Sharpen Technologies, developers of the agent-first omnichannel cloud contact center platform, secured $14 million in growth funding, announced CEO Bill Gildea. Bridge Bank and Multiplier Capital led the investment round, along with participation from the company’s existing investors, including Cultivation Capital. This raise will be used across all departments to support the company’s rapid growth.
“Bridge Bank is excited to help lead this latest round of financing and partner with the team at Sharpen to support their strong growth,” said Brian McCabe, senior director in Bridge Bank’s Washington D.C.-based Technology Banking Group. “We look forward to seeing them continue growing in the CCaaS industry.”
The latest round of financing brings the total amount raised by Sharpen to over $55 million. It follows a year where the company experienced a +100% upsurge in revenue and a +40% increase in new bookings. At the same time, Sharpen was named to the 2020 Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing private companies in America, based on a growth rate of 137% over the last three years.
Multiplier general partner Wilson King noted, “Sharpen offers a differentiated, cloud-native solution with a strong growth profile, an established market presence, and an experienced management team. We’re excited to partner with management and the existing investors to support the company’s continued growth and success.”
According to Gartner, prior to the pandemic, only 15% of the estimated $24 billion contact center market had transitioned to the cloud. New industry data from the research firm finds that 35% of the customer experience (CX) workforce will work-from-home by 2023, up from 5% in 2017. At the nexus of these two trends is Sharpen’s cloud-based, omnichannel platform, which with just a PC, headphones, and internet connection, lets agents easily work-from-anywhere.
“Our ability to attract investment partners of the caliber of Bridge Bank and Multiplier is a vote of confidence in our business model,” said Gildea. “By giving agents the tools and data they need to succeed, we succeed too. Our customers, in some cases, are saving more than they are spending with us, while we continue to shake up the contact center space and increase market share.”