Wisconsin Inno Fire Awards 2021: Meet the 5 talent finalists

Amid the current labor shortage and the growing understanding of the need for increased diversity and inclusion in the workplace, the finalists in the talent category of Wisconsin Inno's 2021 Fire Awards are recognized for offering services or launching impactful initiatives related to hiring, talent development, and employee engagement and retention.

The annual Fire Awards program recognizes companies, groups and organizations that are "heating up" the state's technology ecosystem. The following finalists were nominated by the public and selected by the Wisconsin Inno and Milwaukee Business Journal editorial team in the talent category:

A panel of independent judges will choose one winner from each of the five Fire Awards categories.

We asked all of the Fire Awards finalists about their accomplishments, challenges and how Wisconsin's startup and technology ecosystem could be improved. Their answers have been edited for clarity and length.

CharismaQ

Germantown

CharismaQ likes to say that it launched on April Fools Day in the same year that a worldwide pandemic threatened the global economy — No joke! Co-founded by former Milwaukee television journalist Katrina Cravy and local software executive Terri Herrmann, the company is aiming to bring executive-grade coaching to scale for customer-facing teams at all levels through its technology platform and expert coaches. To date, it has generated more than $300,000 in revenue from more than 20 customers including Fiserv Inc., Educator's Credit Union and West Bend Mutual Insurance, which also backed the company's $1 million seed funding round.

Biggest accomplishment in the past 12 months: "After just 15 months in business, CharismaQ received $1 million in seed-round funding from our strategic customer, West Bend Mutual, in July. ... We launched the minimum viable product of our CharismaQ platform in August and have engaged more than 800 CharismaQ members with our virtual coaching solutions to date. ... We hired Dylan Martin, our first full-time resource to lead business development, and certified two CharismaQ coaches."

Biggest challenge in the past 12 months: "Creating brand awareness and proving product-market fit. ... We will continue to evangelize our brand in the market and continue to educate companies and organizations that communications coaching and development can accelerate revenue, growth and performance."

Milestone the organization is working toward in the next 12 months: "In 2022, we will grow and deepen our relationships with our existing customers and continue to partner with new customers who want their people to attract, engage, motivate and influence those around them. We are growing our focus and specialty in the insurance, financial services, technology, business services and advanced manufacturing industries. ... We plan on hiring additional product, technology and customer success resources in 2022."

How Wisconsin’s technology and startup ecosystem could be improved: "We think Wisconsin’s technology and startup ecosystem needs more education and exposure. We need to educate entrepreneurs about all the great resources and mentors available to them. CharismaQ is lucky enough to have an advisor who built a Wisconsin startup to a $100,000 exit – Kurt Heikkinen meets with us on a regular basis, attends board meetings and provides guardrails for us based on his previous journey and experience, which allows us to move faster."

InCheck

Wauwatosa

Co-founded by CEO Andy Gallion and chief innovation officer Adam Kiehl in 2002, InCheck is a background screening and drug testing company aimed at helping human resource teams and small businesses hire more quickly and more confidently. It has grown substantially in the past year, with revenue in the first three quarters of 2021 up 44% compared with the same time period last year and exceeding pre-pandemic levels, according to the company. InCheck said it also nearly doubled its employee count in the last year. Additionally, Gallion joined CEOAction, a nationwide coalition pledging to take action to cultivate a workplace where diverse perspectives and experiences are welcomed, and subsequently created a leadership development initiative within the company.

Biggest accomplishment in the past 12 months: "By the end of 2021, InCheck will have doubled in employee size in a 12-month timeframe, surpassing our pre-Covid team size and exceeding the pace of growth in any other year of the business. We owe this success to a combination of factors including new client additions, rapid client hiring, a collaborative leadership team, a focus on metrics and process improvement, the commitment of our hard-working employees and the overall growth mindset of the organization."

Biggest challenge in the past 12 months: "Similar to many organizations both locally and nationally, we were challenged during 2021 with finding, hiring, and retaining the right team members, and making sure everyone is in the right seat. ... Our recruiting team has worked diligently to expand our recruiting channels, identify diverse candidates, and build partnerships with organizations who can help us find top talent. We also increased resources for our onboarding and training teams, with a focus on providing new employees with additional tools and training programs that allow them to be more efficient and productive."

