Norwest is a venture capital and growth equity investment firm that specializes in venture and growth equity companies. Since its inception, it has invested in more than 600 companies and partnered with over 140 active companies across our venture and growth equity portfolio. The firm invests in early to late-stage companies across a wide range of sectors with a focus on consumer, enterprise, and healthcare. It offers a deep network of connections, operating experience, and a wide range of impactful services to help CEOs and founders scale their businesses.

Norwest Venture Partners

Salesforce Ventures helps enterprising founders build companies that reinvent the way the world works.  they’ve invested in and partnered with more than 400 of the world's tenacious enterprise software companies  Salesforce Ventures leverages decades of expertise in the cloud and long-term relationships with key decision-makers at thousands of businesses around the world to give portfolio companies an unfair advantage, help them build credibility, and accelerate growth.

Salesforce Ventures

Still Venture Capital

Founded in 2010 by ex-software operators, Tola Capital is a venture capital firm that believes in the power of software and data to transform the way the world works. Our diverse team provides hands-on engagement to founders who build solutions with the potential for long-term, transformational change. We invest globally across multiple stages and exclusively target companies led by exceptional talent who are building essential software for enterprise customers.

Tola Capital

Sapphire is a global software venture capital firm with more than $11 billion in AUM and team members across Austin, London, Menlo Park and San Francisco. For over a decade, Sapphire has partnered with visionary management teams and venture funds to back companies of consequence. Since its founding, Sapphire has invested in more than 170 companies globally resulting in more than 30 Public Listings and 45 acquisitions. The firm’s investment strategies — Sapphire Ventures, Sapphire Partners and Sapphire Sport — are focused on scaling companies and venture funds, elevating them to become category leaders. Sapphire’s Portfolio Growth team of experienced operators delivers a strategic blend of value-add services, tools and resources designed to support portfolio company leaders as they scale.

Sapphire Ventures

Simpplr

Simpplr is an AI-powered employee experience platform. Organizations use their products to deliver personalized experiences that inspire and engage their employees. Simpplr empowers individuals to thrive wherever they work.   Simpplr is headquartered in Silicon Valley, CA with offices in the UK, Canada, and India, and is backed by Norwest Venture Partners, Salesforce Ventures, and Tola Capital.

Simpplr is an intranet platform built for remote teams to engage and connect with colleagues. The platform provides employees with important organizational announcements, helps them find relevant documents faster, and keeps them socially connected to co-workers. Simpplr’s cloud-based platform is backed by AI, which the company uses to launch an auto-governance engine (November 2019), which ensures content is relevant and up-to-date and creates personalized employee news feeds.

Distributed workforces require new solutions for office operations, HR, payment, and more.

Remote Work Infrastructure

Simpplr is a provider of employee experience software that aims to connect and align employees within organizations. The company's flagship product, Simpplr One, is a comprehensive platform that brings together various tools and resources employees need to perform their best work from any location. This solution addresses the challenges posed by disjointed and fragmented tools that often hinder employee productivity and engagement. Simpplr's technology facilitates effective internal communication, measures employee alignment and sentiment in real-time, and promotes a more positive work environment. The platform is designed to be user-friendly for both end-users and IT teams, offering simple yet powerful features. Simpplr's approach, which they call Live EX, helps companies communicate more effectively in a distributed work environment. The software is particularly beneficial for organizations seeking to increase employee engagement, retention, and overall business performance. As of March 2022, Simpplr's client base included notable brands such as DocuSign, Eurostar, and AAA.

