-million euro investment for first two seasons. XING featured as shirt sponsor on all 12 teams and perimeter billboards. Player draft day hosted on XING platform.
• TalentBaitcoreTechnology or Integration · 12 September 2022Partnership for social media campaign integration in onlyfy one platform. TalentBait is described as one of the best-in-class providers for social media recruiting campaigns. The integration enables efficient social media targeting for job advertisements.
• forsaminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022forsa conducted representative labor market study in German-speaking countries on behalf of XING E-Recruiting, surveying both workers and HR decision-makers about hiring challenges and job openness.

Scale indicators17 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Wellfound (AngelList Talent): Startup and tech-focused job platform with employer branding and direct sourcing. Comparable to onlyfy's tech-focused offerings and to XING's premium subscription experience for active job seekers in startup ecosystems.
• Comparably: Employer review and compensation transparency platform. Comparable to kununu on workplace culture ratings and salary insights, though US-focused and earlier-stage in employer branding monetization.

Direct peers

• LinkedIn (Microsoft): Global professional network with the dominant jobs and recruiting platform. Directly comparable to XING on social/professional networking and to onlyfy on B2B recruiting, though at much greater global scale and with Microsoft ecosystem integration.
• ZipRecruiter: Online employment marketplace connecting employers with job seekers via AI-driven matching. Comparable to onlyfy one on SMB-focused talent acquisition with subscription-based B2B model and multi-channel job distribution.
• Indeed: World's largest job search engine and recruitment platform. Competes with XING Jobs and Jobbörse.com on job listings aggregation and with onlyfy on recruiter solutions across multiple geographies.
• Glassdoor: Employer review and salary transparency platform owned by Indeed/Recruit. Most direct comparable to kununu on employer reviews, salary insights, and culture assessments in the recruitment funnel.
• StepStone: Leading DACH-focused online job board operated by StepStone Group (listed in Frankfurt). Direct competitor to XING Jobs and onlyfy in German-speaking markets with strong employer brand and blue-collar coverage.

Broad incumbents

• Monster Worldwide: Established global job board and recruitment solutions provider. Operates broadly across recruiting services with overlapping capabilities to onlyfy by XING but at a global rather than DACH-specialized scope.
• CareerBuilder (Indeed): Long-established US job board and talent acquisition platform. Overlaps with XING Jobs and onlyfy on job listings, ATS, and recruitment marketing, though primarily US-focused.

Others

• Honeypot (legacy): Was formerly a New Work SE subsidiary specializing in IT specialist recruitment. Now being discontinued but historically comparable as a tech-focused recruiting marketplace with subscription model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/NEW_WORK_SE_IR
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/xingcom
• Facebookfacebook.com/XING
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/new-work-se
• Instagraminstagram.com/xing

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about New Work