Austin ranks 6th on top startup cities across nation
TechNet and the Progressive Policy Institute recently conducted a study nationally ranking cities as startup hubs. Austin was named the sixth top startup city, following its coastline counterparts in San Francisco, San Jose, Seattle, New York and Boston. [Technet]
Blackbaud acquires Austin's AcademicWorks
Blackbaud, a cloud software company for social good organizations, announced on Monday the acquisition of AcademicWorks. Based out of Charleston with a large Austin office of over 300 employees, Blackbaud will continue to sell AcademicWorks' streamlined higher ed scholarship platform as a standalone product for the short term. In the future, the two solutions will integrate to offer higher ed and K-12 institutions a more efficient model for critical functions like fundraising and financial management and analytics. [PRNewswire]
Zilliant closes $30M round led by Goldman Sachs
On Wednesday, the Austin software company Zilliant announced a $30 million investment by Goldman Sachs to grow its global presence. The company develops B2B AI-driven pricing optimization and management solutions in the distribution, manufacturing, equipment rental and private equity industries. To date, the company has raised north of $90 million since its 1999 launch. [Built In Austin]
Rock Candy Media promotes 3 senior staff to partner
Rock Candy Media, a design, marketing and advertising firm based out of Austin, announced three senior staff appointments to agency partner. As partners, each will remain in their existing roles (which include Sam Kimelman as VP of creative, Scott Mise as lead web developer and Kyle Gregory as creative director). [Press Release]
WP Engine names Annette Alexander as the company’s new Chief People Officer
On Friday, WP Engine announced the appointment of Annette Alexander as its first Chief People Officer. In her role, she will lead the HR and culture strategy across the employee experience, learning and development, recruiting and more. Alexander's previous roles include VP of HR at RetailMeNot and senior leadership positions in Europe at PayPal, Danaher, Barclays and at Dell, where she helped launched the company’s Scotland office. [WP Engine]
FloSports hires Paul Hurdlow as senior vice president and general counsel
On Tuesday, the internet sports streaming company FloSports announced it has hired Paul Hurdlow as senior vice president and general counsel. Hurdlow comes to FloSports after 23 years of working for the global law firm DLA Piper, where he provided legal guidance to growth companies across various industries. [Press Release]
JustLegal makes key executive hire
In more hiring news, JustLegal, an Austin startup that streamlines the process to connect lawyers and clients, announced Frank Robles as their new CTO. JustLegal, formerly known as LawBooth, was founded in Colorado in 2013. The company has since moved to Austin and is part of the Capital Factory accelerator program. [Press Release]
DoorDash and Jack in the Box partner for delivery options in Austin
The San Francisco-based on-demand food delivery startup DoorDash has launched a partnership in Austin with Jack in the Box, offering food delivery as late as 3 a.m. [DoorDash]
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