K1 INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT
2023 Mid-Year Update

K1 remained active in the first half of 2023. On the buyside, we deployed capital across 11 new investments including Elmo (ASX:ELO), a take-private investment representing a new platform for K1 in human capital management software. On the sellside, K1 sold Zapproved to Exterro, a leader in the GRC software space. Meanwhile, in the financing market, our Debt Capital Markets team closed 12 debt financings raising over $800 million and fixed over 70% of our floating rate debt at an average SOFR rate of 3.94%.

 

K1 continued to invest in the “human element” of our portfolio companies as well.  Our Recruiting team helped place 52 C-suite and board member hires and 93 other executive hires across the portfolio.  We celebrated the 10th anniversary of our Advanced Management Program, a testament to our Operations Team’s commitment to continuous learning and development. Our Events Team orchestrated 18 Accelerate events, three functionally focused Summits, two investor relations events, and K1’s H1 Offsite gathering. 

 

In addition, K1 received awards from GrowthCap, PrivateEquity CXO, the Los Angeles Business Journal, and Private Equity Wire ESG. Beyond our business endeavors, K1 remains dedicated to giving back to the community, emphasizing the importance of corporate social responsibility and making a positive impact. We also welcomed our largest Intern Class yet, fostering emerging talent in the industry.

 

Read on for our full 2023 Mid-Year Update.

Featured Transactions

2023 YTD in Numbers

New Investments
0
Follow-on Investments
0
Debt Financings
0

Total Transactions

0

2023 YTD Transactions

Exit
Exit
Debt Financing
Debt Financing
Debt Facility
Debt Facility
Platform + Debt Financing
Platform + Debt Financing
Acquired by Elmo
Acquired by Elmo
Debt Financing
Debt Financing
Acquired by Cyara
Acquired by Cyara
Acquired by Reveal
Acquired by Reveal
Debt Financing
Debt Financing
Acquired by Cyara
Acquired by Cyara
Acquired by Routeware
Acquired by Routeware
Debt Financing
Debt Financing
Debt Financing
Debt Financing
Debt Financing
Debt Financing
Debt Facility
Debt Facility
Acquired by Routeware
Acquired by Routeware
Debt Financing
Debt Financing
Debt Financing
Debt Financing
Debt Financing
Debt Financing
Acquired by Emburse
Acquired by Emburse

Transformative Add-ons

Reveal acquired LIGL in March, creating a category leader in eDiscovery legaltech. Adding LIGL's workflow automation capabilities allows Reveal's customers to easily manage data throughout the project lifecycle - from collection through production. The Reveal platform now has one of the most advanced workflow automation and digital evidence lifecycle capabilities available.
Cyara acquired Spearline in March, creating a category leader in Customer Experience (CX) Transformation. The acquisition combines Cyara's leadership in contact center and chatbot assurance with Spearline's global dialing and WebRTC capabilities to deliver a compelling solution set that effectively addresses the needs of enterprises transforming their CX.
Cyara acquired CentraCX in March, further strengthening the company's position as a category leader in CX Transformation.  The acquisition adds advanced VOC and customer feedback capabilities to Cyara's portfolio of products, enabling the company to offer this powerful combination of CX assurance customer feedback in the CX Transformation market.
Emburse acquired TRIPBAM in July, strengthening the company's position as a category leader in travel & expense management. TRIPBAM is an AI-powered platform that audits, tracks and reviews travel market data, corporate negotiated rates and supplier contracts for large enterprises. Emburse customers can now leverage data, analytics and AI to track, monitor and reduce spend associated with employee travel. 

