Cologne-based CATCH bags seven-figure seed funding to help SMEs find and retain talent

Cologne-based CATCH, a HR Tech startup that aims to automate and improve recruitment efficiency for small and medium-sized firms (SMEs) in Germany and Europe, announced on Thursday, August 26, that it has raised a seven-figure amount in a seed round of funding. 

The funding round was led by TechVision Fonds (TVF), with participation from NRW.BANK and Christian Greb, business angel and co-founder of AI startup PRECIRE. It is said that the fund will help “Catch Talents” creators Marco Verhoeven and Justin Bous grow and market their innovative recruitment tool.

Recruitment Efficiency through Automation

Currently, many businesses cannot undertake recruitment due to a lack of staff capacity in HR departments and expertise in online recruiting. Skilled labour shortage has also affected more than 90% of SMEs in keeping the attrition rate down, and finding and retaining competent employees. This pain point became CATCH’s product idea with ‘Catch Talents’.

Dr Ansgar Schleicher, Managing Director of TVF, says, “On a daily basis, we see that recruiting is an ever-present challenge in both mid-sized businesses and startups. CATCH’s software makes it possible to increase the number of applications per job posting in a way that conserves resources. In addition, applications can be automatically pre-qualified based on hard and soft skills. With this solution, we see an opportunity for SMEs without large HR departments to recruit successfully in the digital world.”

Deriving Quality Hiring From SaaS

CATCH’s SaaS recruitment software, Catch Talents, automates the process of applicant search and filters for prequalification procedures, reducing the HR department’s time and effort. The software finds and selects talent that is actively looking for work by posting job openings on 600 linked job sites. This lets the company reach up to 5 times more applicants in 70% less time, which increases its throughput.

CATCH says that the software is so detail-oriented that it passively looks for applicants looking for a change by using Catch Talent’s matching algorithm on social media, search engines, and job boards, and making the candidate aware of the vacancy. 

CATCH’s software gives HR departments a way to determine which applicants are the most qualified for open positions by measuring not just their hard abilities but also their “soft skills,” such as communication and teamwork. The software determines whether the candidate’s talents and, more significantly, character traits are a good fit for the organisation doing the search. The company says that its proprietary ‘Individual Strengths Analysis’ method is the ‘secret sauce’ that makes CATCH’s automated method and quick, psychological personality matching possible. 

Justin Bous, co-founder of CATCH, says, “The compatibility of the employee and the position to be filled is the most important driver for a long company tenure. Catch Talents not only reaches more candidates, but also more compatible candidates and is up to 10 times more efficient than traditional staffing solutions.”

Growth in Sales and Marketing

Founded by Marco Verhoeven and Justin Bous in 2020, CATCH has expanded to serve over 400 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), filling thousands of roles.

Marco Verhoeven says, “In recent years, our company has grown primarily organically. With the funding, we can now significantly expand our sales and marketing activities to become the leading tool in recruiting for SMEs.”

Co-investor Christian Greb says, “The two founders excited me right away. An innovative product in an exciting market with great growth potential. I am very much looking forward to the collaboration.”

About TVF

The TechVision Fonds (TVF) is Western Rhineland’s leading early-stage venture capital fund. The TVF is the third venture fund managed by the S-UBG Group team, and invests in regional technology firms with a fund amount of €55 million. 

As one of the most experienced investors, TVF provides entrepreneurs with proximity, network, and knowledge, paving the way for them to become the next global category leader. Furthermore, via the S-UBG Group, TVF claims to provide unique access to the “old economy,” enabling emerging entrepreneurs to access their first prospective clients in the critical early stages. Over 150 successful portfolio firms with over 30 years of investing expertise are part of the network.