Cloud-Based Workforce Management Quinyx Raises $25m for AI Innovations

Quinyx, a Stockholm and London-based cloud provider of workforce management solutions, has raised $25 million in its latest round of funding, with support from existing investors Alfvén & Didrikson, Battery Ventures and Zobito.

Founded in 2005 by chief executive Erik Fjellborg after he spent a summer working for fast-food chain McDonald’s, the company provides software to help business of all sizes manage their staff scheduling, communication, task-management, as well as payroll integration.

After experiencing firsthand the difficult task managers have in organizing employee shifts, Fjellborg created the Quinyx software, with McDonald’s as the company’a first customer.

Service Tailored to the Service Industry

With a focus on shift-based or “flexible” workers in service industries, Quinyx now boasts about 500,000 employees on its platformOpens a new window at companies including McDonald’s, Burger King, jewelery company Swarovski, London’s City Airport, airline Virgin Atlantic and pharmaceutical retailer Boots.

For now, the core customer base is in Europe but its software has been used globally in markets including China, Japan and South Korea. The company says the funding will be used to spur the roll-out of innovations and artificial intelligence technologies, helping to further automate and streamline the processes of workforce management.

Fjellborg said that the additional funds “will help us to accelerate our growth journey and develop and embed new technologies into our platforms to unlock the full potential of the flexible workforce. Our mission is simple – to create a better life for millions of people by improving their work lives.”

Maria Ã…hr, CEO of Alfvén & Didriksson, said “Quinyx is a game-changer in workforce management. Its consistent growth and calibre of its customers confirms its strong potential for future global growth. We look forward to playing an active role in the company’s next chapter.”

The investment marks the largest injection into Quinyx so far, which has raised a total of $53.3 million over four funding rounds.

“Having joined the board at Quinyx when we invested in the company last year, I’ve seen firsthand the ambition and drive Erik and his team have shown in going after this large market,” says Battery Ventures general partner Michael Brown. “Quinyx has made significant progress in the last year by continuing to focus on the strength of its technology. This new investment will help take Quinyx’s business to the next level.”

Shift Market Trend Encourages Development, M&A

With increasing numbers of people engaging in shift work, the global workforce management market is estimated to be worth $2.4 billion. Other players in the space include Infor, Kronos, Replicon and WorkJam.

A report by Gartner into the workforce management software sectorOpens a new window says that by 2023, at least 95% of sales of new workforce management applications will be deployed on the cloud. It found a trend of cloud-first workforce management applications, with human capital management suite vendors expanding their capabilities in this area and more widely adopting workforce management solutions.

“The latest generation of WFM [workforce management] applications have the potential to transform, augment and disrupt the market by introducing new capabilities to WFM applications,” the report says. “Organizations have traditionally invested less frequently in WFM applications than in other HCM [human capital management] applications, such as functions of talent management. However, WFM is one of the few functions of HCM that can provide hard ROI.”

The benefits of using such a system, the report highlights, are to measure accurately the working time and absences of workers, making the information available to payroll and human resources; helping employers comply with legislation and agreements regarding working hours, pay and leave; providing efficient and fair work schedules; and providing tools to track worker productivity.

On Wednesday, enterprise software group Salesforce was reportedOpens a new window to be in early-stage talks to buy Israeli workforce management software company Clicksoftware Technologies at a valuation of about $1.5 billion, although neither company confirmed the deal. Clicksoftware develops and sells enterprise software that offers task scheduling, resource management, as well as customer service tools.

Last week, US-based workforce management solution provider Kronos announced a partnership with German enterprise software group SAP to resell its Workforce Dimensions solution under the brand SAP Time Management by Kronos.

“SAP Time Management by Kronos offers unique and innovative capabilities that will help SAP customers with complex workforce needs to reimagine scheduling, timekeeping, leave management, and regulatory compliance” said Stephen Spears, chief revenue officer at SAP SuccessFactors. “The benefits are connected and localized human resources processes – and a smooth experience across the best workforce management, core HR, and payroll solutions in the market.”