Milestone the organization is working toward in the next 12 months: "By the close of 2022, InCheck will have implemented a comprehensive client services initiative, including a seamless onboarding handoff from our growing sales team. ... This initiative is backed by the launch of a new (customer relationship management) system that provides a 360 (degree) view of client relationships all the way from initial inquiry to ongoing inquiries and service tickets."

Inspiring book and podcast: "Dare to Lead" by Brené Brown

MARS Solutions Group

Waukesha

Led by founder and CEO Rashi Khosla, local staffing agency MARS Solutions Group, which was founded in 2006, this year launched an employee reward and recognition software platform called Ovation to foster a diverse and inclusive community within its workforce. The tool gamifies outdated rewards and recognition systems, provides a real-time channel for employee feedback and reinvigorates the annual employee engagement survey and performance review processes. The company also recently grew MARS Returnship, a hands-on program for women looking to reenter the technology workforce after a gap in employment.

Biggest accomplishment in the past 12 months: "We have been able to run several cohorts (of the MARS Returnship program) through our topflight upskilling initiative with an output of mid-level talent. We are proud to have achieved an 80% employment rate of our graduates, 95% of which are diverse talent in the past year. ... We have tripled our (Ovation) customer base and added countless users to promote employee rewards and recognition while combatting the great resignation wave."

Biggest challenge in the past 12 months: "The Returnship program was received extremely well by our regional community tech leaders and influencers. However, (challenges included) scaling challenges in terms of growing pains, creating the best alignment of timing between the demand and supply situation with our delivery engine, and educating potential employer partners to understand the differences between onboarding traditional sources of talent and non-traditional ones.

"Covid presented some unique challenges in terms of product management efforts for our SaaS platform Ovation. Martians (MARS employees) overcame these challenges, and we could not be prouder of Ovation’s launch, adoption and growth."

Milestone the organization is working toward in the next 12 months: "We have ambitious plans for our upskilling and reskilling initiative. Inspired by the success of Returnship, we are adding two more pipelines to our program in addition to Returners: A career accelerator for those trained in technology looking to gain practical knowledge and Career Changers for those in another career looking to break into the field of technology. We plan on tripling our number of graduates while retaining our placement and diversity numbers as high as they are now."

How Wisconsin’s technology and startup ecosystem could be improved: "Intentionality around diversity, inclusion and non-traditional sources of talent is the starting point for improvement for the tech talent shortage component. ... Collaboration, collaboration and collaboration — this is all our combined problem. We all must work together to compete with other regions and grow our community and stop the brain drain.

"Also, a plug to emphasize the need for gender diversity beyond its business value that we believe organizations already know. We want our community to know that women can be the best drivers of a culture that promotes empathy. Our enterprises must also imbibe more maternal characteristics rather than paternalistic ones. This means building cultures that nurture, not rule. A culture of empathy is a must in today’s resignation wave."

Inspiring thought leaders: Sheryl Sandberg, Mel Robbins, Tony Robbins, Dr. Mark Hyman, Simon Sinek

Northwestern Mutual

Milwaukee

From its pledge to invest $20 million in startups founded by Black entrepreneurs and $20 million in startups founded by women to its "hi, Tech" K-12 STEM outreach program, Northwestern Mutual has made investments and formed non-traditional partnerships to increase tech education, training, access to funding and mentorship opportunities aimed at building a strong pipeline of tech talent and creating a more diverse and inclusive tech community. Other examples include its investments in nonprofits and startups that scale computer science, such as the Milky Way Tech Hub and Beyond STEM, as well as its partnership with i.c.stars, a nonprofit that connects employers with diverse, non-traditional technology talent.

