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Qualtrics raises $70 million from Accel and Sequoia

By
Dan Primack
Dan Primack
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By
Dan Primack
Dan Primack
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May 15, 2012, 3:04 PM ET

FORTUNE — Qualtrics Labs, a 10-year-old provider of enterprise SaaS for simplifying complex research, has raised $70 million in its first-ever round of outside funding.

Accel Partners and Sequoia Capital co-led the deal, with Ryan Sweeney (Accel)and Bryan Schreier (Sequoia) joining the Qualtrics board of directors. It was the two firms’ largest-ever joint investment, and also probably their biggest deal for a Utah-based company (Qualtrics is headquartered in Provo).

“We had been doing it the old fashioned way, where we had to sell something before we could spend something,” says company co-founder and CEO Ryan Smith. “This deal was more about timing, we went from a single product company to multiple products… Even when we went out to meet with venture firms there was only a 5% chance of us taking money, but the opportunity to work with Accel and Sequoia was very compelling.”

Qualtrics says the proceeds will be used, in part, to hire another 250 employees this year. Most of those new hires will be in Provo, although Qualtrics also is planning some international expansion.

The company reports over 4,000 enterprise customers, including half of the Fortune 100. Examples include Microsoft, Southwest Airlines and Thomson Reuters. It also is used in most American business schools, a user base that Smith says ultimately translates into corporate clients.

No word on valuation, but I can’t imagine it came cheap. After all, Sequoia’s Schreier called Qualtrics “the biggest software company you haven’t heard of yet.”

Sign up for Dan’s daily email newsletter on deals and deal-makers: GetTermSheet.com

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By Dan Primack
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