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Arianna Huffington has joined the board of Gloat, an internal mobility platform where employees can share their unique skills and managers can tap them for help on projects or as new team members.
“By breaking down silos and reallocating potential within organizations, [Gloat is] connecting people with projects, opportunities, mentorships and training that speak to their purpose,” Huffington told HR Brew via email. “At a time when purpose has emerged as a key career motivator, Gloat is helping people craft more purposeful careers.”
In a announcing the news, Huffington spoke of the alignment between the mission of Thrive Global, the company she founded in 2016 to end the stress and burnout epidemic, and that of Gloat.
“I’m passionate about technology that helps people get the most out of their work and lives, and that helps businesses adapt to uncertainty,” said Huffington, who serves as Thrive Global’s CEO. “Gloat understands that lifting people up is the best way to bridge business gaps and stay agile amid a rapidly changing market.”
Gloat CEO Ben Reuveni told HR Brew via email that Huffington’s presence will bring a “profound understanding of the human condition to our board—especially as it relates to the outsized role work plays in all our lives.”
“For business leaders, internal mobility is the low-hanging fruit. It’s the biggest, closest opportunity to tap into your company’s potential,” Huffington wrote. “It starts with supporting your people—including knowing when they’re disengaged or at risk of burnout in their current roles.”
This isn’t the first time Huffington has teamed up with Gloat: She was a panelist at its 2022 Gloat Live Global conference, where former US Vice President Al Gore, an investor in the company, was a keynote speaker.
Gloat was founded in 2015 by Reuveni, along with CMO Danny Shteinberg and CTO Amichai Schreiber. It has since raised $192 million from investors including Generation Investment Management, Accel, and Eight Roads Ventures at a valuation estimated near $1 billion, and counts Mastercard, Novartis, Schneider Electric, and Unilever among its clients.
A former IBM engineer, Reuveni told TechCrunch that he came up with the idea for the company out of frustration. He wanted new opportunities to develop at work and thought it should be easier to move within a company than to get a new job elsewhere.
“We believe that internal mobility is and will continue to be companies’ best option for building a sustainable, engaged, free-flowing workforce that can be upskilled and reskilled quickly,” Reuveni wrote to HR Brew.
He sees Gloat as a solution to the employee engagement and retention challenges facing HR and business leaders.
“Workers’ expectations have changed,” he added. “By giving people control over the balance and direction of their careers through a talent marketplace, companies will see a highly engaged workforce.”—AK