German startup Sharpist, a platform for personalised employee learning and development, today announced that it has raised €4.6 million in seed financing led by Vorwerk Ventures. The financing round was joined by co-investors btov Partners and APX. As part of the investment, Holger Witte, Partner at Vorwerk Ventures, will join Sharpist’s Advisory Board.
Sharpist, founded in 2018, aims to help employees stay on top of their continuous development at work, in an engaging way. Professionals at all levels and stages of their careers use Sharpist to grow and develop, using its global network of world-class executive coaches, personalised development plans, and a mobile-first platform that can be accessed anywhere, anytime.
The seed financing comes at a time of significant growth and expansion for Sharpist. In the past year, the company has led hundreds of successful pilot implementations at blue-chip enterprises around the world, including Allianz, Porsche, CBRE and others. Its users are also content: Sharpist has achieved an average rating of 4.9 out of 5 stars, and 95% of learners agree that they would refer Sharpist to their colleagues.
Sharpist plans to invest the funds in developing its learning platform, scaling its implementations with new and existing clients around the world, and building its network of world-class coaches and team of experts in Berlin.
“As the loyalty felt by top talent toward employers has eroded, the global War for Talent has only continued to intensify in recent years,” said Fabian, COO and co-founder of Sharpist. “In the past year, we’ve shown that our personalized learning platform is a proven and scalable remedy for increasing engagement among employees, and gives HR leaders the measurement capabilities they desperately need. In Vorwerk Ventures, we’ve found a partner that shares our vision and ambition, and we’re excited to be entering 2020 with great momentum and optimism about the road ahead.”
Holger Witte, Partner at Vorwerk Ventures, said: “Today’s workers expect their employer to offer meaningful contributions to their skillset, future professional prospects and sense of career balance. Sharpist is leading the way in facilitating measurable, personalized learning at scale to help top employers deliver on this expectation, and come out ahead in the global War for Talent. We are excited to partner with their passionate and talented leadership team.”
