Degreed Inc., a software company serving human resource departments, is a B2B upskilling platform where individuals and organizations can discover content, build skills, and certify expertise.
Recently, the Californian company has raised $153 million (approx £111 million) in Series D funding at a valuation of $1.4 billion (approx £1.01 billion).
Its valuation rose from $710 million last year, the company said. This brings total funding raised by the company including, equity and debt to $183 million (approx £132 million).
The investment was co-led by Sapphire Ventures and Riverwood Capital. Other investors, including Signal Peak Ventures, Owl Ventures, GSV Ventures, Founders Circle, Contour Investment Partners, Section Partners, and Alliance Bernstein, as well as new investor Firework Ventures, also participated in the round.
The funding will be deployed to accelerate technology enhancement, product development, enhance data infrastructure, fuel global expansion, and pursue strategic acquisitions.
Change in Company Management
As a part of the funding round, Dan Levin, former COO of Box, will succeed Chris McCarthy as CEO of Degreed. McCarthy will remain in a strategic advisory capacity and sit on Degreed’s Board of Directors.
“I am delighted to join the Degreed team. Chris and the entire company have done an amazing job delivering a service that over one-third of Fortune 50 companies use every day to retain, reskill and develop their most valuable employees. The workforce of the future will need to build and activate new skills continuously, and we are uniquely positioned to help them do just that,” said Levin.
“When the Degreed Board and I put this transition plan in place last year, the goal was to be as successful as we were in 2017 when co-founder David Blake made me the CEO. After a months-long process, we’re thrilled to have someone of Dan’s caliber driving the next phase of our growth,” said McCarthy. “Dan’s extensive experience scaling high-growth companies aligns with our future trajectory. He’s not only a great operator but an exceptional leader and coach who is deeply connected to Degreed’s mission.”
He led the company through a period of significant growth with compound annual revenue growth of 76% and an 800% increase in enterprise value during his three and a half years as CEO.
Jeff Parks, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Riverwood Capital, said “Under Chris’ leadership, Degreed has transformed the learning experience and upskilling conversation. We are thrilled to build on that vision in partnership with Dan and this incredible team, and are focused on the next phase of their scalability journey and supporting their mission to equip people with the skills they need to redefine their careers, their companies, their fields, and the world.”
Degreed is headquartered in Pleasanton, California, with additional offices in Salt Lake City, New York, London, Amsterdam, and Brisbane.