Executive Recruiting


K1 provides a valuable service to our portfolio companies by helping them find top-tier talent. Our in-house team of 15+ recruiters help our businesses find the right candidates through outbound sourcing, from SDRs to board members, C-level roles and everything in between.* Our recruiting team placed 52 C-suite and board members and 93 other executive hires (including Director and VP-level roles) across the portfolio in the first half of this year. Below are a select few:
Amanda Georgoff​
SVP Sales​
Chris Stewart
Chief Customer Officer
David Bliss
Chief Product Officer
Gary Specter
Chief Executive Officer
Gayle Nixon
Chief Marketing Officer
Hetal Giaimo
SVP Product
Rishi Rana
Chief Operating Officer
Jeff Santelices
Chief Revenue Officer
Jillian Sheehan
Chief Financial Officer
Kelly Wenzel
Chief Customer Officer
Paul Rafalowski
Chief Executive Officer
Rachel Truair
Chief Marketing Officer
Sheldon Cummings
General Manager, Corporate Business
Vinay Mehta
Chief Technology Officer

Once-in-a-Lifetime Events

K1 Experiences: In Recent History

Last year, we launched K1 Accelerate to help develop our portfolio companies’ pipelines via K1’s network of enterprise executives. We started 2023 off strong, hosting 18 Accelerate events including four K1 Experiences: once-in-a-lifetime curated events to drive engagement with C-level execs from top-tier brands. 

Super Bowl LVII
The Grammys
NCAA FINAL FOUR
Wimbledon
K1 Summits

Value Creation & Continuing Education​

  • Past Events
  • Upcoming Events
Sales & Marketing Summit​
March 8-10, 2023
Topics included: Accelerating growth levers for 2023, building pipeline with the dark funnel, & maximizing revenue from the customer base.
Product & Engineering Summit​
April 12-14
Topics included: Finding business applications for generative AI, driving revenue opportunities from your products, & thriving during a market turndown.
Finance, HCM & Transformation Summit​
July 19-21, 2023
Topics included: Driving value creation as business partners, talent strategy in a post-COVID world, & successful M&A through thoughtful integration.
European Manager Forum​
March 29, 2023
The Investor Relations team hosted LPs in Zurich for our annual European Manager Forum in March earlier this year.
Annual General Meeting
June 29, 2023
In June, the IR team hosted K1’s 11th Annual General Meeting at Terranea Resort in Los Angeles.
H1 Offsite with Apolo Ohno
February 15, 2023
At the K1 Offsite in February, Apolo Ohno emphasized the importance of intentionality, resilience and building a foundation of healthy habits for success.
Women’s Leadership Summit
Sept 6-8, 2023
H2 Offsite
SEPT 2023
Customer Experience Summit
Oct 11-13, 2023
New York Investor Day
Oct 17, 2023
CXO Summit
Dec 5-7, 2023

28 Portcos Named to Inc. 5000

We’re excited to celebrate the 28 portfolio companies that made the 2023 Inc. 5000! This list recognizes the fastest-growing businesses in America based on a data-driven analysis of some of the most successful private companies in the market.

Speaking Engagement & Awards

Press & Media

10 Years of AMP

Ten years ago, our first AMP class began with just four members. Now, we’re thrilled to welcome 93 members to our newest class – our largest yet!

 

The K1 Advanced Management Program is a year-long mini-MBA curriculum that takes strong performers within our portfolio and provides them with the tools to better understand themselves, manage their teams, and ultimately lead whole functions and organizations. AMP graduates have gone on to become board members, C-suite executives and other leaders within the portfolio and beyond. We look forward to seeing how this year’s class grows over the course of the program.

