Edu-IT Posted May 25, 2014 Posted May 25, 2014 (edited) Impero software has been bought by its founder. Techie raises £10m to fight cyber bullying in classroom | The Sunday Times Not sure if anyone has access to full article to post? Edited May 25, 2014 by Edu-IT 1
russdev Posted May 25, 2014 Posted May 25, 2014 (edited) Well at least I can talk about it. Now the article has gone out in the media.... You will be amazed how much work goes into something like this.. A SOFTWARE company that develops tools to prevent bullying in schools has been taken over by its founder in a £10m deal. Jon Valentine, 33, who started Impero in 2002, has bought out his two business partners in a deal backed by the investment firm Connection Capital. Impero is a fast-growing technology company that has created a suite of online tools to help teachers keep tabs on pupils in the classroom. It monitors students’ online activities for signs of bullying and self-harm, and analyses slang in emails and internet messages, to spot teenagers who may be about to go off the rails. “As a student is typing an email, our software will take a screen shot and tell the teacher what it means and what action to take,” said Valentine, who wrote his first computer code on a ZX Spectrum at the age of eight. The Impero technology keeps a dictionary of slang words and acronyms that would be unfamiliar to teachers but could signify that a student was being bullied or groomed by a sexual predator. Examples include “dirl”, which stands for “die in real life”, or “gnoc”, “get naked on camera”. Based in Loughborough, Leicestershire, the company has sold its software to 1,300 British secondary schools, or about a third of the market, said Valentine. The entrepreneur, who set up Impero while working as an education IT consultant, will use some of the Connection Capital cash to accelerate expansion into America. Revenues are expected to hit £7.5m this year, compared with £400,000 in 2011, and Valentine is aiming to generate annual profits of £25m within a few years. Technology could upend centuries of traditional teaching methods in schools, attracting legions of investors, such as Connection. Education start-ups raised $500m (£300m) in the first quarter of the year. Most tech firms in the sector have focused on developing tailored learning aids. Edited May 25, 2014 by russdev 3
Edu-IT Posted May 25, 2014 Author Posted May 25, 2014 Some big numbers there! Do you review the dictionary often? 1
russdev Posted May 25, 2014 Posted May 25, 2014 Some big numbers there! Do you review the dictionary often? The new lists we announced early in the year can be got via support (or send me a PM with school details and I will sort) and we update those lists often based on feedback/own research etc/working with partner schools etc. As for numbers thanks this article comes from a massive number of months of hard work by the whole company. Russell
Popular Post jon-senso Posted May 27, 2014 Popular Post Posted May 27, 2014 Hi Edugeek'ers, Just wanted to say that now the news is out, I can talk about it... Having listening to what people have been saying on edugeek over the years (and with people face to face), I wanted to make some major changes within the business to reflect the desires of our customers (you guys), but was not completely able to without regaining full control of the business I started, for example, the un-bundling of features so they can be purchased alone without all the other stuff (eg. Learning Manager being just the classroom management). As of Friday the 23rd, I regained full control of the business and can now make the changes I believe will not only make the company more successful but also allow my vision to fully come to light. This in turn should be in the best interest of our existing customers and those who wish to try Impero but felt unwilling due to some reason or another. I hope this news has brought some comfort to any Edugeek'ers who may have felt disappointed by (old) tactics adopted by our sales team and should rest assured that things will pan out in a way which is favourable by everyone. Please feel free to contact me on [email protected] should anyone wish to know more details! :-) Jon 9
fiza Posted May 27, 2014 Posted May 27, 2014 That's good news on the unbundling front. We considered Impero but didn't like the 'it's all or nothing approach'. 2
vikpaw Posted May 27, 2014 Posted May 27, 2014 Congrats @jonimpero - i look forward to earwigging on your team brief at BETT to see what your new tactics are. I guess as customers i'll have to stop by and talk to @russdev officially now! 2
gshaw Posted May 27, 2014 Posted May 27, 2014 Quite timely for us as we were reviewing some features in Impero that looked useful but others not so much so in light of established products we already have. A mix and match approach sounds good. 1
russdev Posted May 27, 2014 Posted May 27, 2014 (edited) Congrats @jonimpero - i look forward to earwigging on your team brief at BETT to see what your new tactics are. I guess as customers i'll have to stop by and talk to @russdev officially now! Glad you seen the light and anyone always welcome to come and talk to me at BETT Edited May 27, 2014 by russdev
WithoutMotive Posted May 27, 2014 Posted May 27, 2014 (edited) Does this mean in future I should be able to reduce costs by opting out of the various features we don't use? I'm assuming so. (Just had a nostalgic look at our very first logs back in 2010... n'awww:)) Edited May 27, 2014 by WithoutMotive 1
russdev Posted May 30, 2014 Posted May 30, 2014 How does this compare to Securus? We use both here. In terms of lists I point you my recent blog post - Seven Questions You Need To Ask Your E-Safety Lists Provider.