About us

Simpplr: The Employee Experience Platform

Simpplr Announces Cohesion 2022, Its Second Annual Industry Conference for Employee Experience Professionals

Improving EX through trust, communications, and a human-centered approach

HR Tech

AI-Powered Intranets Drive 50% Higher Gains in Revenue, Employee Engagement and Productivity, Simpplr Study Finds

Simpplr is an intranet platform built for remote teams to engage and connect with colleagues. The platform provides employees with important organizational announcements, helps them find relevant documents faster, and keeps them socially connected to co-workers. Simpplr’s cloud-based platform is backed by AI, which the company uses to launch an auto-governance engine (November 2019), which ensures content is relevant and up-to-date and creates personalized employee news feeds.In addition, Simpplr uses “adaptive personalization” to publish content based on an employee’s role, department, and location. The platform integrates with popular enterprise tools such as Box, Google Drive, Slack, and Microsoft 365 from which content can be directly posted on the Simpplr interface. The platform operates a subscription pricing model.In <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/22006">September 2023</a>, Simpplr acquired Socrates.ai, a GenAI-based virtual employee assistant, offering centralized HR and IT information through a conversational interface. The service was integrated into its platform, improving the employee experience.Key customers and partnershipsAs of April 2024, the company had over a million active users across 1,000+ enterprises, notably including Snowflake, Moderna, Eurostar, and The World Economic Forum.Funding and financialsIn <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/18178">May 2023</a>, the company raised USD 70 million in Series D funding led by Sapphire Ventures, taking the company's total funding to over USD 131 million. The new funding was set to be invested in the future growth and innovation of the employee experience platform.

ActivTrak is a cloud-based productivity monitoring software provider. The platform offers data and analytics which can be used to detect workplace productivity gaps. The platform collects data from employee activity logs and computer screenshots, although it does not log keystrokes or record video of a user’s screen. ActivTrak also facilitates a range of tasks for admins such as blocking websites, flagging suspicious activities, IP address connections, and monitoring web, and app traffic.Other features offered include productivity reports and coaching, headcount and workload management and personal insights. In November 2023, the company added capabilities to measure the usage of AI tools, automatically detecting and classifying the use of such tools and websites to help organizations manage and improve AI adoption across the workforce.Activtrak generates revenue via monthly subscriptions (USD 10 and USD 17) per user, and custom pricing for larger enterprises.Key customers and partnershipsAs of April 2024, over 9,500 enterprises used ActivTrak’s platform, notably including Allstate, asembia and Nobu. ActivTrak closed 2023 with a 40% growth in its customer base (adding ~2,200 customers).Funding and financialsIn November 2020, ActivTrak raised USD 50 million in a Series B round led by Sapphire Ventures. Sapphire Ventures CEO and managing director joined ActivTrak’s board as part of the deal. The new proceeds were earmarked for scaling global sales and marketing campaigns, expansion of its platform using AI driven analytics, and improving integration with its technology partners.

ActivTrak

inFeedo is a people predictive analytics company based in India. The Y Combinator-backed startup founded in 2013 is currently focused on “Amber” (launched in 2016), an AI-enabled bot that helps manage employee engagement, predict attrition, and get a pulse on company culture in real time. The company also offers AI-driven exit surveys and analytics to improve retention.Key customers and partnershipsAs of April 2024, over 700,000 users across 250 organizations utilized inFeedo’s platform. Notable clients included GE Healthcare, Puma, Tata Group, and Lenovo.Funding and financialsIn its latest funding round (<a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/9099">March 2022</a>) inFeedo raised USD 12 million in Series A funding led by Jungle Ventures, reportedly tripling its valuation from less than 18 months ago. The fresh funds will be used for its second employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) buyback for all employees and its go-to-market activities in North America. Further, the company claims it has achieved annual revenue of USD 1.6 million as of November 2020.

inFeedo

Donut provides solutions to keep employees engaged with casual conversations. Its first product, Intros, makes connections between teammates via Slack to emulate quick meetups and in-person introductions at work, which are now virtual.Donut’s new product, Watercooler, launched in October 2020. It attempts to reinvent the micro-interactions between employees at the office watercooler online. The product will integrate with Slack, where a newly-designated channel for Watercooler will be created. The product will post questions automatically within the customers’ desired frequency and pre-selected topics.The company uses a freemium subscription model with paid plans starting at approximately USD 2 per user per month.Key customers and partnershipsThe company claims it has supported four million connections (one million since the Covid-19 pandemic) across its 12,000 customers, including companies such as Okta, Zapier, Slack, The New York Times, and Invision.Funding and financialsDonut announced a USD 12 million funding round led by Accel, along with its new product, Watercooler. The USD 12 million raised was accumulated over multiple rounds before the Covid-19 pandemic, with proceeds earmarked for product development.

