• Saudi Arabia-based HR software provider ZenHR, has raised a $10 million growth round, led by Rua Growth Fund with the participation of existing regional and global investors, including Endeavor Catalyst.
• Founded in 2017 by Yousef Shamoun and Mohamad Haj Hasan, ZenHR has built a cloud-based HR platform consisting of several modules designed to streamline and automate the whole HR function from the hiring stage to the retirement stage.
• Funding will further support the development and enhancement of ZenHR’s presence across the 12 markets it currently serves.

Press release:

ZenHR, the Middle East and North Africa’s award-winning and fastest-growing HR software, has announced today the first closing of its $10 million growth round of funding led by Rua Growth Fund with the participation of existing regional and global funds and investors, including Endeavor Catalyst.

This funding round follows a stellar performance by the B2B HR SaaS company, which currently serves customers across 12 markets in the Middle East and Africa, including Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Yemen, and Palestine. Since its inception, ZenHR has continuously achieved triple-digit growth and witnessed around 3X growth in subscription revenue year-over-year.

The company will use the funding to continue to achieve growth milestones while cementing and scaling up its presence in all 12 markets.

Yousef Shamoun, ZenHR’s Co-founder and CEO, said: “Over the past few years, we've worked hard to build a winning team and culture at ZenHR. As we rapidly approach 1,000 customers and 100,000 users in MENA, this team has firmly established itself as a category leader in the cloud HR software space, achieving this with little to no funding. We are thrilled to partner with the team at Rua and are confident that this partnership will allow us to expand our regional footprint in all 12 markets we serve and strengthen our presence even further in Saudi Arabia, our main market. We look forward to all the great things we can accomplish together.”

ZenHR is on a mission to play a vital role in the digital transformation trend sweeping the MENA region. HR digitization helps companies move faster, and smarter, and makes employees happier. Embracing these benefits, ZenHR built a cloud-based HR platform consisting of several modules designed to streamline and automate the whole HR function from the “Acquire” stage to the “Retire” stage, fully localized for the MENA region. Localization includes full compliance with labour laws, tax laws, social insurance, and payroll policies and regulations across the region. ZenHR’s product suite includes automated payroll calculations, onboarding and offboarding of employees, attendance and time-tracking, performance management, employee self-service, and an applicant tracking system. ZenHR is doing its fair share in the digitalization wave in MENA that was propelled by COVID-19 and plans to be at the forefront of HR transformation.

Turki Aljoaib, co-founder and Managing Partner of Rua Growth Fund, said: “We're proud to be partnering with ZenHR and Yousef Shamoun to help bring the benefits of HR automation to businesses in Saudi Arabia and across MENA. By automating HR processes and providing a one-stop-shop solution for all HR needs, ZenHR is making it easier for companies to manage their workforce and improve employee satisfaction. As the Kingdom witnesses record economic growth and job creation, we believe ZenHR is well-positioned to capitalize on the growing need for HR digitization with best-in-class software and an amazing team led by seasoned serial founders.”

Since its inception in 2017, ZenHR has grown to become the home of more than 160 employees across three regional offices in Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Jordan, with its headquarters in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. ZenHR’s board of directors will now include Turki Aljoaib, Co-founder and Managing Partner of Rua Growth Fund, and Paul Bell, Operating Partner at Lead Edge Capital, as an Independent Board Member.

Allen Taylor, Managing Partner of Endeavor Catalyst, a Silicon Valley-based venture fund that has been an active investor in MENA over the last decade, added: “We have followed this important trend in the digitization of HR platforms across more than 40 markets globally and are very impressed with what the ZenHR team has achieved to date. This is a segment of the economy where the future is clearly digital. We have been big believers in Yousef for more than a decade, and we are thrilled to back him and the team at ZenHR!"

Yousef also co-founded the Arabic card gaming website Jawaker alongside Mohamad Haj Hasan, which was acquired in September 2021 by Stillfront for $205 million after raising a single seed round of $500k.

With this round of funding, ZenHR will continue to focus on delighting its customers and delivering exceptional HR solutions in MENA across the employee lifecycle.