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Techstars Iowa alum QuickHire raises $1.4 million investment round

November 15, 2021

QuickHire, a Kansas-based career discovery platform working with service workers to find job and advancement opportunities, announced today an oversubscribed $1.41 million financing round, led by MATH Venture Partners.

The funding will go towards technology investments and team expanding the company’s team, led by co-founders Deborah Gladney and Angela Muhwezi-Hall.

This round also included participation from Sandalphon Capital, KCRise Fund, October Minority Impact Fund, Tenzing Capital Ventures, Accelerate Venture Partners, Sixty8 Capital, Ruthless for Good, Revolution’s Rise of the Rest Seed Fund, and ETF@JFFLabs.

“We spoke to a variety of investors during this oversubscribed round,” said Gladney. “This incredible syndicate represents who we are and where we want to go. From minority-focused funds to future of work expertise, this group truly aligns with our vision and strategies.”

Gladney and Muhwezi-Hall officially launched QuickHire in April 2021. Shortly after launching, the company was accepted into the 2021 Techstars Iowa accelerator, which took place in Des Moines earlier this year.

“Nearly 110 million people in the U.S. work in the service industry, yet, employment technology innovations primarily cater to white-collar jobs,” wrote the company in a release announcing the round. “Given the service worker shortages across the county, we are helping workers and companies connect not just for a job, but for a career.”

Today, the company has more than 60 paying clients and more than 11,000 job seekers on its platform. Currently, QuickHire targets workers and businesses in the metro areas of Wichita and Kansas City. The company plans to expand across the Midwest and add skilled-labor verticals in 2022.

“We see the QuickHire team approaching the market differently — putting skilled trade and service workers first in geographies that have been traditionally overlooked,” says Dana Wright, managing partner at MATH Venture Partners. “The timing is right for this approach. We are excited to be part of this funding round, providing fuel for product innovation and market expansion.”

The $1.4 million funding round makes Gladney and Muhwezi-Hall only two of roughly 100 black women to raise more than $1 million in venture funding as of December 2020, according to a report published by ProjectDiane.

“We are underserved founders serving underserved workers. The more barriers we can remove, the more opportunity we can unleash for deserving, hard-working people,” said Muhwezi-Hall.

QuickHire is free for job seekers with business plans starting at $199 a month. All tiered payment options include job postings, candidate screenings, scheduling features, candidate matching, and talent management tools.

The company is now hiring and currently has three positions listed on its careers page.

Previous coverage

Techstars Iowa Accelerator Announces 2021 Class

Techstars Iowa alum QuickHire raises $1.4 million investment round | Clay & Milk
A central Iowa ag-tech accelerator has secured more backers and finally has a name. The Greater Des Moines Partnership first announced the accelerator last year, naming four initial investors. On Monday, the Partnership said the program will be called the "Iowa AgriTech Accelerator" and named three new investors. The new investors include Grinnell Mutual, Kent Corp. and Sukup Manufacturing, all Iowa companies. They join investors Deere & Co., Peoples Co., Farmers Mutual Hail Insurance Co. and DuPont Pioneer. Each investor has agreed to put up $100,000 for the first year of the accelerator. Startups entering the program will receive $40,000 in seed funding in exchange for 6 percent equity. Tej Dhawan, an angel investor and local startup mentor, is serving as interim director until the AgriTech Accelerator names a permanent leader. Dhawan held a similar role with the GIA before Brian Hemesath was named as managing director. As interim director, Dhawan said his main job includes hiring the accelerator's executive director, establishing a business structure and initial recruiting for the first cohort. The accelerator will place few filters, such as location and product, on the applicant pool, Dhawan said. "When you’re seeking innovation, innovation can come from every corner of the world so why restrict ourselves," he said. One area the the AgriTech Accelerator won't recruit from is biotech. For its first cohort, the AgriTech Accelerator will work out of the GIA's space in Des Moines' East Village, Dhawan said. A future, permanent home is still to be decided. The accelerator's program will host startups from mid-July through mid-October, ending with an event connected to the annual World Food Prize. The GIA, which the AgriTech Accelerator is based on, also ends with presentations at an industry event. The accelerator has also started lining up a mentor pool. The Iowa Corn Growers Association, Iowa Soybean Association and the Iowa Pork Producers Association have agreed to provide mentors, as has Iowa State University. While the AgriTech Accelerator is loosely based off of the GIA, it will differ in its business structure, Dhawan said. The GIA runs through a for-profit model for both operations and its investment fund. The AgriTech Accelerator will have a nonprofit model for its operations and a for-profit setup for its fund. Dhawan said the nonprofit model is being used so the accelerator can better work with other nonprofit partners, such as trade associations. "These are all organizations that are nonprofits and can be amazing stakeholders without ever having to be investors in the accelerator," he said. "It becomes easier to work with trade associations in their nonprofit role when we are also a nonprofit." When it's up and running, the AgriTech Accelerator would be one of a handful of ag-focused startup development programs in Iowa. Others include the Ag Startup Engine out of Iowa State University and the Rural Ventures Alliance from Iowa MicroLoan. Matthew Patane is the managing editor and co-founder of Clay & Milk. Send him an email at mpatane@clayandmilk.com.
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