The Danish scaleup LMS365 - who offers the only learning platform built into Microsoft 365 and Teams - was looking to raise capital. And they found their investor at the TechBBQ Summit in 2022.

Written by Ole Østergaard

June 7, 2022 / 5 min. read

LMS365 found an investor at TechBBQ

The Danish scaleup LMS365 - which offers the only learning platform built into Microsoft 365 and Teams - was looking to raise capital. And they found their investor at TechBBQ.

»We were at TechBBQ last year (2022) for several reasons, not particularly looking for an investor there. But it so happened that one of our discussions led to raising DKK 127 million. It was a very positive side effect of our visit,« says Henrik Jeberg, Chief Strategy Officer at LMS365.

The networking event app, "Brella", is a big hit
Thanks to TechBBQ's event networking app "Brella", Henrik carried through 20-25 meetings of 10 minutes. And one of them appealed for more.

»We could both see that we had a lot to talk about, and consequently we went to the park outside the TechBBQ venue, Lokomotivværkstedet, sitting on a bench and discussing for 1,5 hours. They – our investor, US-based Blue Cloud Ventures (BCV) - were what we were looking for and vice versa.«

The opening resulted in more meetings, and in the end, BCV granted LMS365 an investment, together with minor parts from Kamet Capital Partners, Singapore, and the owners.

LMS365 - very unusually - had been bootstrapped up until an ARR of $ 20 million. The leadership had just initiated the search for an investor. The capital would skyrocket what the company was doing.

»Never drop the speed dating, the "Brella" app,« Henrik says. »It's worth gold for participants like us. It can make participation at TechBBQ very targeted.«

The investment from BCV will be used for upgrading LMS365's salesforce (maybe 25 hirings this year), product development and for M&A.

Photo: Ole Østergaard. Charlottelund Castle, 10 km north of Copenhagen, is the Copenhagen office of LMS365.

Henrik Jeberg, Chief Strategic Officer at LMS365

“

»We could both see that we had a lot to talk about, and consequently we went to the park outside the TechBBQ venue, Lokomotivværkstedet, sitting on a bench and discussing for 1,5 hours. They – our investor, US-based Blue Cloud Ventures (BCV) - were what we were looking for and vice versa.«

— Henrik Jeberg

Chief Strategy Officer, LMS365

TechBBQ plays a crucial part in the startup ecosystem
Of course, Henrik - a well-known investor and global citizen - was at TechBBQ for many other reasons: Meeting and speaking with old and new faces, drinking coffee, attending interesting presentations and events, visiting the booths, and getting an impression of what is up.

»I love presentations and events, visiting the booths, and getting an impression of what's the latest. I also love talking to early-stage startups and learning their views of the world. It is so giving,« he says.

»Today - unlike 20 years ago - it is socially accepted (and hyped) to be an entrepreneur. It requires a well-functioning ecosystem, and TechBBQ plays an important role in facilitating relations and knowledge,« Henrik says.

»It's a meeting place in an open environment.«

This year, LMS365 will have a different approach to TechBBQ. Although the company has gotten its investment, the approach will be more structured, and more power will be put into it.

»Maybe we'll have our own booth,« Henrik says. »And we'll be more people, each with an assignment to cover particular areas of interests and presentations. Right now the problem is that interesting things take place at the same time.«

The future will be great
Talking about the future, LMS365 is very confident: »We see some trends of consolidation in our industry,« Henrik says.

»Content providers will seek to deliver on a modern platform like ours, and in a 'YouTube-style' that takes into consideration the fragmented way we consume learning today: short, on-demand, not like former times' long films and courses. Moreover, the demand for training - on a modern platform - is rising, not least pushed by Covid.

Of course, being so close to Microsoft raises questions:

»Could Microsoft do what we do themselves? It is like riding a Tiger - it is great until you fall off. So yes, maybe. But they don't currently. In fact, they are better off having us to do it,« Henrik says.

Photo: PR. CEO of LMS365, Rasmus Holst, and Chief Strategy Officer, Henrik Jeberg.

Facts about LMS365

  • ‘LMS’ stands for ‘Learning Management System’ and ‘365’ is a reference to Microsoft.

  • Founded 2016.

  • ARR 150 million DKK ($ 20 million).

  • 180 employees.

  • Offices in Denmark, Germany, UK, US and Australia.

  • CEO, Rasmus Holst, and Chief Strategy Officer, Henrik Jeberg.

  • Growth of 60 % each year.

  • 3.000 customers, in a wide span from 20-200.000 employees.

  • 1,5 million users.

  • Typical industries, with a high element of compliance: Health, Finance, Government, Automotive.

  • HR or even the Learning and Development department.

  • Customers are companies that have realised that more control is needed in learning and has hitherto not thought about how it has been delivered – only the content.

Visit LMS365

Read more