(BLOOMINGTON) – Civic Champs, a social enterprise startup that streamlines volunteer management for nonprofits, announced plans today to expand its operations in Bloomington to support the growth of its platform.
The company, which has already hired four full-time positions toward its goal, plans on creating up to 30 new jobs over the next several years.
“As a state, we’re committed to fostering and encouraging an entrepreneurial ecosystem that ensures companies like Civic Champs have access to the resources and capital needed to grow,” said Indiana Secretary of Commerce Jim Schellinger. “We’re excited to support Civic Champs’ success in Indiana as the company continues to scale its volunteer experience platform and create more career opportunities for Hoosiers.”
Founded in May 2019, Civic Champs recently participated in two accelerator programs, MassChallenge and Techstars, helping fuel a pre-seed funding round led by local investors, the IU Angel Network and Elevate Ventures, Indiana’s venture development partner, that will bring the company’s to-date funding to $1 million. Now, Civic Champs is set to expand and is evaluating options for growing its footprint as the company outgrows its current space at The Mill in Bloomington.
Civic Champs, which also has an office in Pittsburgh, is hiring for positions in marketing, sales and software development. Interested applicants may apply online.
“One of the things I’ve truly enjoyed since moving to Bloomington is discovering all of its hidden gems including the companies that are thriving here,” said Geng Wang, CEO and co-founder of Civic Champs. “It was an exciting day when The Mill opened its doors because it helped launch and connect more and more companies like Civic Champs. We’re excited to continue growing our platform here in Indiana, and look forward to building on the entrepreneurial momentum in Bloomington.”
Civic Champs’ mission is to streamline the relationship between nonprofits and volunteers, developing a mobile-first platform that automates volunteer management and allows nonprofits to increase its pool of donors by improving the volunteering experience. Additionally, the company is partnering with MENTOR to develop a mentoring-specific feature set within its application, enhancing engagement between the mentor and mentee, while providing real-time data tracking to inform program improvements. Civic Champs’ technology solutions are utilized by more than 60 nonprofit organizations, including the United Way, Habitat for Humanity and the Boys & Girls Club.
“We’re excited that Civic Champs is choosing to grow its business and workforce here,” said Bloomington Mayor John Hamilton. “It’s good to see a business that does good doing well, and, in turn, generating jobs for Bloomington. The City’s investment in the redevelopment of the Mill as an incubator for innovative entrepreneurship has fostered an entrepreneurial ecosystem that allows high-tech companies like Civic Champs to launch and scale their operations.”
The company utilized the state’s Venture Capital Investment (VCI) tax credit program to support its scale up in Indiana. The program helps entrepreneurs and startups attract capital more quickly by giving investors an additional incentive to invest in growing firms. The company leveraged the program to raise more than $200,000 in venture capital and continues to attract additional investment.
The Indiana Economic Development Corporation offered Civic Champs up to $280,000 in conditional tax credits based on the company’s job creation plans. These tax credits are performance-based, meaning the company is eligible to claim incentives once Hoosiers are hired.
About Civic Champs
Civic Champs was founded in 2019 to change how nonprofits operate and engage with their supporters. Civic Champs automates volunteer management and helps nonprofit organizations convert their volunteers to donors. The company’s technology eliminates manual data entry and other time-intensive tasks so nonprofits can focus on doing what matters most. Civic Champs’ initial product automates volunteer hour tracking by providing nonprofits three different ways of capturing volunteer hours: a mobile app for volunteers that uses geofencing technology; a self-service kiosk that can be launched on any device; and an admin mode within the mobile app that allows staff members to check-in volunteers on their behalf. In addition, the company’s integrated micro-donations platform automatically converts volunteers to donors.
About IEDC
The Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) leads the state of Indiana’s economic development efforts, helping businesses launch, grow and locate in the state. Governed by a 15-member board chaired by Governor Eric J. Holcomb, the IEDC manages many initiatives, including performance-based tax credits, workforce training grants, innovation and entrepreneurship resources, public infrastructure assistance, and talent attraction and retention efforts. For more information about the IEDC, visit www.iedc.in.gov.
