A Northern Kentucky “future of work” startup that's experienced triple-digit revenue growth since early 2021 landed millions in fresh funding as it looks to accelerate the buildout of its technology.
Cloverleaf, an automated coaching platform for workers and teams, said Tuesday it closed a $9 million Series A, led by Chicago-based early-stage capital firm Origin Ventures. The round also include participation from ScOp Ventures, Mucker Capital, Cincinnati’s Queen City Angels, Airwing Ventures, Miami University-focused 1809 Capital and the JobsOhio growth capital fund.
The raise comes roughly 16 months after Cloverleaf's last investment round; that amount was undisclosed. Since early 2021, Cloverleaf has increased its revenue by 400% and is expecting continued growth.
Cloverleaf plans to use the funds to invest in building out its product and technology, Darrin Murriner, Cloverleaf CEO and co-founder, said.
"Since we debuted in 2018 we've seen tremendous positive feedback from teams that use Cloverleaf – over 94% of our users reported improved performance," Murriner said in a release. "We can continue to build on that momentum and scale, which will help grow our userbase and create more coaching products for current and prospective users."
Cloverleaf, which is based in Covington and led by Murriner and COO Kirsten Moorefield, works to help companies develop and retain staff and teams by unleashing their best work. The company leverages psychology data from behavioral assessments such as DISC and Enneagram to coach team members through the communication and collaboration tools they use every day, including Google Workplace, Microsoft 365, Slack and Microsoft Teams.
Cloverleaf is used by major organizations like Monster Energy, HP Enterprise and Kroger. The tech is applicable to every aspect of the employee life cycle – from hiring to mid-career, even at the end of an employment arrangement. The platform also helps workplace consultants and coaches access insights to the way people and teams work.
Every month, Cloverleaf sends out millions of tips to more than one million users, 20,000 teams and hundreds of coaches. The company is on track to grow its userbase to include thousands of coaches and more than 100,000 teams in total.
Scott Stern, a partner at Origin Ventures, said the firm believes Cloverleaf will help transform the “work coaching” space, which is more important than ever with the increase in remote work. While Origin has made multiple investments across the “future of work” space, Cloverleaf has one key differentiator.
“One issue we ran into over and over is scalability,” Stern said. “Cloverleaf's approach and mission align closely with how we see the market developing. (We) believe this funding will help Cloverleaf scale its platform and improve employee and overall teamwork for the modern workplace."
Cloverleaf, a graduate of Ocean accelerator and San Francisco-based SAP.iO Foundry, is one of 45 finalists for Cincy Inno’s recently announced “Fire Awards,” a list of the fastest-growing, most innovative and impactful startups in the region.
The round brings Cloverleaf’s total funding to date to $14 million. The company’s previous investors include ScOp, Keyhorse Capital, Airwing Ventures, Queen City Angels, CEAS, Northern Kentucky’s Connetic Ventures and Stout Street Capital.
The company has around 30 employees.
