Elemental alumni launch Portland startup to connect corporations and nonprofits

A brand new enterprise from former Elemental Technologies staff goals to encourage companies to promote volunteerism amongst their staff. The startup, known as Field Day, is creating software program to handle corporations’ relationships with nonprofits.Elemental was among the many most distinguished of the final technology of Portland startups. Founded in 2006, its know-how enabled media corporations to use commonplace pc {hardware} to convert video to stream on-line.As it grew, Elemental sought to construct neighborhood ties by giving staff break day to volunteer with nonprofits and faculties. That’s the mannequin Field Day hopes to assist different corporations emulate.Co-founder Eli Blackman, previously an Elemental gross sales director and product supervisor, mentioned working with nonprofits is about greater than social accountability. He mentioned it helped Elemental appeal to and retain staff by giving them a broader objective, even in durations issues weren’t going nice at their day job.“That sense of camaraderie and neighborhood can assist pull you thru a few of these instances,” Blackman mentioned.Elemental bought to Amazon Web Services for practically $300 million in 2015; it continues working in Portland below the identify AWS Elemental. Blackman’s late brother, Sam Blackman, was Elemental’s co-founder and CEO.After the deal, Eli Blackman went to work for Amazon in Seattle. He helped to construct that firm’s personal worker engagement efforts, modeled partially on Elemental’s work in volunteerism. While at Amazon, Blackman mentioned he discovered it wasn’t simple to observe its native workplaces’ work with nonprofits.That’s vital, he mentioned, for companies that need to measure and promote worker volunteerism. And Blackman mentioned it’s additionally vital for nonprofits to reveal to foundations and different backers that they’ve volunteer help.So earlier this 12 months, Blackman and former Elemental colleague Jason LaPier launched Field Day to create software program that would supply that type of monitoring and administration functionality. Four of the corporate’s 5 staff labored at Elemental.Field Day has a handful of pilot clients and is asserting its first spherical of enterprise capital funding now, although it isn’t disclosing how a lot it has raised. The startup’s backers embody Voyager Capital, an early investor in Elemental, and Defy Partners’, whose co-founder Neil Sequeira served on Elemental’s board.Field Day can also be working with about 20 nonprofits, in accordance to Blackman. He mentioned the corporate plans a broad product launch someday subsequent 12 months and hopes its know-how will encourage extra companies to make volunteerism considered one of their core values. He mentioned it may be an vital ingredient of sustaining a sexy and cohesive office, particularly as distant work grows extra prevalent.“These youthful millennials, Gen Z, after all the cash is vital however they’re wanting for lots of different issues, too,” Blackman mentioned. “The social accountability facet is extra and extra vital.”– Mike Rogoway | [email protected] | Twitter: @rogoway |