June 23, 2016

PeopleMatter Gets Acquired By Snagajob

Liz Segrist  /  Charleston Regional Business Journal

Charleston-based PeopleMatter has been acquired by Arlington, Va.-based Snagajob for an unspecified amount, according to a news release this morning.

"We have acquired PeopleMatter, a powerful, cloud-based workforce management platform designed to fit the specific needs of the service industry," Snagajob said in a blog post about the acquisition. "Together, we are going to turn everything about finding jobs, hiring employees and working in the hourly space upside down."

No layoffs are planned at PeopleMatter, and its Charleston offices will remain, but PeopleMatter CEO George Mackie will step down following the acquisition, according to Jeanne Achille, CEO of The Devon Group, a public relations firm hired to handle media requests related to the announcement.

Both companies' cloud-based workforce management software platforms are designed to help companies better find, hire and manage hourly workers, and both serve businesses ranging from one location to Fortune 500 businesses with thousands of locations.

PeopleMatter serves more than 45,000 locations and has more than 100 employees; Snagajob serves more than 200,000 employers.

Though Snagajob does not list its employee count online, a new joint website about the acquisition says the company will have 450 employees overall once the merger is complete. The companies plan to share more announcements and details about the acquisition on the site.

"As employers struggle with a challenging hiring environment, the joining of our companies couldn't be better timed," Snagajob CEO Peter Harrison said in the news release.

"Adding PeopleMatter's best-in-class products to our existing market-leading portfolio will help employers more easily find, hire and manage their hourly workforce."

Snagajob has had a year of growth –- securing $100 million in funding, forming a partnership with LinkedIn and hiring former OpenTable product head Jocelyn Mangan as its chief product and marketing officer.

Meanwhile, PeopleMatter has been undergoing a transition for much of 2016, since its founder, Nate DaPore, stepped down as CEO in January. DaPore ran the company since its founding in 2009.

When he left his position, DaPore said that he felt ready to move on to the next stage in his career but that he was remaining as chairman emeritus, a large shareholder and a consultant for the company.

Mackie immediately assumed the helm of the tech firm. Mackie is a former partner with Atlanta-based venture firm Noro-Moseley Partners and the former CEO of DBS Systems.

Since its founding, PeopleMatter has secured more than $60 million from venture capitalists and other investors and has been a staple of Charleston's growing tech scene. The firm occupies two offices on Upper King Street after expanding in spring 2014.

The company had an unspecified number of layoffs in fall 2014. And last year, the company launched Peoplelytics, which uses clients' data and helps them make decisions, predict situations and solve problems.

With the PeopleMatter and Snagajob platforms combined, the companies will offer sourcing, candidate relationship management, tracking and assessing, onboarding, training, performance and scheduling tools, as well integrations for background checks, payroll and point-of-sale partners, according to the release.

Jay Nathan, vice president of customer success at PeopleMatter, said the acquisition will enable PeopleMatter to "be a part of something bigger" and "expand our reach" in the hourly workforce market.

"We have been focused on taking PeopleMatter to the next level through building innovative solutions, growing our total addressable market and working to transform how the hourly market works," Nathan said in the release. "Combining with Snagajob allows us to do this and more."

The transaction is expected to close later this month, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary conditions.