About Shaka
We are a passionate group of people working around the world to build the future of company culture.
Did you know that the average person spends 90,000 hours of their life at work? Our mission at Shaka is to make these hours more enjoyable and fulfilling. Because when people love their jobs, they make larger impacts on the world. We believe that everyone deserves to feel happy at work.
We approach the workplace as something that adds to our lives and adds value to world.
Culture can be hard to quantify, but we are actively tracking the impact on belonging, retention, and connection within companies that have implemented Shaka.
80 percent
of users report increased feelings of belonging within their organization.
55 percent
of users are more likely to STAY at their company thanks to Shaka
Over 50k
minutes of human connection at work
Our values
We aim to walk-the-walk with world-class culture throughout our own organization. This starts and ends with upholding our values each and every day.
- Do what is right, always.
- We prioritize doing what is right, even when faced with challenges or difficult choices.
- Make others shine.
- At Shaka, people aim to be the player with the most assists on the stats sheet. We believe in the power of lifting others up.
- Express gratitude.
- Gratitude is at the core of our company culture. We actively express appreciation for the efforts and contributions of our team members, clients, and stakeholders.
- Do more with less.
- Creative problem-solving is our superpower and with a mindset of doing more with less, we drive productivity, effectiveness, and sustainable growth.
- Be curious and seek new knowledge.
- We encourage our team members to explore new ideas, ask questions, and pursue personal and professional development.
- Surprise & delight
- By going the extra mile, we aim to surprise and delight our clients, coworkers, and stakeholders with exceptional service, innovative solutions, and meaningful interactions.
What does "Shaka" mean?
Residents of Hawaii use the shaka to convey the “Aloha Spirit”, a concept of friendship, understanding, compassion, and solidarity. They wave the Shaka symbol as a warm greeting to their neighbors. We strive to grow this “Aloha Spirit” within every organization we encounter!
Melanie Wertzberger
A Letter from one of Shaka's founders
I remember experiencing a particularly challenging week during my first full-time career. Seeking comfort, I reached out to my mom, Marci, who offered me a piece of advice that has stayed with me. Marci shared with me that even individuals who are working in their dream job, doing exactly what they were meant to do on this earth, still have periods where work simply sucks. Her goal was to alter my attitude and outlook towards my job, and it ultimately worked. Of course, not immediately, it took time for her words to sink in, as nothing your mom tells you ever seems to register immediately.
After some time, I came to the realization that even though work can indeed often suck, there are controllable ways to tilt the scales in favor of the good and remind yourself that you are still in the right career and that you love what you do. In fact, even Adam Grant, the renowned organizational psychologist, has dedicated his life's work to one mantra: "how to make work suck less."
I want Shaka to be a tool that helps your employees tip the scale at work so that the GOOD moments in their job outweigh the bad.
For a moment, imagine each of your employees holding a scale, where each day, a little weight is added to each side based on their positive and negative experiences at work. If the negative experiences outweigh the positive ones for too long, your employees may leave, causing your company to suffer from the cost of turnover, loss of productivity, and knowledge.
Now envision Shaka as a tool that empowers you to consistently add positive experiences to the good side of the scale. Think of these experiences as small pebbles tipping the scale that can accumulate over time and lead to a more fulfilled, happier workforce.
With Shaka, your employees can make meaningful connections with their colleagues, engage in friendly competition through challenges, take a moment for self-care during the workday, build friendships, feel heard, and share their interests. All of these positive experiences can contribute to a happier and more productive work environment, ultimately reducing the risk of turnover and increasing employee retention.
Every day the Shaka team is dedicated to designing new "pebbles" that can be added to the positive side of the scale. We pay close attention to our customers' feedback and strive to make it easy for companies to invest in small but meaningful moments for their employees. By doing so, we aim to help companies steadily improve the scales in favor of the good over time. Ultimately, we believe that these investments in positive experiences can have a significant impact on employee well-being, job satisfaction, and company success.
If you're here, it's likely because you are committed to improving the lives of your employees or team, and I commend you for that. I understand that creating a positive work environment can be a challenging task, but truly believe that it is essential to the success of any company. Please reach out if Shaka can support you in any way!
Shaka is Founded
After having first-hand experience with the challenges of scaling culture as well as struggling to meet friends and mentors at work. Melanie decides to build Shaka.
COVID Changes Where and How People Work
While researching what exactly were the painpoints that HR and People leaders had with engagement and culture, COVID hits and employees shift to remote-first work.
Shaka Beta Released
We act quickly to get our first feature to market due to the enhanced challenges COVID brought to isolation and loneliness at work. Shaka Connections is released in beta.
Shaka Wins Startup Competition
Shaka takes home the grand prize at the Stella Zhang Startup Competition at UCI Beall Applied Innovation. Gainig some much needed equity-free funding to continue building.
Accelerated by Techstars
Shaka is accepted into the world-reknown Techstars Accelerator and is placed in a cohort of founders building incredible companies to learn and grow alongside eachother.
Backed by Great VCs
Not only does Shaka secure funding from Techstars but follow on funding is raised from venture capital funds and angel investors based in Iowa. (Go Midwest Tech!)
Growing Globally
Shaka has users in 5 continents participating in amazing employee engagement programs! The team continues to build new features and integrations to serve larger teams.
Supporting YOUR Company
We would love for Shaka to be part of your journey looking forward. Please let us know if there is a potential for Shaka to serve your organization.