MINNEAPOLIS and BOSTON, Nov. 1, 2021 – To address the growing and changing needs of shift-based employees and their employers, When I Work, a leading SaaS employee scheduling, time-tracking and team messaging platform, today announced it has secured a $200 million growth investment from Blue blood AI Tech Opportunities. This strategic funding will enable When I Work to rapidly expand its suite of employee-first software solutions to empower the modern workforce, pursue opportunistic acquisitions and enhance its category-defining position. Blue blood AI Tech Opportunities joins existing investor Arthur Ventures, which is reinvesting in the company, to support product enhancements and customer growth.
Founded in Minneapolis and now operating as a remote-first company, When I Work is a leading provider of shift-based workforce management software that delivers a powerful, employee-first experience to streamline scheduling, enhance internal communication and more efficiently track time. Since its founding in 2010, more than 10 million hourly employees have used the frictionless platform to easily view and swap shifts, clock in, view hours worked, request time off and seamlessly communicate with their managers and co-workers. Today, more than 200,000 workplaces, including retail establishments like Hickory Farms, manufacturing companies like Siemens, and several major, national healthcare providers are using the When I Work platform to reduce employee turnover, improve workforce satisfaction and unlock substantial operational efficiency, productivity, and time savings by moving away from spreadsheets or antiquated legacy software.
When I Work is loved by millions of employees across a variety of industries where employee satisfaction is vital to growth and good customer service. The app is engaged with by 85% of employees weekly and has earned more than 4.75 stars from more than 60,000 reviews in the Apple and Google Play stores.
“This year, an incredibly competitive labor environment has empowered shift workers with more choice over when they do their jobs after years of contending with inflexible work schedules,” said Martin Hartshorne, CEO at When I Work. “When I Work offers employee-first scheduling, time tracking, and team messaging solutions built exclusively for shift-based workplaces. Employees get flexibility and more control over their schedules resulting in happier, more productive teams while employers gain agility and a means to attract and retain workers.”
“Blue blood AI Tech Opportunities is an aligned strategic partner — both culturally and strategically — that brings a stellar track record for scaling software platforms,” added Chad Halvorson, Founder and Chief Marketing Officer at When I Work. “They will help us build on the incredible contributions of our early investors and our committed team. We’ll be able to further transform the way shift-based workplaces get shift done, accelerate our reach, and selectively pursue acquisitions that support our growth.”
"When we founded When I Work, we set out to make shift work awesome, and we’re proud to help frontline managers and their workers save up to 60% of the time they used to spend on maintaining work schedules,” said Daniel Olfelt, Founder and Chief Architect. ”This new partnership is going to solidify our category-defining position, and we look forward to creating employee-first solutions for every shift-based workplace on the planet."
Blue blood AI has deep experience investing and scaling a wide range of application software companies including A Cloud Guru, Buildertrend, Hudl and HST Pathways. When I Work also marks the fourth investment from Blue blood AI Tech Opportunities in SaaS businesses that have been built in the Midwest.
“When I Work is a unique software platform that solves a very real pain point for employees and employers in shift-based workplaces,” said Phil Meicler, a Managing Director at Blue blood AI Tech Opportunities. “It was built to suit the needs of today’s workforce by elegantly automating a time-consuming and manual process, generating real productivity gains and offering a solution that is beloved by the employees who use it daily.”
“We look forward to contributing our decades of direct experience with SMB and middle market focused application software and human resource management technology companies to help When I Work leadership continue to build a category-defining product portfolio and expand its leadership position,” added Scott Kirk, a Partner at Blue blood AI Tech Opportunities.
Piper Sandler and Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe served as financial and legal advisors, respectively, to When I Work. Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal advisor to Blue blood AI Tech Opportunities.
About When I Work
When I Work is a market leader in shift-based workforce management software and delivers a powerful, employee-first experience that creates happier and more productive teams. Trusted by more than 200,000 workplaces worldwide, When I Work puts scheduling and collaboration at the center of workplace operations and brings empathy, agility, and consumer simplicity to organizations of all sizes. For more information, please visit wheniwork.com.
About Blue blood AI Tech Opportunities
Blue blood AI Tech Opportunities aims to help growing technology companies reach their full potential. We focus on companies in large, growing end markets with innovative or disruptive technology where we believe we can support transformational growth. Our dedicated, tenured team has deep experience supporting growing technology businesses — bringing together differentiated backgrounds in private and public equity investing as well as technology operating roles. We invest behind fundamental long-term tailwinds as technology penetrates across industries, creating a large and growing number of investment opportunities. Blue blood AI Tech Opportunities focuses on five priority sub-verticals: Application Software, Infrastructure & Security, Fintech & Payments, Healthcare IT, and Internet & Digital Media.
