One year after its launch, Jet HR, a startup founded by Marco Ogliengo and Francesco Scalambrino to eliminate the bureaucracy surrounding payroll, HR and generally running a company in Italy, has attracted a seed round of €12 million, bringing total funding to €16.7 million. Lead investor is venture capital firm Picus Capital. Existing investors Exor Ventures, Italian Founders Fund and 2100 Ventures are participating in the round by increasing their stake.
Also investing further are names such as Diego Piacentini, who after a leadership roles at Apple and Amazon became government Commissioner for Italy’s Digital Agenda; David Clarke, former CTO of the world’s largest HR company, Workday; Tony Jamous, founder of Oyster HR (unicorn in the global payroll space); and Felix Blossier, founder of the French accounting unicorn Pennylane. Jet HR’s cap table also includes some of Italy’s most successful tech entrepreneurs – who invested directly or through IFF – as well as some of the largest industrial families such as Benetton, Berlusconi and Moratti.
Robin Godenrath, Founding Partner & Managing Director of Picus Capital, said: “We’re thrilled to back Marco, Francesco, and the entire JetHR team on their quest to revolutionize the Italian payroll landscape. Italy’s complex payroll regulations, established consultant networks, and antique way of customer interaction provide the ideal basis for JetHR’s innovative and digital approach. We are in particular impressed by the speed of product iteration and the exceptional commercial traction demonstrated by the team early on. We see exceptional potential for AI-powered automation to transform the Italian €4 billion payroll market given the current reliance on service-heavy solutions and we are excited to continue supporting JetHR going forward as they pioneer the future of AI-driven payroll solutions.
Jet HR responds to the frustration of companies in the clash with bureaucracy. It offers a tech platform coupled with expert, authorized Payroll Advisors. Not only does Jet HR automate payroll (the processing of payroll, hiring and related matters), but it allows for rapid handling of adjacent administrative tasks. Hundreds of satisfied customers appreciate the sudden clarity on payroll costs, the ease of building valid contracts and hiring employees, the elimination of paper from expense reports and contracts, and the monetary savings due to the automatic application of tax breaks. These are the main elements behind the success of this model, and what convinced so many innovators to invest in the record pre-seed round in June 2023.
The market’s strong demand for easier, efficient solutions to the many complexities of employee management is apparent after just 12 months of operation: more than 300 client companies-including traditional SMEs, start-ups, multinationals and even publicly traded companies like HelloFresh and Octopus Energy. Jet HR positioned itself in the top decile of world’s fastest growing Saas (Software as a Service).
The fundraise will be employed in growing the team, which now numbers 70 employees, mostly going into R&D. Upcoming features include contractor management, allowing companies to quickly pay contractors alongside employees, and have a complete picture of the total workforce and related costs.
Marco Ogliengo, Ceo of Jet HR, commented: “It is clear that we are on the right track: not only hundreds of satisfied clients and illustrious Italian investors, but we now have the trust of an international fund like Picus Capital. Picus knows our industry well, having invested in several payroll and HR companies that have since become ‘unicorns.’ They see potential in us, and we are happy to work together and learn from them. It is crucial for the future of our country to have a strong economy. Our contribution, supported by our investors, will be to free businesses from unnecessary bureaucracy so they can accelerate.”
Francesco Scalambrino, co-founder and Product Lead of Jet HR, added: “At the top of the list of the victories of this first year, I place the enthusiasm of the customers who have adopted our solution and thereafter come back to us describing the choice as one of the best decisions of the year for their business. They really save valuable time and energy, but most importantly, they now know every employee’s situation clearly. The same moreover applies to the employees themselves. Thanks to the trust of investors with the new capital, we will continue in the development of many new features and integrations crucial to bring further value to our customers.”