Community Involvement

Holiday Food Drive
The K1 team donated over 10,000 cans of food in a one-week drive for Food Pantry LAX, a local nonprofit that relies solely on volunteers and donations to serve underprivileged members of the Los Angeles community.
Synergist Happy Hour
Creating opportunities to build networks and find mentorship is a crucial step towards achieving gender parity in the workplace. We partnered with Synergist Network to bring together women across 16 firms in for a networking meetup at the K1 Office.
Virtual Diversity Symposium
Leveling the playing field in finance and tech starts early. We hosted a Virtual Diversity Symposium to reach first-generation college students and introduce them to the world of private equity and B2B SaaS. We’re focused on increasing access to opportunities in finance & tech.
Intern-Class-2023.jpg

Intern Class of 2023

We welcomed our largest Intern Class of 2023! Here are some notable stats about this year’s cohort:

  • Hailing from 15 universities
    • Consisting of 28% first-generation college students
    • Speaking 12 languages
    • Representing 10 nationalities

  • Our intern class will immerse themselves directly alongside seven different teams at K1 this summer. We’re excited to be a part of their professional and learning journey for the ten-week program.
Featured Blog
HOW TO FORECAST AND GROW DURING VOLATILITY
Want to learn how to build or strengthen the forecasting muscle in your organization to expand market share? Check out The Uncertainty Opportunity below and subscribe to receive Category Leadership Frameworks in your inbox.
K1 Summits

Value Creation & Continuing Education​

  • Past Events
  • Upcoming Events
Sales & Marketing Summit​
March 8-10, 2023
Topics included: Accelerating growth levers for 2023, building pipeline with the dark funnel, & maximizing revenue from the customer base.
Product & Engineering Summit​
April 12-14
Topics included: Finding business applications for generative AI, driving revenue opportunities from your products, & thriving during a market turndown.
Finance, HCM & Transformation Summit​
July 19-21, 2023
Topics included: Driving value creation as business partners, talent strategy in a post-COVID world, & successful M&A through thoughtful integration.
European Manager Forum​
March 29, 2023
The Investor Relations team hosted LPs in Zurich for our annual European Manager Forum in March earlier this year.
Annual General Meeting
June 29, 2023
In June, the IR team hosted K1’s 11th Annual General Meeting at Terranea Resort in Los Angeles.
H1 Offsite with Apolo Ohno
February 15, 2023
At the K1 Offsite in February, Apolo Ohno emphasized the importance of intentionality, resilience and building a foundation of healthy habits for success.
Women’s Leadership Summit
Sept 6-8, 2023
H2 Offsite
SEPT 2023
Customer Experience Summit
Oct 11-13, 2023
New York Investor Day
Oct 17, 2023
CXO Summit
Dec 5-7, 2023

Disclosure & Disclaimer

This update (the “Update”) does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to purchase any security, and is not presented with a view to providing investment advice with respect to any security or making any claim as to the past, current or future performance thereof.  K1 Investment Management, LLC (together with its affiliates, “K1”) expressly disclaims the use of this Update for such purposes.  This Update is solely intended to provide general information regarding K1’s operational activities, financing capabilities and general business experience.  Portfolio companies presented herein are for informational purposes only and are intended to illustrate such historical activities.  The portfolio companies included herein should not be assumed to have been profitable.  Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results.  There can be no assurance historical trends will continue.  K1 does not warrant the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any information herein.  Any reliance you place on such information is strictly at your own risk.  K1 disclaims all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on this Update or anyone who may be informed of its contents. Please note that the cited percentages in the Introduction reflect data for K1 control deals only. Total transaction count is as of August 15, 2023. Exit count includes the sale of Zapproved that was signed in December 2022 and subsequently completed in January 2023. 

* K1 Operations is K1’s dedicated operational consulting affiliate. The K1 Operations team includes recruiters and is not employed by K1 (although K1 Operations is an affiliate of K1). Any fees, compensation, expense reimbursements or other amounts received by K1 Operations and its team are generally paid by a portfolio company or, subject to the terms and conditions of the K1 Funds’ limited partnership agreements, by K1 clients, and do not offset or otherwise reduce management fees. Accordingly, the fees and expenses of K1 Operations and its team are not covered by management fees.

