Praxis Labs, a leadership development platform focused on fostering inclusive workplaces, officially launched in 2019. Torch has since acquired it, and this move is poised to transform coaching within organizations. Elise Smith, co-founder and CEO of Praxis Labs, will join Torch in a principal role as Head of AI Growth. Her partner, Heather Shen, will take on the role of Head of AI Product. This acquisition serves as a great example of the importance of leadership training. It highlights the imperative to create equitable and inclusive industries.
Established with the mission to foster more inclusive environments, Praxis Labs has collaborated with major corporations such as eBay, Zoom, Amazon, Google, and Target. The country aimed to strengthen quality and accountability by investing in higher-quality leadership through training, mentoring and skill-based assessments. In 2021, Smith raised a cool $15 million in Series A funding for Praxis Labs. At the time, this success put her among only a handful of Black women in America who had raised more than $1 million in venture capital.
Smith and Shen built a relationship with Torch CEO Heather Conklin through their common backgrounds in leadership development. Their shared history created a deep connection between them. They all saw a close fit in shared values and vision for the future workforce demands.
“We were immediately struck, not just by our shared values and mission, but also by how we aligned on what was needed to really future-proof the next general workforce,” – Elise Smith
The acquisition aims to harness Torch’s contextual coaching and organizational insights alongside Praxis Labs’ AI coaching capabilities. Smith voiced optimism that this collaboration would allow them to more effectively help companies at this pivotal juncture.
“We’re confident that joining Torch gives us the best possible opportunity to help companies solve this question in this crucial moment.” – Elise Smith
Businesses are more challenged than ever before. They have to rethink how AI augments and empowers their existing operations, without losing the irreplaceable human touch that makes transformational change actually work. Conklin expressed this feeling of excitement coupled with confusion, saying that organizations are still trying to figure out how to ride this wave of evolution.
“Right now, every company and executive team is facing this pivotal question: how will they prepare and manage this next generation of work with humans and AI, while maintaining the human connection that’s essential for real workforce and company transformation?” – Heather Conklin
To be successful in this hyper-competitive market, Smith stressed that smaller companies need to build strong alliances. With fewer than 20 employees at Praxis Labs serving large organizations like Amazon, collaboration with Torch provides an opportunity for expanded reach.