Biggest accomplishment in the past 12 months: "We’ve made big strides over the last year to help grow the state’s tech and startup ecosystem, and specifically, to support underrepresented populations in tech and innovation. ... In 2021, the company has significantly increased its investments in Black and female founders. We’re also building relationships with diverse talent, opening the door for future tech talent to the possibility of a tech career at Northwestern Mutual and beyond. In 2021, the company invested $380,000 and support for organizations and events like the Hispanic IT Executive Council, AfroTech Global Conference and Women in Tech Conference."

Biggest challenge in the past 12 months: "Our biggest challenge is the high demand and tight supply of tech talent across the region. There’s high demand for skilled tech workers in every industry and fierce competition for a limited pool of tech talent. At Northwestern Mutual, tech talent makes up one-third of our current workforce. Tech is the engine that drives us and helps us provide the innovative, secure and reliable digital experience needed to deliver financial security to our clients and policy owners."

Milestone the organization is working toward in the next 12 months: "As an enterprise, we are focusing heavily on improving the digital financial planning experience for our advisors and clients. ... We focus on a seamless customer experience enabled by engineering excellence and a product-centric model for the entire organization."

How Wisconsin’s technology and startup ecosystem could be improved: "We need to do a better job of attracting and keeping tech talent in the area. We believe Milwaukee has the talent, resources and entrepreneurial spirit to be a vibrant 21st-century city, but we lag behind some other markets in entrepreneurship and tech readiness. And while there are several universities in Wisconsin, many graduates leave the state to pursue jobs elsewhere. Today, southeastern Wisconsin is more than “just” a manufacturing region. One-quarter of our economy, $27.6 billion, comes from tech industries. It is critical for the Milwaukee region to strengthen its competitiveness in the innovation economy and create an identity that attracts and retains top technical talent."

Inspiring book: "Loonshots: How to Nurture the Crazy Ideas that Win Wars, Cure Disease, and Transform Industries" by Safi Bahcall

Talimer

Milwaukee

Founded in early 2020 by Erica Conway and Ken Ostermann, Talimer is a talent-first engagement marketplace that offers access to benefits and business tools for independent and freelance workers while enabling businesses to access hard-to-find, on-demand talent. Since the business launched, it has recruited and screened more than 1,200 potential technology and creative freelancers and responded to more than 140 clients with roles to fill. The company said it's committed to eliminating bias and building a great experience at every touchpoint in its process, from application to placement and from welcome messaging to onboarding. The company has nine team members and three interns.

Biggest accomplishment in the past 12 months: "Our biggest accomplishment this past year has been establishing the overall Talimer business and connecting with over 1,200 tech professionals from across the country to support them and help meet the freelance and contract resource needs of our business clients in the Wisconsin market. Beyond the Talimer business, we continue to passionately support and consistently evangelize for the local technology and startup ecosystem."

Biggest challenge in the past 12 months: "We contend with an increasingly competitive hiring landscape, in which tech professionals have multiple simultaneous options for projects or career opportunities, which shortens the window of availability of tech resources. Getting clients to move at the speed of the tech talent is tough and organizations miss out on their preferred candidates if they move too slowly. We also find ourselves pushing organizations, who desire local candidates for hybrid onsite/remote work, to consider 100% remote work configurations, as that’s almost universally preferred by tech professionals."

Milestone the organization is working toward in the next 12 months: "We are focused on scaling our business and developing version 2.0 of the Talimer experience, including implementation of a new applicant tracking system. The updated Talimer.com will offer enhanced tools for tech freelancers along with matured processes for recruiting and onboarding."

How Wisconsin’s technology and startup ecosystem could be improved: "We believe we need to continue to increase the focus on growing Milwaukee and Wisconsin as a thriving tech hub. To be recognized across the country as a great place to live, raise a family and have an exciting tech career will require increasing the number, as well as the size and scale, of the actions and programs focused on growing the region as a tech hub. We’re on a good path, but at the current pace, it feels like it will be a long one."

Inspiring thought leaders: "Individuals like Tarik Moody, Nadiyah Johnson, Ranell Washington, Adam Gabornitz and Dana Guthrie are bright stars contributing to elevating the visibility of Wisconsin’s tech and startup ecosystem. Startups like Frontdesk, Fiveable and washbnb are inspiring to other start-ups looking to make their mark."