Formative Welcomes Matt Kane as Chief Revenue Officer

Experienced sales & marketing leader for multiple fast-growing tech startups has expertise in ed tech and a proven track record of building strong relationships with schools and districts

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Formative, a digital-learning and analytics platform for K-12 teachers, announced today that Matt Kane has joined the company’s senior leadership team as Formative’s first Chief Revenue Officer (CRO). Kane will lead the company’s efforts to generate additional partnerships with school districts and drive Formative’s next growth phase.

Kane comes to Formative from Newsela, a literacy-focused edtech startup dedicated to improving reading engagement for students. In 2020, Newsela grew its annual recurring revenue by 81%, and it now serves 90% of U.S. schools, 37 million students, and 2.5 million teachers. Prior to Newsela, Matt Kane was Senior Vice President for Tangoe, where he helped lead the company’s growth from $20 million to over $150 million in annual revenue as well as a Public Offering in five years.

In his new role as Formative’s CRO, Matt Kane will be responsible for building the company’s revenue-generation strategy and meeting all new and current revenue forecasts. He will also work closely with Formative’s Operations and Marketing teams to drive consistent messaging and execution to the market.

“Matt Kane understands the mission of Formative and shares our passion for bringing the power of digital technology to help support teachers and improve educational outcomes for students throughout the U.S.,” said Craig Jones, CEO and co-founder of Formative. “He knows how to develop a winning strategy, build relationships with partners, and significantly drive growth for mission-oriented companies serving educators.”

Schools, teachers, and families have already been adapting to digital learning, and Kane believes that Formative addresses the needs and challenges that the pandemic has only highlighted, creating an opportunity for community outreach in this changing world. “Covid really changed a lot of people’s mindsets in education and drove greater urgency around the issue of why change, and why now,” Kane said. “There are so many changes that are happening right now in communities across this great nation. At the core of much of this change are our children and their teachers, and how to help each child be the best version of themselves. The key driver to that outcome is aligning and supporting the teachers, schools, and districts moving forward. Covid had many bad outcomes for many, but one of the upsides is it made us rethink how we see the world, our values, and how our children are our future. Formative can make an impact on all communities.”

Matt Kane is based in Tampa, Florida, and will work with Formative’s 100% remote team. He has two children who have attended public and private schools in Connecticut and Florida. “Having experienced different school environments in public and private education with my own children, it definitely gives me a valuable perspective on education and what different schools might need from their technology partners,” Kane noted.

About Formative

Formative is an all-in-one, digital-learning and analytics platform that helps teachers understand their students’ progress, personalize student feedback, collaborate with other teachers, and develop customized assessments based on real-time data. Formative is shaping the future of education with a focus on student success. Built by educators, Formative knows how to support teachers in their day-to-day work, helping them reclaim more of their time and provide engagement with students. To learn more, visit Formative.com.