Hi friends!
There's another new team on Key Values I'd like you to meet... Course Hero! 🙌 They're what I like to call a "grown-up" company. Founded in 2006, they've weathered many storms to be where they are today and gained a lot of wisdom along the way.
One thing that really draws me to Course Hero is their origin story. Andrew Grauer (their CEO) was a student at Cornell when he started the company. The idea was born out of his own need –– he and his peers wanted to find supplemental resources to support their learning and better prepare for exams –– and businesses that start from scratching your own itch is always *chef's kiss* IMO.
For the next eight years, they grew organically and methodically. Only then did they decide to raise a $15M Series A. Another six years passed before they considered venture capital again.
There's nothing wrong with founders raising money from the start, but I've seen so many do it without really understanding the tradeoffs or deeply considering the (essentially irreversible) decision. That's why I have instant respect for those who fully understand the risks and rewards that come with early venture capital, and choose to build their company on their own terms without being beholden to investors. It just gives slow clap energy, you know?! 👏👏
This brings me to what really wins me over with Course Hero. In 2020, six years after their last round, they closed one of the largest funding deals in the U.S. for that year ($80M), and then followed it with a whopping $380M Series C the year after. If that doesn't scream c o n f i d e n c e, I really don't know what does. Without even knowing the behind-the-scenes details, you know that their founders had a clear vision and were intentional about how much and when they took investments. Not surprisingly, a lot of their processes, programs, and benefits reflect that same thoughtfulness. Gahhh! I stan. We should just get into it... 😍
(For those of you feeling nervous that companies aren't hiring anymore, deep breaths! I got'chu.)
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Course Hero (profile) 📍 Redwood City, Vancouver, Toronto, or Remote (w/in 50mi)
Provides relocation support. Sponsors work authorizations.
Course Hero is an online learning platform with over 100 million course-specific study resources. As a company focused on education, they mirror that internally for employees. With their $5,000 educational assistance and tuition reimbursement programs, folks can continue their education, too. Nearly 30% of team members are parents, and engineers have a technical bootcamp to teach them about their tech stack as the goal is to set everyone up for success in their first month. 👌
For clarification on where they're hiring: They support a virtual-first work environment within 50 miles of their three office hubs.
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Classy (profile) 📍 San Diego, CA or Remote (US)
Does not provide relocation support. Does not sponsor work authorizations.
Classy is a giving platform that enables nonprofits to connect supporters with the causes they care about. Everyone at Classy is driven by their mission to use technology to effect positive social change. When you join, you’ll be matched with a pod of six or seven people (a mix of engineers, PMs, and designers), and work hand-in-hand with nonprofits. Here's what a day in the life of an engineer looks like.
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Lumafield (profile) 📍 Boston, San Francisco, or Remote (US)
Provides relocation support. Sponsors work authorizations on a case-by-case basis.
Lumafield is building the world’s first industrial X-Ray CT scanner as well as the software to process the resulting data. They emerged from stealth earlier this year, take calculated risks to get an edge over incumbents, and are hiring quickly (~15 engineers this year). If you're curious, I appreciated this talk from Tony Fadell on why he wishes he had their technology when he created the original iPod!
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Sibi (profile) 📍 Remote (US)
Provides relocation support. Sponsors work authorizations.
Sibi simplifies the process of building and improving a property by directly connecting manufacturers, contractors, and homeowners all in one place. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I find their energy to be refreshingly different. Maybe it's because they're self-funded and bootstrapped, or maybe it's that so many team members are close friends outside of work. Either way, I encourage you to get to know them better.
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Stytch (profile) 📍 San Francisco, New York City, or Remote (US)
Provides relocation support. Sponsors work authorizations on a case-by-case basis.
Stytch is building a developer platform for passwordless authentication. They're onboarding 6-10 new folks per month (you can meet their growing team) and building quickly, too. If something is highly impactful and reversible, they'll go for it. Over the last year, they've introduced one-time passcodes for SMS, email, and WhatsApp, as well as embeddable magic links. And it's just the beginning...!
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Doppler (profile) 📍 San Francisco, CA or Remote (US)
Provides relocation support. Sponsors work authorizations.
Doppler provides encrypted tools for developers to manage app secrets at scale. They announced their $20M Series A in April, and despite being a small team (for now 😏), they offer benefits to help cover fertility treatments and conduct regular compensation reviews to ensure folks are paid competitively and equally. They also value high EQ so much that they dedicate ~85% of their interview to it.
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Standing to applaud anyone who has ever had the foresight and courage to swim against the current!
✌️,
Lynne (@lynnetye and @keyvaluesio)
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