Donut

Matter is an employee feedback platform founded by Brett Hellman. Hellman was the founder of messaging app “Hall”, which was founded in 2011 and later sold to Atlassian for USD 20 million in 2015.Matter uses 360-degree feedback to evaluate skills in employees which are linked to career success. The platform links skills such as influence, inclusiveness, empathy, resourcefulness, and multitasking to evaluations. Matter is currently available in beta.

Matter

Mesh is a Y Combinator-backed company that allows employees to set goals, track tasks, share feedback, and engage in one-on-ones. The company also offers an AI coach (Mesh Maven) to help employees stay in line with their key objectives, improve the quality of feedback provided and summarize 1:1s. Mesh also offers nudges and surveys to improve employee engagement alongside relevant analytics.The company generates revenue via monthly subscriptions per user, priced at USD 4 (Base) and USD 7 (Premium).&nbsp;Key customers and partnershipsAs of April 2024, the company served over 100+ enterprises, including NTT Data, Grant Thornton and Groww. The platform also offers integrations with third-party software such as Gmail, Microsoft Teams and Slack, among others.Funding and financialsIn its most recent funding round (<a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/9768">April 2022</a>) Mesh raised USD 11 million in Series A funding led by RTP Global. The fresh funds were earmarked to expand its global footprint across the US and APAC regions. In line with this, the company planned to expand its headcount across the engineering and sales departments.

Mesh

Companies offering tools to infer employee morale (through surveys and quick assessments) and productivity, including functions for goal setting, review, and feedback.

Companies that offer the entire spectrum of HR tools including payroll processing benefits, onboarding, compliance, analytics, scheduling etc

Companies providing either standalone or combined payroll and benefits services to businesses.

EoR - Companies that assist businesses in hiring distributed teams globally in compliance with foreign labor laws. EoRs become the legal employer of offshore employees. Solutions include payroll, benefits, and taxes.

PEO - Companies that offer similar services to EoRs but establish a co-employment arrangement with businesses and do not become the legal employer.

Companies offering tools such as chatbots, surveys, games, and other activities to infer, assess and improve employee morale and sentiment.

Companies that provide a centralized space for employees to access internal and external resources, enterprise applications, and enable workers to communicate across departments, and stay up to date on organizational announcements.

Solutions in this industry hub are predominantly offered under a B2B SaaS model

Employee and performance management solutions use AI/Ml to infer engagement insights and sentiment analysis

Offers tools for companies to hire contractors globally, and conduct employee and performance management

Simpplr is a provider of employee experience software that aims to connect and align employees within organizations. The company's flagship product, Simpplr One, is a comprehensive platform that brings together various tools and resources employees need to perform their best work from any location. This solution addresses the challenges posed by disjointed and fragmented tools that often hinder employee productivity and engagement. Simpplr's technology facilitates effective internal communication, measures employee alignment and sentiment in real-time, and promotes a more positive work environment. The platform is designed to be user-friendly for both end-users and IT teams, offering simple yet powerful features. Simpplr's approach, which they call Live EX, helps companies communicate more effectively in a distributed work environment. The software is particularly beneficial for organizations seeking to increase employee engagement, retention, and overall business performance. As of March 2022, Simpplr's client base included notable brands such as DocuSign, Eurostar, and AAA.
Key customers and partnerships
Simpplr's customer base spans various industries, with the company serving prominent organizations such as DocuSign, Eurostar, and AAA as of March 2022. The company has also established partnerships with industry leaders and thought leaders in the employee experience sector. In October 2022, Simpplr organized its second annual conference, Cohesion 2022, which brought together employee experience professionals, executives, and industry experts to discuss best practices and innovative strategies in the field. This event provided a platform for networking and knowledge sharing among peers in the employee experience industry.

