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When I Work Paves Minneapolis "Silicon Skyway," Adding Best-in-Class SaaS and Service Leadership
[January 17, 2017]

When I Work Paves Minneapolis "Silicon Skyway," Adding Best-in-Class SaaS and Service Leadership


When I Work, the easiest way to schedule, track time and communicate with hourly employees, has announced the addition of two new members of its management team, with a goal of enhancing its customer acquisition care and product capabilities.

Ramping for growth after a $15 million round raise last spring, these new executives mark the latest best-in-class talent When I Work has recruited from New York's "Silicon Alley" and California's "Silicon Valley" tech hub regions in recent months.

  • Thomas Martinez is chief customer officer, a new position for the company. He was formerly head of sales operations & sales development at Zenefits in San Francisco. He has 15 years' of experience guiding disrupters to dominance and developing software-as-a-service (SaaS (News - Alert)) response to key customer needs, driving growth as VP of global sales strategy at Salesforce.com before his time at Zenefits. Prior to that, Martinez worked at McKinsey & Company (News - Alert) and Procter & Gamble.
  • Nick VanWagner (a Minnesota native, returning from Silicon Valley) has joined as senior director of product, with more than a decade of experience driving growth and scaling teams as a leader of product, analytics and strategy teams across both the B2B and consumer worlds. He joins from LinkedIn (News - Alert), where he was director of insights and was most recently a part of the leadership team that has scaled LinkedIn's Sales Solutions business line from incubation into a key pillar of the organization. Prior to that, VanWagner workedat McKinsey & Company as an engagement manager, focused on implementing digital strategies in retail and consumer industries.



They join Jim D'Arcangelo who was hired in 2016 as VP of Marketing. The driver of several tech growth successes and corporate turnarounds in the SaaS and telecommunications industries, D'Arcangelo relocated to Minnesota from New York City. Jason Hable, a San Francisco Bay area tech veteran with venture capital leadership and start-up founder roles under his belt, also joined the executive team last summer, leading When I Work's new growth organization.

Stockpiling expertise across most of its executive ranks in 2016, the senior tech talent When I Work has drawn from both coasts serves to complement other Twin (News - Alert) Cities-based additions made earlier in 2016. Minnesotans joining When I Work last year included LeeAnn Belski, VP of Human Resources, who came on board after similar leadership roles at software leaders ArcServe and Highjump; and Shane Helget, VP of Engineering, who had previously held lead roles at Workfront, Digital River and OptumHealth.


"We have assembled an incredible leadership team with diverse, powerful, and deep experience in high-growth companies," says Chad Halvorson, CEO of When I Work. "They are also passionate about delivering unprecedented customer service, know how to scale businesses, lead by example, value mentorship and community involvement, and have an unwavering commitment to helping us achieve our mission of making employer and worker lives less complicated, less uncertain and less wasteful of time."

"We're able to attract this talent to Minneapolis because of our business track record and vision, not to mention the quality of work and life in the Twin Cities," adds Halvorson. "We believe this geography -and When I Work - is the next epicenter of technology and service innovation."

"Business owners are desperate for stronger, more authentic relationships with their employees," says Martinez. "When I Work provides helpful workforce management tools-but it's also enabling unforgettable experiences and creating value on a level that few businesses in SaaS can replicate. It's that kind of differentiation and company-wide culture that drew me to this role."

About When I Work
When I Work is the easiest way to schedule, track time and communicate with hourly employees. More than 50,000 workplaces worldwide rely on When I Work to make sure they have the right people, at the right place, at the right time.

When I Work improves employee-manager relationships while removing the common inefficiencies of managing hourly teams-making teams more efficient, more accountable and better prepared. In five minutes business owners and managers can start using When I Work's simple, mobile-first solution, no IT required. To make work life better, visit WhenIWork.com.


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