Company:IdeaScale

From HandWiki
IdeaScale
TypePrivate
IndustryInnovation Management Software
Founded2009
HeadquartersBerkeley, CA, United States and Washington, DC, United States
Key people
Robert M. Hoehn, CEO
ProductsIdeaScale
Websiteideascale.com

IdeaScale is a cloud-based software company that licenses an innovation management platform employing the principles and practices of crowdsourcing.[1] The company was founded by Vivek Bhaskaran[2] and Rob Hoeh in Seattle.[3]

As of 2018, IdeaScale is headquartered in Berkeley, CA.[4]

History

In 2008, the IdeaScale service was first offered.[5] In 2009, Rob Hoehn enhanced the service to further address opportunities he cited in both government and the private sector to solicit ideas, feedback, and priorities.[6] It launched in tandem with President Barack Obama’s Open Government Initiative.[7] In its first year, IdeaScale was adopted by 23 federal agencies. It served many organizations, including the Executive Office of the President of the United States.[8]

The following year, the platform’s adoption rate expanded to include more than 36 agencies as well as numerous private Enterprise-level companies. Government clients cited IdeaScale’s “level of engagement as well as the platform’s affordability” as one of the reasons that it was adopted early on in the open government initiative.[9] Since then, the platform has been used by numerous government organizations from the federal to the local level and was even used by the New York City Police Department to gather feedback and quality of life priorities from citizens.[10]

As of 2014, IdeaScale had close to 4 million members and over 25,000 communities.[11] The company is privately held. It was bootstrapped without venture capital funding and has become profitable.[12] IdeaScale was also ranked #513 on the Inc. 5000 List of Fastest Growing Companies.[13] and acquired Ideavibes as part of its continued growth.[14] In 2016, IdeaScale acquired Innovationmanagement.se[15]

Features

Users create a profile on IdeaScale and once they are members of a community, they can submit ideas, comment and vote on other ideas, and the most popular ideas are prioritized at the top based on the number of votes the idea receives.[16] Once a promising idea has been identified, the software allows teams to form around the idea. The team can add more information to the idea, refine it, propose it to leadership and the best ones are selected using sophisticated decision matrix capabilities.[17]

The company uses the freemium model of engagement, offering free communities on an open basis and additional, customized functionality to paying clients.[18]

Notes

  1. Esposti, Carl (Oct 7, 2010). "IdeaScale". Crowdsourcing.org. http://www.crowdsourcing.org/site/ideascale/wwwideascalecom/1596. Retrieved February 3, 2013. 
  2. Gregory T Huang (8 February 2010). "IdeaScale Used for 24 Government Sites". http://www.xconomy.com/seattle/2010/02/08/ideascale-used-for-24-government-sites/. 
  3. Brier Dudley (Jan 20, 2010). "Seattle's IdeaScale tapped for Obama feedback effort". Seattle Times. http://blogs.seattletimes.com/brierdudley/2010/01/20/seattles_ideascale_tapped_for/. Retrieved August 10, 2015. 
  4. Procter, Richard. "IdeaScale's crowdsourcing platform lets customers give rich feedback to businesses, governments". San Francisco Business Times. http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/print-edition/2015/02/13/ideascale-rob-hoehn-crowdsourcing-software-startup.html. Retrieved 13 February 2015. 
  5. Crowdsourcing Launch for Survey Analytics at Daily Research News Online, Sept. 30, 2008
  6. Hampton, Adriel (September 8, 2010). "Crowdsourcing, ideas and innovation in government". GovFresh. http://govfresh.com/2010/09/crowdsourcing-ideas-and-innovation-in-government/. Retrieved February 3, 2013. 
  7. Herman, Justin (September 15, 2011). "OpenGov Citizen Engagement Tool: Frequently Asked Questions for Federal Agencies". HowTo.gov. http://www.howto.gov/web-content/requirements-and-best-practices/open/tool-faqs. Retrieved February 3, 2013. 
  8. Rao, Leena (February 7, 2010). "IdeaScale Powers 23 Crowdsourcing Sites For The U.S. Government". TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2010/02/07/ideascale-powers-24-crowdsourcing-sites-for-the-u-s-government/. Retrieved February 3, 2013. 
  9. Caine, Cristina (December 15, 2010). "Uncle Sam Wants You! – Crowdsourcing Now". http://www.crowdsourcing.org/editorial/uncle-sam-wants-you--crowdsourcing-now-/2036. Retrieved February 3, 2013. 
  10. Mueller, Benjamin; Singer, Jeffrey E. (26 March 2015). "New York Police to Use Social Media to Connect with Residents". The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/26/nyregion/nypd-to-use-social-media-platform-to-address-quality-of-life-issues.html. 
  11. IdeaScale. "About IdeaScale". IdeaScale. http://ideascale.com/aboutus. Retrieved February 3, 2013. 
  12. Venge, Brian (January 19, 2011). "SBK020 Are You Listening to Your Customers?". Small Biz Kaizen. http://smallbizkaizen.com/index.php/2011/01/are-you-listening-to-your-customers. Retrieved February 3, 2013. 
  13. "IdeaScale". Inc.. http://www.inc.com/profile/ideascale. Retrieved 24 February 2015. 
  14. Bronwen, Morgan. "IdeaScale acquires crowdsourcing platform provider". Research Live. http://www.research-live.com/news/ideascale-acquires-crowdsourcing-platform-provider/4011591.article. Retrieved 25 April 2014. 
  15. "IdeaScale Acquires InnovationManagement.se to Enhance Comprehensive Innovation Offering". https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ideascale-acquires-innovationmanagementse-to-enhance-comprehensive-innovation-offering-300217794.html. 
  16. Miles, Stephanie (October 4, 2010). "IdeaScale – Empower Your Customers.". AppVita. http://www.appvita.com/2010/10/04/ideascale-empower-your-customers/. Retrieved February 3, 2013. 
  17. "IdeaScale Launches Idea Incubation". Crowdsourcing.org. http://www.crowdsourcing.org/document/ideascale-launches-idea-incubation-/35995. Retrieved 24 February 2015. 
  18. IdeaScale. "IdeaScale Pricing & Signup". IdeaScale. http://ideascale.com/pricing/. Retrieved February 3, 2013.