Filtered is a skill-based hiring platform that leverages AI technology to revolutionize the technical hiring process. The company's core offering is a system that assesses candidates' fit for job roles, teams, and companies through capabilities-based hiring methods. Filtered's platform employs proprietary remote desktop technology to enable candidates to complete assessments for various technical skills, including cloud-related competencies. The company's services include candidate authentication, fraud detection, video interviews, and code challenges, all designed to provide a comprehensive evaluation of potential hires. Filtered's technology aims to overcome common challenges in tech hiring by focusing on practical skills rather than traditional credentials. The platform also offers reporting tools to help employers monitor hiring-related performance metrics and identify procedural gaps.
Key customers and partnerships
Filtered's client base includes several high-profile tech companies. The platform was being utilized by prominent companies such as Lyft, Cengage, Facebook, and Informatica for their technical hiring needs. The company's focus on skill-based hiring has attracted employers seeking to move beyond traditional hiring methods that rely heavily on academic credentials.

Filtered.ai

Metaview.ai is an AI recruiting technology company that focuses on improving the quality and efficiency of interview processes. The company's core product leverages advanced large language models, including OpenAI's GPT-4, to provide AI-powered interview summarization and a conversational interface for interviews. Metaview's technology eliminates the need for manual note-taking during interviews, allowing recruiters to focus on engaging with candidates. The platform offers features such as Metaview Answers, which enables recruiters to ask questions about candidates and receive instant summaries of key details, exact data points, and underlying insights based on interview discussions. This AI-enabled model helps recruiters extract data from unstructured, information-dense interviews, saving time and improving decision-making. Metaview's customers save an average of 5-10 hours per week per recruiter and experience a 20% reduction in time-to-hire due to higher-quality interviews. The company was founded in 2018 by Siadhal Magos and Shahriar Tajbakhsh.

Metaview

TalentGuard, founded in 2009, is a talent management company that offers an AI-powered workforce intelligence platform called WorkforceGPT. The company's platform helps organizations uncover and foster talent within their workforce, simplifying complex information and making it actionable. TalentGuard's technology focuses on assessing employees' current skills and proficiency levels, developing those skills, and cataloging skill data to determine successful career paths and succession proposals. The platform utilizes artificial intelligence to identify and develop employees' skills and proficiencies, which can increase productivity and improve work quality.
In November 2023, TalentGuard introduced two significant enhancements to WorkforceGPT: Skill Builder and Skill-Based Learning Link Builder. Skill Builder generates technical, leadership, and soft skills with comprehensive definitions and behavioral indicators across four proficiency levels. The Skill-Based Learning Link Builder identifies relevant learning resources, bridging the gap between skill development and practical learning opportunities. These tools aim to help organizations customize and expand their skill libraries, fostering a more dynamic approach to talent development.
TalentGuard's software provides organizations with insights about employee proficiencies, qualifications, experiences, certifications, and work-style preferences. The company's solutions are designed to help businesses reinvest in their employees, offering tools for reskilling and upskilling existing staff. TalentGuard's platform also assists in ensuring workforce compliance with industry regulations and promotes diversity and inclusivity in the workplace.

