Is DocDoc sick or just a target of poor prognosis?

The truth behind the exit of 7 executives explained.

Online medical appointment-booking and health-related information portal in Pan-Asia, DocDoc, is probably one of the most successful startups in Singapore. In a span of two years since inception, DocDoc is currently rumoured to be valued at North of US$15m by its most recent investors. There seems to be no stopping in its growing popularity with over 29,000 doctor profiles listed to-date on the portal - a main reason why Singapore Business Review named it as one of the hottest startups to watch in 2014.

Recent tip-off from our readers however suggest that the company has seen a recent wave of seven executive departures namelyJuergen Specht, CTO; Max-F. Scheichenost, President; Dr Dawn Soo, COO; Jon Samsel, CMO; Daniel Endres, CIO;Tej Deol, Managing Director and James Han, Country Manager of South Korea.

A letter sent to Singapore Business Review also mentioned that DocDoc has paused its operation in Korea and laid off its on the ground sales team.

A key executive from DocDoc however is quick to clear matters out.

In an exclusive interview with DocDoc Co-founder and Executive Chairman Cole Sirucek, he said that Deol is on compassionate leave to tend to a family matter. The departure of the other six key executives meanwhile were a result of the merger with another medical appointment booking portal, DoctorPage. He also added that the exit is not a one time exodus but a planned gradual series of departures.

"In June 2013, DocDoc consummated a merger of inequals with another local Singapore company by the name of DoctorPage. This resulted in two full management teams – clearly an unsustainable corporate structure. Over the period of post-acquisition integration, we tolerated redundancies in the spirit of knowledge retention. Ultimately, however, startups need to be run in as efficient a manner as possible and as a consequence, there was only room left for top performers in each role," he said.

"To be clear, DocDoc is currently in its strongest position since inception, with millions of dollars in cash reserves, no debt and a fully-formed management team," Sirucek added.

Today, DocDoc has a full management team, that includes an Executive Chairman, a CEO, a Chief Product Officer, a Chief Technical Officer, a Chief Revenue Officer and a Chief Marketing Officer, four sales reps, a fully staffed concierge/call centre and a committed group of notable investors.

Moreover, Sirucek shared that the company has just raised a fresh round of capital from third-party investors on better terms than any previous round.

To date, DocDoc is believed to have raised over SG$6M in total funding from Credence Partners Chairman Koh Boon Hwee, Jungle Ventures, 500 Startups, Medtronic's former chairman and CEO Bill Hawkins, Biosensor's founder and chairman Yoh Chie Lu, and a host of additional notable individuals.

With regards to DocDoc's Korea operations, Sirucek highlighted that in the third quarter of 2013, DocDoc's Board decided to cut its direct-to-doctor sales team "purely" for strategic reasons. "We felt that the company needed to leverage our market leading position and system integration advantages in Singapore to expand throughout South East Asia and Australia over the next 12 months. We remain on excellent terms with James Han and the rest of the folks in Korea," he said.