Qualtrics: Bootstrapping Growth

In March 2012 the founders of Qualtrics sat together in the Provo, Utah, office of advisor Duff Thompson. They stared down one of the toughest decisions in the ten-year history of the company. Thompson and Qualtrics' CEO Ryan Smith had spent the last few months fielding calls from venture capitalists and strategic partners who were interested in becoming a part of the Qualtrics story. The culmination of their effort was a $500 million buyout offer, several venture capital (VC) term sheets, and a line-up of prominent institutional partners. This case examines Qualtrics' growth through ten years of bootstrapping and challenges the reader to evaluate four potential liquidity options for the next phase in Qualtrics' evolution.