TalentGuard

Talkpush is a recruitment automation platform that leverages chat interfaces and conversational AI to streamline high-volume hiring processes. Founded in 2014, the company's software enables employers to automate engagement with candidates at scale, handling millions of conversations with job seekers worldwide. Talkpush's technology allows for both automated and human-assisted interactions, with the majority of candidate conversations being fully AI-driven. The platform integrates with leading applicant tracking systems and supports various communication channels including WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Instagram.
Talkpush's product offerings include automated workflows that eliminate up to 95% of top-of-funnel manual tasks in recruitment. The system allows candidates to bypass traditional email and web procedures, reducing the number of face-to-face interviews recruiters need to conduct. Features include the ability to capture voice, video, and other rich media from candidates, as well as tools for recruiters to set up automated shortlisting, rejection, and interview scheduling based on predetermined criteria. In October 2020, Talkpush reported that its users saw a 250% increase in productivity, as measured by hires per recruiter.
The company has expanded its services to include an Automated Onboarding platform, helping new hires prepare for their first day on the job. Talkpush's technology was used to automate more than 10 million conversations with candidates in 2019, surpassing any other recruitment platform globally. The company operates primarily in emerging markets, with a focus on Southeast Asia and Latin America.
Key customers and partnerships
Talkpush serves leading employers in the retail, business process outsourcing (BPO), and staffing sectors. Notable clients include Walmart, McDonald's, Adecco, Concentrix, Teleperformance, and Accenture. The company has also worked with VXI Philippines to implement recruitment chatbots on Instagram.
In April 2020, Talkpush secured funding from Latin Leap, a Colombia-based venture capital studio, to accelerate its growth in the Latin American market. The company has customers in over 10 countries, including Costa Rica, Mexico, Colombia, and Argentina. Talkpush has partnered with various companies to enhance its offerings.

Talkpush

Worklytics is a B2B analytics company specializing in employee engagement and workplace optimization. The company offers a platform that analyzes anonymous collaboration data across various tools such as Office 365, Google Calendar, Drive, Slack, Zoom, GitHub, and JIRA to provide insights into team effectiveness and work patterns. Worklytics' technology focuses on improving how employees spend time, coordinate tasks, and balance individual work with collaboration. The platform utilizes techniques like organizational network analysis (ONA) and predictive analytics to gain insights into team collaboration while prioritizing employee privacy. Worklytics does not store or analyze any work content, instead using only exhaust/log data to understand workflow and collaboration patterns. The company's services are adaptable to diverse working environments, including remote and hybrid setups. Worklytics offers real-time insights through its DataStream work data pipeline and provides organizational benchmarks for companies to compare their metrics with industry peers. The platform also aims to drive positive organizational change through targeted nudges to leaders and managers. As of February 2024, Worklytics operates with a team of nine employees and is based in Seattle, Washington. The company was part of the Y-Combinator Winter 2018 batch.
Key customers and partnerships
Worklytics has established a clientele that includes prominent companies such as Uber, Boston Dynamics, and Nutanix. The company serves clients across the US, Canada, and other remote work setups. Worklytics integrates with popular tools including Google Workspace, Slack, Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and Salesforce to collect collaboration data and provide comprehensive insights into workforce dynamics.

Worklytics

Companies that offer AI-powered tools to support interview-related activities, including interview note-taking, candidate screening, skills testing, and other behavioral insights

Companies that develop AI-powered tools to streamline skill management tasks, including developing training flows, managing employee learning, and creating personalized training and coaching programs. This segment also includes companies that develop GenAI assistants to handle employee queries related to the organization and related processes

Companies that utilize GenAI and machine learning to generate analytics, insights, and dashboards related to human resource management, including employee lifecycle, recruitment, retention, behavioral and social insights, inclusion, compensation, rewards, workforce engagement

Companies that develop AI solutions to manage the employee feedback cycle, including feedback cycle setting, goal setting, developing feedback surveys, analysis of surveys, maintaining job descriptions, and career progression mapping. This segment also includes companies that utilize AI tools to analyze and maintain workplace diversity and inclusiveness

Companies that offer AI-powered tools to recruitment-related activities, including creating job descriptions, sourcing talent via various channels such as social media, carrying out background checks, candidate tracking, and engaging with potential candidates. This segment also includes freelance recruitment platforms that utilize AI-powered tools to match candidates with suitable roles

HR Tech soltion providers use GenAI to enhance their solutions

Simpplr, a digital workplace solutions provider, has acquired Socrates.ai, an AI-based virtual employee assistant, to improve the employee experience. Socrates.ai offers a conversational interface that provides centralized HR and IT information using GenAI technology. Simpplr plans to integrate Socrates.ai into its platform to streamline self-service, improve communication, and increase employee productivity by simplifying tasks and reducing information overload.

Simpplr

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