Five Elms Capital doubles down on RFP360, bringing its investment to $12M
March 16, 2020 | Startland News Staff
RFP360 proved its worth and ability to push itself in the months following Five Elms Capital’s first investment in the software platform, said Thomas Kershisnik.
RFP360’s elevator pitch: We develop software solutions that transform how organizations worldwide request information, respond to requests and connect — making the RFP and proposal process far more efficient, effective, collaborative, consistent and repeatable for everyone. Our complete approach covers every angle, from knowledge management and response automation to request development and vendor evaluation.
The payoff? Five Elms today announced a second strategic growth investment in RFP360 — bringing its total backing of the Leawood-based startup to $12 million, said Kershisnik, managing director at Five Elms Capital.
“It’s clear that RFP360 truly understands an underserved market, offering a unique platform that creates value for all sides of the process — groups that issue RFPs and other information requests and teams whose job it is to respond,” he said. “We are excited to continue to partner with them and be a part of their growth.”
Click here to check out the firms on Startland News list of Kansas City’s Top Venture Capital-Backed Companies in 2019.
RFP360, plans to use the funds to support ongoing expansion of the product development, marketing and sales teams.
The investment comes a year after the first round of funding from Five Elms, a leading growth investor in founder-owned software businesses, which came in conjunction with the hiring of David Lintz as chief executive officer.
In 2019, RFP360 also expanded its executive leadership team by adding Beau Wysong as chief marketing officer and most recently Ryan Townsend — co-founder and former CTO of PayIt — as chief technology officer, as well as moving its global headquarters to Leawood after more than doubling its headcount.
Click here to read more about RFP360’s acceleration.
“We experienced a tremendous amount of growth in the last year from both a personnel and product standpoint,” Lintz said. “The additional investment from Five Elms will allow us to accelerate our growth and success in 2020 while continuing to disrupt the industry.”
RFP360 — founded by David Hulsen and Stuart Ludlow and previously known as RFP365 — was named one of Startland News’ Kansas City Startups to Watch in 2018.
Featured Business

2020 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Just funded: Meet the five latest startups scaling their tech, Digital Sandbox KC’s impact
Five emerging startups are the latest to benefit from Digital Sandbox KC’s support — investment and resources that have led to more than $200 million in follow-on funding in less than 10 years for Sandbox companies. “Without this funding, it would have taken us much longer, as the whole project is currently being bootstrapped,” said…
Developers’ plan for massive West Bottoms investment stirs fear in some neighbors
Editor’s note: The following story was originally published by CityScene KC, an online news source focused on Greater Downtown Kansas City. Click here to read the original story or here to sign up for the weekly CityScene KC email review. SomeraRoad’s ambitious proposal to transform a sleepy section of the West Bottoms into a “dynamic” mixed-use district has strong…
How a historic Roman Catholic private school became ‘the queerest hotel in Kansas’
With its claim to fame as the first incorporated city in Kansas, Leavenworth is a hidden treasure of historical sites, said Ilan Salzberg, but its significance does not end within its past, as the vibrant town has still so much to offer. “Leavenworth is a really cool town that I think commonly gets overlooked. People…
Give yourself permission to pause the hustle; injury prompts serial entrepreneur to get grounded
Trauma from a brain injury after an auto accident last fall left Joy Broils downshifting her Type A personality and ambitious drive to a few hours of work each day, the entrepreneur said. The incident, however, prompted her to slow down and focus on a new startup idea: Hustle & Ground, a monthly subscription box…


