Arlington-based Axios HQ released a report today (Monday) that it says should be a reality check for company leaders.
“What we see every year — this year is no different — is there’s a lot more misalignment happening than a lot of leaders are aware of,” Chief Operating Officer Jordan Zaslav tells ARLnow.
For instance, nearly half (44%) of surveyed leaders think staff are aligned with business goals but only 14% of employees agree, per its report, which surveyed some 1,500 executives and employees. Most (85%) leaders think internal communications are helpful and relevant but only 45% of employees agree.
A majority of leaders (62%) think their communications keep everybody on the same page but Axios found the average worker loses up to 46 working days each year searching for the information they need to do their jobs.
“There’s a lot that needs to be better — like what topics you’re covering, how frequently, how clearly you communicate them, and on what channels,” Zaslav says.
The findings dovetail with the startup’s AI-driven software aimed at improving communications between leaders and employees. Clarendon-based Axios HQ (3100 Clarendon Blvd) developed the product after becoming a separate company in late 2022, when Cox Enterprises bought the media side of its parent company, Axios, for $525 million.
Leveraging a $20 million fundraise in spring 2023, the company expanded its product — which facilitates effective company communication while tracking employee engagement and analytics — from email to now include platforms such as Slack, Teams and SharePoint.
Zaslav says the company is working on upgrades that will help leaders write more “scannable and engaging” communications tailored to each organization.
Axios HQ ended 2023 on a strong financial note, reporting $10 million in annual recurring revenue. The company says only 13% of startups reach this milestone in their first 10 years, typically taking five years to do so, compared to Axios HQ’s three.
“I think Axios HQ’s success has been so fast because of how distinct it is,” Zaslav says, attributing this partly to the its patented communications methodology developed by award-winning journalists. “We built a tool more powerful than competitors’ and we were ready for the world when it was finally ready for us.”
The company knew before Covid how critical internal communications are, he continued.
“Until the last few years, internal communications was also one of the most under-resourced areas in any organization. But then the world changed and every organization, overnight, had to become a remote or hybrid organization,” he said. “It was impossible to ignore how outdated and office-centric their approach to employee communication was.”
With its success, Axios HQ is able to court big names to lead conversations about communications. This month, former White House Press Secretary and current MSNBC host Jen Psaki will discuss “how leaders can address difficult political topics with precision and empathy” and in January, a Slack co-founder discussed employee communication strategy.
Today, Axios has more than 600 customers, up 100 since its funding raise. Almost all customers (80-90%) say the software improves internal communications and helps them collect employee feedback and another half say it saves them time, per a press release.
The company has used its spring 2023 fund raise to hire staff. It added its first chief marketing officer in January after appointing Zaslav COO in November. The company tapped an AI pioneer at Mailchimp to lead Machine Learning and hired data and Machine Learning engineers and a data scientist, bringing the total number of employees to 138.
Looking to the future, Zaslav says Axios HQ is following the increasing pressure and interest within federal government to regulate AI. The COO says lawmakers are concerned about security, privacy, transparency and clarity, which are also Axios HQ’s priorities. He noted the company does not share user information with AI providers and routinely updates its terms.
“Any organization delivering AI, like we are, or using AI — which is basically everyone by now — needs to be following the conversation about regulation. That’s smart leadership,” he said. “As for how it could impact Axios HQ, that doesn’t worry us.”