It’s the time of year to either look back or look ahead. I’m doing a bit of both, excited to hit the ground running in 2023. We are all excited about the opportunity and promise of the new year at Appvance, but it wouldn’t look as bright if we hadn’t accomplished a lot in 2022.
As I wrote here last June, a big focus for the year was building out our team to take us to the next level. While there were deliverables and key milestones associated with those team additions, I also want to reflect on how we expanded the team significantly—by about 3x—while still maintaining our culture and values.
Appvance has always taken a long view, lasting through the lean years of COVID, by the team working collaboratively and smartly, accomplishing a great deal through creative actions and careful investment in resources. That approach is still the same, and it positions us well to move forward strongly, with the ability to weather any softness in the economy, which many companies are concerned about. While we are acting more aggressively on many fronts to meet our growth objectives, it is vital for us to continue stretching ourselves to do more with less.
This approach to our work is codified in the core values we documented way back in 2020, Accountability, Sense of Urgency, and Critical Thinking. Our team started operating by these principles when the company had around 30 employees, and we’re still taking this approach today as we dive into the goals we’ve set for 2023.
How 2022 Strengthened Our Foundation
That being said, I do want to recognize what we achieved in 2022 on the heels of raising our Series C last January.
On the product side, we built out our engineering organization. This expanded team, the accomplished new engineers working alongside our brilliant and dedicated existing team, have strengthened our product architecture, launched exciting new features like our AI Coverage Map and Drag & Drop test creation for API Testing, and, most importantly, laid the groundwork for some exciting announcements in 2023. (You’ll want to stay tuned for our upcoming announcements.)
Our Customer Success team has grown as well, supporting our burgeoning customer base with their extensive test automation experience, high responsiveness, and attention to detail.
We added to the GTM team, including starting our SDR team. That’s helped us execute the highest number of PoCs ever, just in the fourth quarter. Their work has built momentum that is taking us into the new year with gusto and optimism.
Internally, we’ve built out our HR processes and systems under the guidance of our fantastic VP, Lynn Feldman, who joined the team in August. She’s made it possible for us to grow so quickly and support the team well along the way.
On the marketing side, we’ve turned on the tap of activity, hosting 3 webinars, sponsoring live events, publishing new blog content, case studies and an eBook, and connecting with our followers regularly. And there’s lots more to come in 2023 on the marketing front as well. (Also stay tuned here!)
Momentum for the New Year
All of this activity came together in a record year for Appvance. I couldn’t be more proud of the team, the way we work, and our commitment to serving our customers. I don’t have control over the macroeconomic and geopolitical disruptions and don’t have a crystal ball to see how the market will evolve, but I am confident that embracing our core values and continuing to work smartly and pragmatically will allow us to weather uncertainties and continue to deliver marvelous results for the company in 2023.