abillybob Posted May 30, 2014 Posted May 30, 2014 I did look into Impero used it and it worked well in my last school (secondary) although when I tried to purchase it here we where quoted in the thousands. We are only a medium sized Primary with a few hundred children but I was astonished at the pricing. It would probably go well if we where a Telford & Wrekin school as their council has bought into Impero licensing and all schools get the price heavily subsidized, shame really it's not an option for us.
kevin_lane Posted May 30, 2014 Posted May 30, 2014 @jonimpero Hi jon I must say our school has been with Impero since back when it was version 1 and was still very young, I don't think there is a product on the market that tickets all of the boxes that not only NM, techies like but also it just brings the power back into teachers hands especially when they want kids to learn a subject they are trying to teach and the kids are being a pest. I remember somewhere in the distance past that a video was put up on youtube, I think it was, and it was in relation to how impero doesn't use a lot of bandwidth and kills the network. and also just how easy it is to use. I seen one of your techs in ASDA Spondon few days ago and we got talking about the software he didn't go into detail but he said there are some updates that are coming out ?? I tried to bribe him for a T-Shirt but he wasn't having any of it lol
Ephelyon Posted May 30, 2014 Posted May 30, 2014 Again, can I ask how these new features would compare to e.g. Securus?
Dos_Box Posted May 30, 2014 Posted May 30, 2014 Again, can I ask how these new features would compare to e.g. Securus? I don't think this thread should turn into a sales pitch on a sponsors forum. If one of the members could tell you it would be very handy.
speckytecky Posted May 30, 2014 Posted May 30, 2014 This sounds lik great news. Impero has certainly been one of my best purchases as a NM in a EDB school. So many things we have been able to do with it - Impero even came to the rescue recently when a graphics driver update fouled up and even though there was no output to a monitor we were able to roll the driver back with Impero. Exam lockdowns perfect as well. Needless to say im a big fan.
russdev Posted May 30, 2014 Posted May 30, 2014 Have got something Securus vs impero but sadly as db said if posted I would violate the rules..
Edu-IT Posted May 30, 2014 Author Posted May 30, 2014 Again, can I ask how these new features would compare to e.g. Securus? What specifically do you want to know?
Ephelyon Posted May 30, 2014 Posted May 30, 2014 To be honest, I'm not interested in a rule-breaking sales pitch. What I want to know is whether this Impero offering is pitched in the market to compete with Securus. That's essentially a Yes/No question so I don't think it contravenes forum rules (in the same way that a post simply stating that Progresso is pitched to compete with SIMS is perfectly fine). If it is, I'll discuss it further by phone. If it's designed to be an alternative that pitches itself alongside something like Securus though, rather than as a direct replacement, then I'm probably not that interested. If the claim is that I might be able to kill two birds with one stone while saving 1 vCPU and 4GB RAM on my virtual infrastructure - especially if the add-on module is likely to be cheaper as well (without specific details) - then I'm interested.
russdev Posted May 31, 2014 Posted May 31, 2014 To be honest, I'm not interested in a rule-breaking sales pitch. What I want to know is whether this Impero offering is pitched in the market to compete with Securus. That's essentially a Yes/No question so I don't think it contravenes forum rules (in the same way that a post simply stating that Progresso is pitched to compete with SIMS is perfectly fine). If it is, I'll discuss it further by phone. If it's designed to be an alternative that pitches itself alongside something like Securus though, rather than as a direct replacement, then I'm probably not that interested. If the claim is that I might be able to kill two birds with one stone while saving 1 vCPU and 4GB RAM on my virtual infrastructure - especially if the add-on module is likely to be cheaper as well (without specific details) - then I'm interested. Right as per the direct post above (Yes we feel we are replacement for Securus and also offer a lot more as well. If want direct comparison of securus vrs Impero then Sally one of our product managers/e-safety officer is best person to speak to as she use to work for Securus. Russell 1
Edu-IT Posted May 31, 2014 Author Posted May 31, 2014 (edited) How would people reach Sally? Can you also confirm @russdev whether or not Impero will become available as different modules? @jonimpero Edited May 31, 2014 by Edu-IT
russdev Posted May 31, 2014 Posted May 31, 2014 (edited) How would people reach Sally? Can you also confirm @russdev whether or not Impero will become available as different modules? @jonimpero Once again responding with direct request from a member: - To reach sally get in touch I can pass on the details.. Second as per Jons message we are are splitting the product into different bundled modules. So to explain at moment got: V4 Education Pro 4.0 which is the full give me the goodies module. Learning Manager which is classroom management and e-safety Announced last week Impero Check in which is a power man service around the v4 power man We also have other modules being released however that will use the 'new platform' (same one that IRM uses) Hope that helps. p.s If mods feel I am breaking rules (trying to answer the direct question only) then feel free to remove middle part. p.p.s @VeryPC As this is your forum and trying not to 'advertise' on it but answer a direct question. Let me know if got any problems with post etc will remove it . Edited May 31, 2014 by russdev
Edu-IT Posted May 31, 2014 Author Posted May 31, 2014 Where can I find information on Impero Check In as there's nothing online? Feel free to DM or I can email you? Trying not to break rules but difficult to get information without asking! @russdev
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