Benevity Announces Executive Transitions
Kelly Schmitt, President and CFO, succeeds Bryan de Lottinville as CEO
CALGARY, AB – January 19, 2021 – Benevity, Inc., the leading provider of global corporate purpose software, today announced exciting executive leadership transitions as it enters the next phase of its growth following the closing of an investment from Hg’s Saturn 2 Fund on January 15, 2021.
The following transitions are effective February 1, 2021, and position Benevity strongly to deepen and expand its pioneering leadership in corporate purpose software:
Founder Bryan de Lottinville takes on new role as Executive Chairperson. In this newly created role for the company, Bryan will continue to provide visionary leadership to the company and the corporate purpose category. Stepping back from the day-to-day operations after more than a dozen years as CEO, Bryan will now focus on the strategic growth of the company and its market-leading technology, working closely with the Board and the CEO, while continuing to be an industry thought-leader and advocate for a grassroots approach to corporate purpose.
Kelly Schmitt promoted to the role of CEO, accepting the reins after another record-breaking year of growth to lead Benevity into its next phase of growth. In her former role as President and CFO, Kelly developed a successful track record of stewarding the company through the COVID-19 crisis as well as the myriad of challenges in 2020, while contributing to the company’s culture of passion, purpose and performance.
Candice Li promoted to Chief Financial Officer. Candice joined Benevity as Executive VP, Finance and will continue to ensure the financial health of the fast growing company, while overseeing the Operations teams who have securely distributed over $6 billion in donations to 300,000 causes worldwide with industry-leading accuracy and reliability.
With Hg as our new investor, a fantastic business partner in Kelly Schmitt, and the continued ascension of our very own talent to key leadership positions, I couldn’t ask for a better succession plan.
“This is an exciting time for me, both personally and professionally,” said Bryan de Lottinville, Executive Chairperson. “As a founder, my greatest concern and desire have been in finding the right stewardship for Benevity to realize its full potential, for our people, our clients and the broader social impact landscape. With Hg as our new investor, a fantastic business partner in Kelly Schmitt, and the continued ascension of our very own talent to key leadership positions, I couldn’t ask for a better succession plan. Kelly’s passion and dedication to Benevity has been nothing short of remarkable, especially as we pivoted to working from home in the face of the pandemic and responded swiftly to the needs of more businesses to act with purpose in times of crisis. I am tremendously proud of our unwavering focus on building a culture where people can be their authentic selves and where diverse perspectives and experiences have a seat at the table, enabling us to continue to achieve unprecedented business growth and societal impact.”
I am looking forward to working with our team, our clients and causes to accelerate this momentum, help more companies engage more employees and customers to become their best selves through driving social impact, and continue to infuse a culture of Goodness into the world.
“Our people, culture and client relationships are what make Benevity a true unicorn, and I am fortunate and humbled to be leading our amazing team and company into this exciting next phase of growth,” said Kelly Schmitt, CEO. “Over the past 12 years, Benevity has moved companies from traditional approaches to social responsibility to truly grassroots-driven impact that reflects the passion and purpose of their people. I am looking forward to working with our team, our clients and causes to accelerate this momentum, help more companies engage more employees and customers to become their best selves through driving social impact, and continue to infuse a culture of Goodness into the world.”
We passionately believe in what Bryan, Kelly and their teams are creating, and are excited to see Benevity continue to lead the way with innovative solutions that support even more businesses and people seeking a sense of purpose and meaning as we continue to persevere in the face of global crises.
Nic Humphries, Senior Partner and Head of the Hg Saturn team, said: “We are truly honored to partner with Benevity as they have enabled companies and their people to navigate the challenges of 2020. We passionately believe in what Bryan, Kelly and their teams are creating, and are excited to see Benevity continue to lead the way with innovative solutions that support even more businesses and people seeking a sense of purpose and meaning as we continue to persevere in the face of global crises.”
About Benevity
Benevity, a certified B Corporation, is the leader in global corporate purpose software, providing the only integrated suite of community investment and employee, customer and nonprofit engagement solutions. A finalist in Fast Company’s 2020 World Changing Ideas Awards, many iconic brands rely on Benevity’s cloud solutions to power their purpose in ways that better attract, retain and engage today’s diverse workforce, embed social action into their customer experiences and positively impact their communities. With software that is available in 20 languages, Benevity has processed more than 6 billion dollars in donations and 34 million hours of volunteering time, 275,000 positive actions and awarded over one million grants to 300,000 nonprofits worldwide.
Media Contact: Amanda Orr│Kickstart for Benevity│1.323.601.5734│press@benevity.com