Acadian Ventures

Acadian Ventures Research Overview Acadian Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm founded in 2019, exclusively focused on the Future of Work and work technology sector. Headquartered in New Haven, CT, the firm invests globally in companies reshaping how work is built, run, and scaled. Acadian is led by General Partners Jason Corsello and Thomas Otter — both industry veterans with deep operating experience at leading HR technology companies including Cornerstone OnDemand, SAP SuccessFactors, and Gartner. Investment Thesis Acadian Ventures' core thesis is that "the best workplaces are designed to unlock and amplify human potential." The firm backs founders building next-generation work technologies across five key categories: Infrastructure — Foundational systems enabling unified work software ecosystems (data, APIs, integration layers) Intelligence — Platforms transforming data into predictive insights and automated actions Automation — Execution of repetitive workflows without manual intervention; AI agents managing end-to-end processes Experience — Employee-facing platforms where work happens day to day Compliance — Automated regulatory guardrails ensuring adherence to labor law and data privacy requirements The firm's manifesto articulates a conviction that "the Future of Work is not about digitizing the old model — it is about rebuilding it." They see software agents as capable of managing end-to-end workflows alongside humans, fundamentally reshaping enterprise operations. Value is shifting from the effort of doing work to the clarity of defining it, and Acadian bets on companies selling "the Work that software can autonomously perform." Stage Focus Acadian invests at the earliest stages of company formation: Pre-Seed : First checks into founding teams Seed : Primary stage of deployment Series A : Follow-on for top portfolio performers The firm makes 1st, 2nd, and 3rd checks into companies, building strong relationships from inception. Check Size Typical check size: $100K–$2M, with an average check of approximately $500K. This is consistent with their early-stage focus and global portfolio. Lead Tendency Acadian Ventures does not lead financing rounds. They position themselves as value-add early investors who bring deep domain expertise, LP network access (ServiceNow, Workday, SAP, Salesforce executives), and strategic guidance — rather than as round leaders. Fund History & AUM Fund I (~$10M, 2019): Top decile fund per PitchBook; backed companies like Oyster, Nomi Health, SmartRecruiters, and TechWolf Fund II ($30M, closed January 2024): Oversubscribed; anchored by ServiceNow Ventures and Connecticut Innovations. Plans to invest in ~30 companies. 12 investments made at time of close. Combined AUM : ~$40M Fund II LPs include venture capital firms, family offices from the US and Europe, high-net-worth individuals, and the majority of Fund I investors. Recent Activity As of early 2026, Acadian Ventures is actively deploying Fund II. Their most recent disclosed investment was in Kombo on February 18, 2026 (Kombo subsequently raised a $25M Series A led by Volition Capital). As of May 2025, the firm had invested in 39 companies total, with 3 new investments in the preceding 12 months. Portfolio Highlights Acadian's portfolio includes 39 companies, with 2 unicorns and 10 acquisitions. Notable Exits: SmartRecruiters — Enterprise ATS platform, acquired by SAP in August 2025 Multiple other acquisitions in the HR tech space Active Portfolio: TechWolf (techwolf.ai) — AI-powered employee skills monitoring; raised $43M Series B led by Felix Capital Degreed (degreed.com) — Leading upskilling and learning platform Oyster (oysterhr.com) — Global HR platform for distributed teams Findem (findem.ai) — AI platform for talent decisions Origin (originbenefits.com) — AI-powered global benefits intelligence Nomi Health (nomihealth.com) — Healthcare payment platform Compa (trycompa.com) — AI-driven compensation intelligence Kombo — HR integrations platform Workpay (workpay.africa) — Payroll for Africa Worky — HR platform for LATAM Assembly (joinassembly.com) — Employee recognition and engagement Figures (figures.hr) — Compensation benchmarking Palette (palette.hr) — Compensation planning Quantum Workplace (quantumworkplace.com) — Employee engagement surveys Progression (progression.app) — Career progression frameworks Copyleaks (copyleaks.com) — AI content detection for compliance Beeline (beeline.com) — Extended workforce management Utmost (utmost.co) — Workforce management platform Team Jason Corsello, General Partner & Founder Nearly 20 years in human capital management. Former SVP Strategy and Corporate Development at Cornerstone OnDemand (NASDAQ: CSOD). Previously at Wipro and Yankee Group. Frequently quoted in The Economist, Wall Street Journal, and Forbes on Future of Work topics. University of San Diego BBA. Thomas Otter, General Partner Led product management at SAP SuccessFactors, scaling the product to $1B ARR. Former Research VP at Gartner Group. Advisor to Workday, Personio, and others. Holds a PhD from KIT, PGDip in Strategy and Innovation (Oxford), LLM in Data Protection Law, and PGDip in HR. Fellow of the British Computer Society. Audrey Handem, Principal First-check investor at Speedinvest specializing in AI and worktech. Trained neuroscientist. Former venture debt consultant at the European Investment Bank. Multilingual (French, Italian, Spanish, English). Education from Cardiff University and London School of Economics. David Clarke, Senior Advisor Former CTO at Workday. Co-founder and SVP at Cape Clear Software (acquired by Workday, 2008). Computer Science degree from Trinity College Dublin. Ryan McQueeney, Finance & Operations Experienced CFO with venture-backed startup expertise. Former CFO at RedOwl Analytics. Over a decade in public accounting. MBA from Loyola University Maryland. Decision Process Timeline : 1–2 weeks typical Process : Partnership decision between two GPs Warm intro : Not explicitly required, but given niche focus, referrals through the worktech ecosystem are common Involvement : Active partner support; the firm prides itself on deep operational expertise beyond capital Geographic Focus Global — Acadian invests worldwide with notable portfolio concentration in the US and Europe, and emerging markets exposure (Africa with Workpay, LATAM with Worky, India, APAC, Israel, MENA, ANZ). Network & Co-Investors Acadian operates with a strong LP network from major HR tech players: Salesforce, Workday, SAP, Oracle, ADP, Ceridian, Cornerstone OnDemand. This gives portfolio companies direct access to enterprise distribution and strategic buyers. Frequent co-investors include Techstars, Matchstick Ventures, and Next Frontier Capital.