Strategic investment from Five Elms Capital comes with new CEO for RFP360
January 16, 2019 | Startland News Staff
A freshly announced strategic growth investment is expected to boost RFP360’s sales, marketing and product development, as well as paving the way for added leadership at the Kansas City-based tech startup.
Financial details of the deal with Five Elms Capital were not disclosed, but the move comes in conjunction with the arrival of former Perceptive Software executive David Lintz at RFP360, a cloud-based RFP software provider previously known as RFP365.
Click here for more about RFP360’s recent rebranding.
“The investment from Five Elms will allow us to develop innovative new technologies to help organizations overcome long-standing challenges,” said Lintz, now RFP360 CEO. “I’m looking forward to working closely with [founders David Hulsen and Stuart Ludlow], and the rest of the RFP360 team as we continue to support our valuable customers.”
Lintz most recently served as chief revenue officer for Tonic Health.
The infusion from Five Elms Capital reflects the investor’s commitment to fast-growing B2B software businesses that users love, the company said in a press release. RFP360 made headlines in 2018 for partnering with such firms as Lockton Companies to deliver streamlined RFPs, requests for information (RFIs), requests for quotations (RFQs), due diligence questionnaires (DDQs), and more to support strategic procurement and bidding processes.
“The RFP process is undergoing a desperately needed digital transformation,” said Hulsen, RFP360 co-founder and COO. “We take pride in offering solutions that address real needs for a large number of organizations.”
Co-founder Ludlow continues to serve as CTO.
Five Elms sees those solutions as disruptive to a market that’s traditionally relied on outdated processes, said Thomas Kershisnik, managing director at the leading growth equity firm.
“RFP360 changes the way companies think about what has historically been a painful process by providing a unique solution that creates a competitive advantage for their customers,” he said. “Their offerings, company culture, and leadership set the stage for continued growth, and we’re very excited to partner with them as they make that journey.”
Offering the only full-circle RFP management solution designed for issuers and responders, RFP360 was selected as one of Startland’s Kansas City Startups to Watch in 2018.
Featured Business

2019 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Lawmakers redeploy bill to boost veterans as entrepreneurs; targeting easier access to capital, credit
Bipartisan legislation to help veteran small business owners and entrepreneurs overcome barriers on the home front is back in Congress, with backing from two area lawmakers who say the time is now to get resources to those who served. U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, D-Kansas, introduced the Successful Entrepreneurship for Reservists and Veterans (SERV) Act alongside…
This sandwich shop’s top menu item: Make Gallatin beautiful again (and don’t skip the sweet rolls)
Editor’s note: The following story was produced through a paid partnership with MOSourceLink, which boasts a mission to help entrepreneurs and small businesses across the state of Missouri grow and succeed by providing free, easy access to the help they need — when they need it. Feeding a busy family doesn’t necessarily mean leaning on…
Chris Boyle wants you to reach for kombucha on instinct; his plan: make it as accessible (and tasty) as your favorite beer
Daily Culture Kombucha’s expansion is not quite as effortlessly self-replicating as the scoby that powers the Kansas City brand’s bold, full-bodied flavors — but a commitment to consistency and authenticity has fermented a strategy founder Chris Boyle said keeps his company on the tip of consumers’ tongues. “We’ve just been growing,” Boyle said, noting Daily…
Olathe restaurateur brings comfort food home from the Mediterranean (starting with falafel bowls)
Summer Salem looked around her city for an authentic Mediterranean restaurant and found a gap in the Olathe marketplace. So a year ago she began planning one of her own. She teamed with her husband, Abraham, who also is a partner in a downtown Kansas City Mediterranean restaurant. But the recipes would be Summer’s own.…


