Arena raises $10.8 million to expand use of data in hiring

Baltimore-based Arena raised $10.8 million in new funding that will help the company build on traction for its platform that brings big data to the hiring process, CEO Michael Rosenbaum said.
Using data generated through the job application process and applying machine learning and predictive analytics, Arena’s platform helps companies identify job candidates who are the best fit for specific roles and departments.
The company spun of out of software development–focused Catalyte (which Rosenbaum also founded) in 2014 with a focus on healthcare. The platform is now used in more than 450 facilities through previously announced partnerships with systems such as Benchmark Senior Living, Mt. Sinai Health System and Sunrise Senior Living, among others.
A key focus for the platform’s effectiveness is what happens after the hire. Healthcare companies have long identified employee turnover as a key workforce issue, so retention has emerged as a key metric where Arena shows value, Rosenbaum said.
Earlier this month, the company released results from its work at Mt. Sinai Health System showing that the technology helped reduce 90-day turnover among employees by 77.6 percent. That ability to move metrics is key, Rosenbaum said. The company’s leaders have also talked about how the platform can help reduce bias in the hiring process.
While reaching a “critical mass” of traction in healthcare, Rosenbaum said the company will use the new funding to continue growing its client base, and help extend the product’s capabilities to include additional metrics that employers find meaningful.
Additionally, Arena is eying a new vertical in addition to healthcare for the platform, though Rosenbaum declined to specify which one at this time.
“The broad thing that Arena is trying to do is to rewire the entire labor market around outcome predictions, rather than around perceptions,” said Rosenbaum.
The company is also planning to add to its team of more than 30 people, with about 10 hires expected in the next year, Rosenbaum said.
Participants in the funding round include SunBridge Capital Management and David Joerg, managing director of Two Sigma Investments, who invested individually.