SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 27, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Firstup, a SaaS leader in the digital employee experience, is pleased to announce that Nicole Alvino, co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer, has been appointed CEO. Firstup also welcomes a recent addition to the Firstup Board of Directors, Jialin Zhang.
Taking over from Gary Nakamura, Alvino will direct the organization in its mission to transform workforce communications to work for every worker. Nakamura is stepping down after navigating the organization through exceptional growth as SocialChorus and leading the successful merger of SocialChorus and Dynamic Signal to form Firstup.
Exiting 2021 with record growth, Firstup serves 40 of the Fortune 100 companies, reaching and connecting more than 15 million employees daily. The business will surpass $100M in revenue in 2022 as a leader in the Workforce Communications & Digital Employee Experience (DEX) space. As a founder of Firstup, Alvino will lead as CEO effective immediately, embracing her vision to give every worker the information and access they need to thrive and every leader the insights to mobilize their workforce.
“Gary has been instrumental in helping the business reach key milestones as SocialChorus and now as Firstup,” commented John Brennan, chairman of the board. “We respect his decision and are pleased that Nicole – a founder of the company, visionary in the workforce communications market and outstanding leader – is ready to take Firstup to the next level.”
“People are the foundation to any business, and we’ve always known the importance of reaching every worker, especially the front line,” said Nicole Alvino. “I look forward to continuing to partner with our extraordinary customers and team to deliver the best digital employee experience for every worker.”
Firstup also welcomes a recent addition to the Firstup Board of Directors, Jialin Zhang. Zhang currently serves as a Vice President at Sumeru Equity Partners and helps lead the firm’s investments across enterprise software sectors, including HCM software and IT/DevOPs. Her current investments include Firstup, 360Learning and Tasktop. Zhang will bring her extensive financial and SaaS expertise and commitment to DEI to the Board.
About Firstup
Firstup is redefining the digital employee experience to put people first and lift companies up. We make communication solutions that build authentic engagement and create two-way conversation between employees and companies. That’s why 40% of Fortune 100 companies like Amazon, Boeing, Ford and Pfizer have chosen us to unlock the potential of their workforces. Get started at firstup.io.
For more information please contact:
EMEA
Victoria Melville/Nicola Williamson
Melville Communications Limited
Tel: +44 (0)1483 489009
victoria@melvillecommunications.co.uk
nicola@melvillecommunications.co.uk
NORTH AMERICA
Kathleen Van Gorden
IDLAB
Tel: 001 (401) 480-1840
kathleen@idlabglobal.com
Author Information
As a detail-oriented researcher, Sherril is expert at discovering, gathering and compiling industry and market data to create clear, actionable market and competitive intelligence. With deep experience in market analysis and segmentation she is a consummate collaborator with strong communication skills adept at supporting and forming relationships with cross-functional teams in all levels of organizations.
She brings more than 20 years of experience in technology research and marketing; prior to her current role, she was a Research Analyst at Omdia, authoring market and ecosystem reports on Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, and User Interface technologies. Sherril was previously Manager of Market Research at Intrado Life and Safety, providing competitive analysis and intelligence, business development support, and analyst relations.
Sherril holds a Master of Business Administration in Marketing from University of Colorado, Boulder and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Rutgers University.
