Irish-founded tech startup Qstream raises $15m in a major funding round
The software company, co-founded by Dubliner Duncan Lennox, is set to expand rapidly in the US and Europe.
IRISH-FOUNDED SOFTWARE startup Qstream is set to rapidly expand in Europe and the US after raising $15 million in a major funding round.
The company, which designs a platform to improve the skills of salespeople, announced today that it has $15 million (€14.1 million) Series B round of funding led by US-based Polaris Partners, which also has offices in Dublin.
Existing investors Frontline Ventures, Launchpad Venture Group, and Excel Venture Management all also took part in the funding round.
This brings the total of venture capital funding invested in Qstream to date to $23 million.
Qstream said and will be used to help the company “more rapidly increase US and EMEA (Europe, Middle-East and Africa) market share”. As part of the funding, Gary Swart, a partner at Polaris, will join the Qstream board of directors.
As previously explained by Fora, as part of our ‘How My Business Works’ series, Qstream’s software allows users to build quick, five-minute quizzes that test employees and aim to improve their knowledge or skills in particular areas.
So far, the firm has focused on using the software to measure the performance of sales staff working in tech, pharmaceutical and financial services companies, although in theory it could be used in any field.
An example of how Qstream's software works
Irish connection
The company was co-founded by Dubliner and UCD graduate Duncan Lennox in 2011 with a handful of employees.
Although the company is based in the US, as are most of its customers, the company has a large Irish operation. Its European headquarters, based in Ranelagh, Dublin, has over 30 employees.
Lennox, who serves as Qstream CEO, told Fora in June that Qstream had just broken the $10 million mark for turnover.
Qstream co-founder and CEO Duncan Lennox
He said that the firm is hoping to pass the $100 million turnover milestone within the next five years – which he thinks would see the company’s value top $1 billion.
Expertise
In a statement today, Lennox said that Qstream is “tremendously honoured to have the validation of Polaris Partners”, which he said will complement the skills of the company’s existing investors.
“Sales processes remain ripe for disruption and, with the addition of this funding and expertise, Qstream’s singular ability to address the human side of sales is well-positioned to change how enterprises achieve sales optimisation now and into the foreseeable future,” he said.
Qstream said that 14 of the world’s top-15 pharmaceutical companies use the company’s software to improve the abilities of their sales teams and front-line managers.
