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Applause, Framingham, MA

Gold Stevie Award Winner 2012, Click to Enter The 2014 American Business Awards

Company: Applause, Framingham, MA
Entry Submitted By: fama PR
Company Description: Launched in 2008 as uTest, Applause is leading the app quality revolution by enabling companies to deliver digital experiences that win - from web to mobile to wearables and beyond. By combining in-the-wild testing services, software tools and analytics, Applause helps thousands of companies achieve the 360° app quality they need to thrive in the modern apps economy.
Nomination Category: Company / Organization Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Most Innovative Company of the Year - Up to 2,500 Employees

Nomination Title: Applause App Quality, Inc.

Tell the story about what this nominated organization has achieved since January 1, 2014 (up to 650 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms.

Applause has become the globally-recognized leader in empowering brands to launch and maintain highly-successful apps in the eyes of users. Applause provides companies with app quality solutions and a competitive advantage. With social media and app store reviews, consumers now have a large and influential voice in helping decide which apps and brands win, and which ones fail. Users won’t tolerate anything less than perfection and that’s why today, only great apps win. Applause enables companies to deliver those winning digital experiences - from web to mobile to wearables and beyond.

In January 2014, the company received a $43MM Series E Round led by Goldman Sachs (with funding now at $80MM+ total) and re-launched from uTest to Applause, a 360° app quality company that added app quality tools and analytics to its already world-leading in-the-wild, crowdsourced app testing.
In rebranding and relaunching as Applause, the company also built a second brand around its cultivated tester community, now referred to as uTest (the original company name). The “new” uTest is now the world's largest professional network for software testers and test engineers, providing training, educational resources, job postings, and more. The community now includes an unparalleled 175,000+ testers in more than 200 countries and territories.

In May of 2014, Applause acquired top German “crowdtesting” company, Testhub (which is now the new European headquarters for Applause). Together, Applause now boasts 7+ years combined in the market, nearly 3X longer than any other testing/app quality players.

In the past year, the team has grown internally, as well – Applause expanded into its HQ office in the Boston area doubling its original space to 20,000 square feet and opened new offices in Berlin, Seattle and Israel, and also grew to 200+ employees in North America and Europe.

Applause also grew the team in a new way – it enacted journalism as a content strategy, hiring away tier 1 mobile editor Dan Rowinksi from ReadWrite.com to run and launch expert editorial, data and analysis to everyone in the business of building, designing, marketing and using apps - the Application Resource Center, or ARC, and ARC 360 Reports, focusing on educational content on the apps economy, which have been covered in the Wall Street Journal, MarketWatch, WIRED, VentureBeat, and more.

The team also celebrated significant product and service updates this year: Applause launched the Applause Mobile Beta Management product to support global, enterprise-grade mobile beta programs with as many as hundreds of thousands of testers in a mobile-first framework. The company also recently announced major enhancements to part of its suite of app quality tools and services, Applause Analytics, which empowers companies to transform the customer voice into actionable business intelligence, end internal opinion-based arguments and get improved versions of their app to market quickly. Applause Analytics now crawls more than 30 million apps and close to 500 million app reviews in iOS and Android app stores across eight countries.

Applause also announced some important partnerships in the past year – it worked closely with IBM's MobileFirst and Rational Software technology teams to develop solutions that help companies better achieve mobile app quality that aligns with users' perspectives. Applause also partnered with Tricentis to provide a wide spectrum of automated and in-the-wild testing solutions for every project of every size, scope and budget.

The company won many awards for innovation, success and growth from Gartner, Ernst & Young, Forbes (one of only 2 companies to make 3rd straight list of most promising companies), Inc. (3rd straight INC 5000 list), local business awards such as the Boston Business Journal’s Pacesetters awards, and more.

Applause is proud to say it grew 4-year revenues by 4000%+, improved on its standing as the only app quality company with thousands of customers - including Google, Amazon, Box and RunKeeper - achieving its current standing as the only crowdsourced testing firm in the world paying out millions of dollars to testers quarterly.

In bullet-list form, briefly summarize up to ten (10) of the chief accomplishments of this organization since the beginning of 2014 (up to 150 words).

1. Received a $43MM Series E Round led by Goldman Sachs (with funding now at $80MM+ total)
2. Re-launched from uTest to Applause, a 360° app quality company that added app quality tools and analytics to its already world-leading in-the-wild, crowdsourced app testing
3. Grew its professional community to 175,000+ testers in more than 200 countries and territories.
4. Acquired top German “crowdtesting” company, Testhub (which is now the new European headquarters for Applause)
5. Expanded into its HQ office in the Boston area doubling its original space to 20,000 square feet and opened new offices in Berlin, Seattle and Israel
6. Grew to 200+ employees in North America and Europe
7. Grew 4-year revenues by 4000%+
8. Withstood its title as the only app quality company with thousands of customers - Including Google, Amazon, Fox, Box and RunKeeper
9. Won many awards from Gartner, Ernst & Young, Forbes, Inc., Boston Business Journal’s Pacesetters awards, and more.

Of the following types of innovation, which ONE do you want the judges to most appreciate about your organization's story of achievement since the beginning of 2014?

Overall Innovation