Columbus-based high-growth startup secures Enterprise Social Networks and accelerates collaboration productivity; proceeds to fuel go-to-market sales, marketing and R&D.
Columbus, Ohio, June 6, 2017—Aware, a leading innovator of security solutions for Enterprise Social Networks and collaboration tools, today announced it has closed a $4.9M Series A equity investment, led by Pittsburgh-based Draper Triangle Ventures, Columbus-based Ohio Innovation Fund and Rev1 Ventures, as well as JumpStart Inc., based in Cleveland. Proceeds will fuel go-to-market sales, marketing and continued Research and Development.
Aware empowers safe, intuitive and intelligent collaboration by closing the security gaps inherent in today’s ubiquitous Enterprise Social Networks (ESNs), as well as collaboration tools such as Microsoft Yammer®, Workplace by Facebook and Slack. The conversational and collaborative nature of these tools provides a natural 'water cooler' environment where employees share new ideas, collaborate on initiatives, share information and achieve greater collaboration than ever before.
In addition to delivering the security and assurance needed to safely deploy and effectively manage ESNs, Aware provides unique visibility into an organization’s sentiment, mood and social health — giving them the ability to see behavioral patterns as they are unfolding to make more informed organizational decisions. Delivered and scaled easily, Aware stewards their customers’ most valuable assets — including safeguarding intellectual property and customer data, protecting employees from harassment, ensuring HR policies are followed and empowering companies to follow detailed industry compliance regulations.
A Nov. 2016 study by Persistence Market Research titled Enterprise Social Networks and Online Communities Market: Global Industry Analysis and Forecast 2016–2026, predicts the global enterprise social networks and online communities market will grow from $2.6B in 2016 to $12.18B by 2026, registering a CAGR of 16.5 percent. The same report cites ESN security as a major enterprise concern:
Lack of proper security is one of the major challenges that companies face, and is a primary factor expected to continue to restrain adoption of enterprise social networks and online communities. Online collaboration of business information with social networking websites creates an opportunity for hackers to illegally access information or gain unauthorized access to critical business data through social websites.
About Aware
Aware complements today’s leading enterprise collaboration and messaging platforms, including Microsoft Teams, Microsoft Yammer®, and Workplace by Facebook, by providing deeper monitoring and governance of employee interactions and behaviors. Aware's platform encourages and facilitates safe collaboration by monitoring files and conversations, as well as blocking material or communication that could place a company at risk. Aware is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio — a city ranked #1 for scaling startups¹ and #8 in U.S. cities for tech job growth². For more information visit www.awarehq.com, follow on Twitter @Aware_HQ and on Facebook at facebook.com/AwareHQ.
About Draper Triangle Ventures
About Ohio Innovation Fund
About Rev1 Ventures
About JumpStart
¹ Kauffman Foundation, Forbes, Zillow
² Praxis Strategy Group, 2012