The economic impact of Covid-19 has affected the growth and stability of numerous companies throughout the U.S. With unemployment rates hitting an all-time high in the first half of 2020, it may seem like a grim time for everyone, especially those looking for a job. However, as the entire world moves online and is likely to remain online even after the pandemic, if you are looking for a tech job, you could be in luck.
Yes, that’s right. Due to future digital demands and the accelerated “future of work”, many companies in the tech industry are surviving, thriving and even hiring.
We’ve taken particular notice of a few Indianapolis tech companies that are finding success despite the pandemic. Here, we’ll discuss how four noteworthy companies have managed to remain successful during the economic downturn, take a look at some jobs they are currently offering, and most importantly, give much deserved praise for the hard work it takes to grow during difficult times.
1. Vibenomics
A company focused on enriching customer experience through the use of Audio Software, Vibenomics (formerly Fuzic) is a swiftly expanding audio marketing tech company that enables location-based businesses to create and control their “vibe” with sound.
Co-Founded by CEO Brent Oakley, the idea for the company started in the waiting room of his own high-end car wash. Often spending hours selecting and editing playlists his customers would enjoy, he realized how setting a mood via sound can increase customer spend and loyalty. Now offering licensed background music and professional voice announcements as well as Audio Out of Home Advertising–a visionary new category in AD spend–Vibenomics is quickly pioneering and taking over the audio marketing world.
Set for success even as the pandemic takes grips over the country, in late April of 2020, this premier audio provider announced they raised $6 Million Series A funding, led by BIP Capital in Atlanta. Coming in at the perfect time, this brings the company’s funding total up to $13.5 million.
On top of that, in March, the company was nominated for the prestigious TechPoint Mira Awards “Scale-Up of the year” as well as listed on Indiana’s Chamber of Commerce “2020 best places to work” list.
Making all of the right moves at the right time, this tech company is currently accepting general applications and constantly releasing news on recent big wins. The introduction of their new audio ads will be a big contributor to remote business marketing in the year to come.
2. Kenzie Academy
Innovating education for a digital economy, Kenzie Academy’s co-founders Chok Ooi (CEO) and Emily Wattman-Turner (Chief Growth Officer) are changing the game when it comes to equipping students with the skills and community they need to start a tech career.
Boasting a unique post-education model, during admission, Kenzie does not look at test scores or transcripts; they assess students based on motivation and attitude to learn. And, students pay no tuition until they get a job earning $40k per year. Truly something that has never been done before, even Forbes and MarketWatch are blown away by this groundbreaking school.
The perfect educational structure for during-pandemic and post-pandemic life based in the digital world, it is no surprise that enrollment has grown recently. Prepared to handle such growth, in November 2019, they secured $100 million in funding to support student tuition financing, in addition to a $7.8 million Series A investment round led by Rethink Ventures, and participation from Rise of the Rest.
During this time, Kenzie Academy has been running classes online preparing students for working in tech and gearing them up for a remote work future. Further increasing the school’s viability, in early May of 2020, they announced a partnership with WGU to offer accredited IT degrees. A move that expands the academy’s reach, they are currently hiring for data analysts and software engineering facilitators.
3. Jobvite
Powering marketing-inspired job recruitment, Jobvite utilizes an analytics-driven recruiting platform to seamlessly integrate and automate talent acquisition. Founded in 2003 by Jesper Schultz and Hans Larsen, the organization (formerly Forum Jobs) began with the idea of finding employees as a proactive, not a reactive approach. Weaving AI and automation throughout, the unique ATS makes all processes faster and smoother as well as enables companies to increase their advertising presence.
The first of its kind, the capabilities of a company running Jobvite are endless. From on-demand video screening to advanced social media ads and mobile optimization, it is truly a way to build your business as you see it.
Gaining notoriety for their transformative SaaS before and amid COVID-19, the power of this type of technology has been in high demand since the company launched. With multiple rounds of successful funding, the most recent in February 2019, gained the organization $200 million. With the capital infusion, Jobvite acquired Indianapolis-based Canvas and promoted local tech entrepreneur, Aman Brar, to the CEO of Jobvite.
As finding a job is a lot of people’s priority right now, it is no surprise that in May 2020, Jobvite has been all over the news, recognized for its ability to help in these difficult times. Both Business Wire and CNBC have recently mentioned the tech company as a leader in charging the dramatic shift in finding a job and hiring remotely. A global organization serving all over the world, currently the Indianapolis headquarters is looking to fill Corporate Controller, SR. FP&A Analyst, FP&A director, and a few more positions.
4. Zylo
A leading SaaS management platform, Zylo was co-founded by CEO Eric Christopher with a mission to help companies find a better way to manage software as a service applications.
Making a name for themselves as the most comprehensive SaaS management platform, customers that have experienced the power of Zylo are shocked at its ability to save them money and consolidate for better functionality. Utilizing a single dashboard to optimize all cloud-based subscriptions, this innovative solution accurately understands how a business is using SaaS services then analyzes spend. With that, it is easy to say this platform will be very vital to many companies in the post-pandemic economy, especially as the cloud market continues to grow.
In fact, as of May 2020, the company has shown no signs of slowing down. Recently expanding globally, Business Intelligence’s solutions provider Apex BI partnered with Zylo to bring this SaaS management product to South Africa. To further sweeten their standing, in March of 2020, this growing tech company partnered with vComm Solutions in order to strengthen lifestyle systems management within a business.
Their early 2020 growth doesn’t stop there. Raising $22.5 million of Series B funding in late September 2019, in total the organization has now raised over $35 million, which is intended to be used to grow its workforce and reach.
After announcing new capabilities designed to help meet the demand of SaaS advancement in late May of 2020, it is fitting that the company was named a ‘Rising Star’ on Forbes cloud top 100 list, and rated one of the best places to work in Indiana. As they are currently expanding their internal talent, new jobs are posted daily.
