Crossbeam Secures $76M Series C Funding - Partner Cloud Growth

Crossbeam Secures $76 Million Series C Funding

Bob Moore, founder and CEO of Crossbeam, initially established the company to provide a solution for businesses engaged in sales partnerships. The core function was to facilitate understanding of shared accounts through a methodology known as account mapping.

Moore anticipated that the company would ultimately benefit from a network effect, where the addition of each customer would attract further partners to the platform. This prediction has now materialized, garnering attention from investors and culminating in a recently announced $76 million Series C funding round.

Investment Details

Andreessen Horowitz spearheaded the investment round, with contributions from existing investors including Redpoint Ventures, FirstMark Capital, First Round Capital, and Uncork Capital. Salesforce Ventures, HubSpot Ventures, and Okta Ventures also participated. Crunchbase data indicates that the company’s total funding now approaches $117 million.

Moore emphasizes that the observed network effect is a key driver of investor interest. It also offers a straightforward metric for evaluating the company’s progress – the expansion of its network graph.

“Our assessment of the business’s performance and our success metrics are largely centered around the growth of this network graph and the number of new companies joining,” he stated.

A significant portion of new companies are onboarded through referrals from existing partners. Furthermore, the level of platform engagement and cross-company collaboration provides valuable insights into the network’s health.

Growth and Expansion

Over the past year, Crossbeam has successfully attracted larger enterprise clients, accelerating network growth. These larger accounts function as hubs within the partner ecosystem.

Initially, sales efforts were focused on partner teams. However, the company is now expanding its reach into sales and marketing departments, integrating valuable data into platforms like Salesforce and HubSpot – both of which are investors.

“This broadened interest is fueled by integrations with products such as Salesforce, HubSpot, and Slack, enabling data flow into users’ workflows and providing answers regarding the impact of partner ecosystems,” Moore explained.

Revenue Model

Crossbeam operates on a freemium model. Companies can join and connect their data without charge, with unlimited partners. Payment is required only when users wish to export data from the Crossbeam system to other platforms, such as Salesforce.

Currently, the network comprises 5,000 companies. Approximately 20% of participants have converted to paying customers, a typical conversion rate.

The company currently employs around 65 individuals and plans to increase this number to 80 by year-end.

Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion

In a previous conversation during the $25 million Series B funding round in August 2020, Moore highlighted the importance of diversity and inclusion in the company’s recruitment and culture. He confirms that this commitment remains a priority.

“We discuss this openly and consistently during executive team meetings. An internal diversity, equity, and inclusion committee oversees cultural initiatives and ensures fairness in all processes, comprising a diverse group of employees.

Our diversity metrics and representation across all levels of the company have either maintained or improved since the Series B round,” he added.

Despite a competitive job market, Crossbeam continues to attract talent due to its rapid growth, investor confidence, and transparent company culture.

“We function as a B2B company with characteristics akin to a consumer business, thanks to these network effects. We have a compelling narrative, are experiencing rapid expansion, and benefit from strong investor support, all of which are reflected in our data,” Moore concluded.