Among the dozens of technology companies vowing to disrupt human resources management and workflows through cloud software, ThinkHR offers a unique twist.
The 10-year-old organization, which recently raised $12 million in new equity financing to accelerate its growth, is nurturing a database that HR professionals can use to research compliance regulations and other procedural questions that might have different answers from state to state.
The idea is both to reduce the time it takes to find an answer and to help HR teams answer questions more consistently. “In HR, the answer has to be trusted,” said ThinkHR CEO and founder Peter Yozzo, who describes the Pleasanton, Calif., company’s service as something akin to the Lexis-Nexis business research database.
ThinkHR currently sells its service in partnership with roughly 650 payroll service providers and insurance brokers, which offer the database as part of corporate benefits plans, Yozzo said. Seven of the 10 largest U.S. brokers represent it, at least on a regional level, according to the company.
“We offer it to all clients as a benefit,” said Brian Rochette, senior director of employee benefits and operations with the New England division of Marsh & McLennan Agency, a subsidiary of professional services firm Marsh & McLennan (MMC).
Rochette’s team embraced ThinkHR after the part-time employee that previously handled this sort of research moved to another job. “We are saving money and probably delivering more services in a more consistent manner to more clients than before,” he said.
To date, ThinkHR’s operations have been financed through angel funding, debt, and recurring revenue—its client retention rate is 98%. Its infusion in September from equity firm Kennet Partners will be funneled into market development and to hire additional HR consultants, Yozzo said.
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