Mercu connects where deskless workers are.

Many employee engagement and retention tools were created with the assumption that employees spend most of their time at a desk. But the majority of the world’s workforce is deskless, meaning they’re often on the move and don’t have constant access to a laptop. Many are also dissatisfied with their jobs, which means companies have to deal with high turnover and low retention rates. Singapore-based Mercu wants to help with a platform specifically designed to reach deskless workers.

In the year Launched in November 2022, Mercu announced that it has raised $1.6 million in seed funding from 500 Global, TEN13, Flying Fox Ventures, Archangel Ventures, XA Network and return investor Sequoia Capital India.

Mercu helps companies in retail, logistics, hospitality and manufacturing onboard employees, communicate with them and increase engagement. Its clients include Mexican fast food chain Guzmán y Gómez in Singapore and Sam Prince Hospitality Group in Australia. It also has customers in the United States, and the seed money will be used to expand the brand’s footprint and hire.

Before starting Mercun, the startup’s two co-founders, Jascha Zittel and Elliott Gibb, both worked at Grab. As a product manager there, Zittel had to deal with millions of drivers in eight countries, and found that engagement via WhatsApp and Facebook messages was much higher than in-app communications or email.

The two told TechCrunch that COVID laid the groundwork for Merck because it highlighted the importance of the deskless workforce, as well as how well their needs are being met. Despite accounting for more than 70% of the global workforce, less than 1% of VC funding is allocated to startups in the space, he said.

The founders of the market are Elliott Gibb and Jascha Zittel

At Grab, Zittel and Gibb, former product designers in Grab’s passenger experience team, saw that many deskless workers felt disconnected from their companies, which negatively impacted retention rates. Retaining employees means being in constant contact with them and connecting where they are, which is why Mercu works with popular messaging apps instead of asking employees to download another one. This is especially important in emerging markets where there are hardware and data bandwidth limitations on smartphones.

Merck can be used to create custom content, or employers can choose templates for campaigns like engagement surveys. The platform groups employees based on role, tenure and location and provides content creators with analytics on read and completion rates, industry benchmarks and recommendations.

Some examples of how employers use Merck include team dinners, recognition programs, shift swaps, and training breaks. Guzmán Gómez automated their hiring and on-boarding process using Merck to perform tasks such as sending interview invitations and offers via WhatsApp, reducing no-shows to interviews. The fast-food chain also uses Merck to measure employee sentiment on a monthly basis to reduce employee turnover rates.

Sam Prince’s hospitality team uses Merck to send continuous training, including SOP updates, product information and sales training.

Merck’s product development team plans to focus on additional tools for employees, including looking at how large language models like ChatGPT can be used to communicate with employees at scale.