Work- and HRTech Market highlights - Q1/2023
Total Work and HRTech Market predictions
There is much variance in WorkTech or HRTech market predictions, of course nobody can predict the future and there will always be optimists and pessimists. I’ve gathered three reports that will show you what I am talking about.
On the upper end:
Total Addressable Market for Work Tech Expected To Grow To $970 Billion by 2026 according to Spiceworks.
In the middle:
HR Tech Market is Estimated to Grow from US$ 24.9 Bn in 2022 to US$ 63.5 Bn by 2032, Notching a CAGR of 9.8% over the Forecast Period according to Deep Data by Future Market Insights, Inc.
On the lower end:
With 7.5% CAGR, Human Resource Technology Market Size Worth USD 39.90 Billion In 2029 according to the report by Fortune Business Insights.
Q1 - 2023 Work and HRTech Funding & acquisition wrap up
According to George LaRoque’s WorkTech Report Work tech VC investment exceeded $2.2 billion in Q1 2023 spread over 80 deals in 22 countries. With the digitization of the HR-department at full speed it is not surprising HCM systems were leading the first quarter’s funding race with a share of $1.2 billion.
In the top 20 of the biggest WorkTech investments this past quarter, Europe seems to be breaking the US dominance with 10 European WorkTech Ventures, yet there is more to it. The biggest funding amounts still go to US based companies, who keep breaking records. Still, when it rains in the US, it drizzles in Europe.
Top 5:
Rippling's $500 million Series E round was the largest deal in the quarter for its automation-focused HR suite targeting the SMB.
ShiftKey, a healthcare marketplace job board with some integrated workforce management capabilities, raised $300 million from Private Equity.
ShiftMed raised $200 million from Private Equity for its nursing-focused marketplace job board/staffing hybrid and scheduling solution.
Daily Pay raised $260 million in Debt Funding for its earned wage access tech.
Rain raised $116 million for its earned wage access solution, in what might be the biggest A Round so far. Billionaire Wittouck and Will Smith were amongst the investors.
UK - Ventures:
Hack The Box, a Learning platform raised $55 million in series B
Peppy, a Benefits and Health platform raised $45 million in series B
HelloSelf, a private clinical coaching platform raised $20 million in series B
Gemba, a Learning solution raised $18 million in series A
TribePad, a Enterprise Hiring & recruitment software raised $14.8 million in series A
(Other) European Ventures:
French Recruitment Marketing Scale-up “Welcome to the Jungle” raised $54.5 million in series C
Spanish TA & Learning solution StudentFinance raised $41 million in series A
RangeForce, a TA & Learning platform from Estonia (?) raised $20 million in series B
Portuguese HCM & Benefits solution Coverflex raised $16.35 million in series A
MentorShow, a TA & Learning solution also from France, raised $16.00 in series B
BeNeLux Ventures
Dutch referral-recruitment startup Cruit has raised an undisclosed amount from Slingshot Ventures.
Also Holland based AI video analytics platform Neurolytics received an extra €500k.
In Belgium, Traicie, an AI sourcing tool (with Chrome extension), raised €800k from private investors.
Trends & Topics
During my research I often wonder and reflect on the future of work. Being triggered by the role of technology, I am exploring what is called “web3”. This one word contains a collection of possible disruptive evolutions, nevertheless it is worth exploring the opportunities and learnings for the future workplace.
On that matter, it is striking that a16z (Andreessen.Horowitz) - an investment fund that avocates web3 - also has entered the world of WorkTech with their investment of $14 million in Wingspan (series A). Wingspan claims to be The first payroll platform designed for independent contractors. Like a VMS, but different. Is web3 not as decentralized as we think, or is it the decentralization that fuels innovation and growth?
And finally, to talk about the elephant in the room, AI is also a part of “web3, the movement”. So before you condemn all web3 components, just think about the supersonic growth and disruption ChatGPT just caused. To remind you, with an adoption rate of 100 million active users in less than 2 months after launch, it grew so fast it even made the Big Tech companies dizzy. Yes, it dominated the market in this first quarter, so I had to mention it.
New technologies do not always come forward and often die out, but with cryptocurrency and the gaming industry involved in web3 it will not be going away. So, we might as well be investigating utility, inspiration and opportunities to use in the advantage of people and work.
Sources:
,https://1worktech.com/q1-2023-global-work-tech-vc-report/
https://www.hansmangelschots.com/blog