Third Party Awards and Designations. The awards and designations presented on this website are the opinion of the respective parties conferring the award or designation and not of K1. No such person conferring any of the listed award(s) or designation(s) is affiliated with K1 or is an investor in K1-sponsored vehicles. The award does not reflect the experience of any client and is not based on, or indicative of, investment returns.  The description and the selection methodologies of rankings and awards can be subjective and will often vary. There can be no assurance that other providers or surveys would reach the same conclusions as the foregoing. 

  • 2023 Inc. 5000 – Companies on the 2023 Inc. 5000 (“Inc 5000”, the “List”) are ranked according to percentage revenue growth from 2019 to 2022. To qualify, companies must have been founded and generating revenue by March 31, 2019. They must be U.S.-based, privately held, for-profit, and independent–not subsidiaries or divisions of other companies–as of December 31, 2022. (Since then, some on the list may have gone public or been acquired.) The minimum revenue required for 2019 is $100,000; the minimum for 2022 is $2 million. Inc. reserves the right to decline applicants for subjective reasons. Growth rates used to determine rankings were calculated to four decimal places. The full extent of the scope of firms and data included in the related surveys or evaluations is unknown. Each eligible portfolio company paid an application fee in connection with the award. In general, the receipt of compensation influences, and is likely to present a potential material conflict of interest, relating to any granted award.
  • Top Women Leaders in Growth Investing of 2023 – The ranking and award was conducted by GrowthCap to recognize women who have demonstrated an expertise in private company investing, portfolio management and business expansion strategy. GrowthCap received and evaluated hundreds of nominations and received feedback from each nominee’s colleagues, portfolio company executives and/or others in the industry. Each candidate was evaluated based on her demonstrated success in her specific roles, breadth of experience, longevity in the field, and consistency in performance, among other factors. The designation, issued by GrowthCap on 7/27/2023, was based on the time period of 11/23/22 – 05/23/23. K1 paid a copyright, production and publication fee in connection with the award. In general, the receipt of compensation influences, and is likely to present a potential material conflict of interest, relating to any granted award.
  • Top 50 Private Equity Firms for Executives 2023 – The inaugural report was created by PrivateEquityCXO (PE-CXO), the largest community of private equity-backed executives, and Falcon Partners, a boutique executive search. The data is based on a survey of more than 1,000 private equity-backed executives in the U.S. conducted from July 2022 – December 2022, as well as additional interviews with hundreds more experienced executives. The award was given on Feb. 8, 2023. K1 did not pay compensation for inclusion in this ranking.

2023 Private Equity Wire ESG AAA US Awards – AA Winner for ‘Best Corporate Sustainability Strategy: Management Company’ and ‘Best ESG Firm: Mid Cap’ – The ranking and award was conducted by Private Equity Wire in partnership with EthicsGrade to reward environmental, social and governance excellence among private equity fund managers across a wide range of categories. The time period upon which the award was based was January 2022 through December, 2022. The award was given on June 21, 2023. K1 paid a copyright and publication fee in connection with the award. In general, the receipt of compensation influences, and is likely to present a potential material conflict of interest, relating to any granted award.

  • 2023 Leaders of Influence: Private Equity Investors & Advisors – The report was created by the Los Angeles Business Journal (“LABJ”) to recognize  leaders’ contribution to the Los Angeles business community. LABJ’s editorial team reviewed nominations submitted to LABJ and chose profiles to feature based on a demonstration of impact made on the profession and on the Los Angeles community. The publication was issued on June 5, 2023. K1 did not pay compensation for inclusion in this ranking. The full extent of the scope of firms and data included in the related surveys or evaluations is unknown.

This presentation identifies a number of benefits inherent in K1’s services and operations, although K1 is also subject to a number of material risks associated with these benefits. K1 believes that K1, its personnel and K1 Operations used, employed or retained by K1 will have competitive advantages in identifying, diligencing, monitoring, consulting, and improving and ultimately selling portfolio companies; however, there can be no guarantee that K1 will be able to maintain such advantages over time, outperform third parties or the financial markets generally, or avoid losses.