MESH/Diversity inks financing led by NBIF and Concrete

MESH/Diversity, a Saint John, New Brunswick-based provider of software and training to support diversity initiatives, has raised C$750,000 in financing. The round was led by New Brunswick Innovation Foundation and Concrete Ventures, with participation from East Valley Ventures, an existing investor.

PRESS RELEASE

SAINT JOHN—MESH/Diversity, a Saint John-based Software as a Service platform that helps companies use data to support diversity initiatives, today announced it raised $750,000 in funding led equally by the New Brunswick Innovation Foundation and Concrete Ventures. East Valley Ventures, a prior investor, also invested in this round. The new funding will support product development, sales and marketing and customer success initiatives.

“Creating a corporate culture that values diversity and inclusion is not only the right thing to do, it is also a clear competitive advantage for any business,” said Mike Wright, CEO of MESH/Diversity. “We leverage the power of behavioral science to provide companies with an outcome based, metrics driven diversity and inclusion program. Social oppression is a systemic issue and so the solution must address the mechanisms that drive, maintain and reproduce that system.”

MESH/Diversity’s systematized approach to training and employee data collection leads to actionable insights for organizations committed to ensuring they are living up to their diversity ideals. Based on the behavioural science work done by the company’s co-founder, Dr. Leeno Karumanchery, this systematized approach to diversity and inclusion is necessary to address the unconscious system of attitudes and behaviours that shapes the culture in any organization.

“MESH/Diversity’s leadership is bringing the principles of behavioural science to bear on one of the top cultural challenges facing businesses around the world. This scientific approach establishes baseline measures and guides organizations through the steps needed to create more diverse and inclusive workplaces. We are proud that this scientific approach to diversity is coming from a New Brunswick company,” said Ray Fitzpatrick, Director of Investments for NBIF.

“Not only is MESH/Diversity tackling an important social issue, but they are also tackling a large business issue. Workplaces that are diverse and inclusive can create a long-lasting competitive advantage by reducing employee turnover, sparking ideation to enter new markets and increasing overall productivity. Today’s great leaders understand this and are investing in solutions like MESH/Diversity,” said Patrick Hankinson, General Partner with Concrete Ventures.

MESH/Diversity works with clients throughout North America, including Silicon Valley Bank, Intelisys, Southern New Hampshire University and OSL Retail Services.