Sounding Board, Inc
Sounding Board provides a SaaS-based virtual leadership development platform combining coaching program management software with a network of 700+ credentialed coaches, selling subscription-based enterprise and mid-market leadership coaching programs to HR and L&D buyers, now operating as a BTS subsidiary.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2016
- HeadquartersAliso Viejo, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Sounding Board, Inc does
Sounding Board, Inc (legal entity Sounding Board Labs, Inc., Delaware) is a US-headquartered (Aliso Viejo, California) virtual leadership development platform founded in 2016. The company sells to enterprise and mid-market organizations, primarily through HR and Learning & Development buyers, delivering leadership coaching at scale via its Dynamic Leader Development Suite, a cloud-based SaaS platform organized into three product tiers (Expand for internal programs, Guide for external coaching, and Transform for comprehensive all-levels solutions) and supported by a global network of 700+ credentialed coaches certified by IAC, EMCC, CCE, and ICF.
The core platform combines program management software with human coaching services. Notable technical components include a proprietary coach matching algorithm, configurable analytics dashboards, a Manager Dashboard providing real-time visibility into direct reports' development progress, and a Leadership Roadmap for individual goal collaboration. The platform supports 1:1 coaching, group coaching (Leadership Labs and Leadership Studios), mentoring, on-demand coaching, and individual contributor development, with third-party integrations limited to Slack for communications. The company has no disclosed AI research, patents, or in-house ML models beyond the coach matching recommendation engine.
Sounding Board operates a subscription revenue model with quote-based, multi-year enterprise contracts, complemented by a self-service individual offering (Accelerate, launched 2024). Distribution is primarily direct enterprise field sales augmented by partner referrals. The company raised approximately $45 million in disclosed equity across rounds from 2017 through 2021, acquired Skye in November 2024, and was itself acquired by BTS, a global talent development firm, in April 2025, after which it operates as a subsidiary under BTS's coaching service line.
Sounding Board, Inc firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Sounding Board, Inc
- Legal name
- Sounding Board Labs, Inc.
- Website
- https://soundingboardinc.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2016
- Operating status
- Acquired
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Sounding Board provides a SaaS-based virtual leadership development platform combining coaching program management software with a network of 700+ credentialed coaches, selling subscription-based enterprise and mid-market leadership coaching programs to HR and L&D buyers, now operating as a BTS subsidiary.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Sounding Board, Inc industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Leadership Development Software
- NAICS
- Professional and Management Development Training (61143), Business Schools and Computer and Management Training (6114)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Leadership Assessment, 360 Feedback & Development Planning (EDABAAAK)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Team & Group Executive Coaching (Leadership Teams) (EDABANAF), Leadership Transition & Onboarding Coaching (New Role, New Manager, Promotion) (EDABANAB), Coaching, Feedback & Mentoring Skills (EDABAMAM)
Keywords
Where Sounding Board, Inc is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Aliso Viejo
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Sounding Board, Inc business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- SaaS Platform Subscription: Organizations subscribe to the Dynamic Leader Development Suite (Expand, Guide, Transform) on a per-seat or program basis. The software platform is sold as an annual subscription with tiered plans based on program scope, number of coaches, and organizational reach.
- Coaching Services: Human coaching services are delivered through Sounding Board's global network of 700+ credentialed coaches (IAC, EMCC, CCE, ICF certified), with an average of over 7 years of leadership experience. Coaching is bundled with software subscriptions for organizations and may also be offered as a standalone service.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Expand — scalable internal development programs |
| Subscription | Annual | Guide — external coaching from global network of experts |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Transform — comprehensive development at all levels |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels8 records
Sounding Board, Inc product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Sounding Board provides a cloud-based SaaS leadership development platform, the Dynamic Leader Development Suite, that combines coaching program management software with human coaching services delivered by a network of 700+ credentialed coaches. The platform supports 1:1 coaching, group coaching (Leadership Labs and Leadership Studios), mentoring, and on-demand coaching modules, organized under three program tiers (Expand, Guide, Transform) plus an individual self-service offering (Accelerate).
Product overview
Sounding Board offers a Dynamic Leader Development Suite — a platform-plus-modules architecture combining coaching and mentoring software with world-class coaching services. The core platform provides program delivery software with coach matching, tracking, and measurement capabilities. The platform is organized around three program tiers: Expand™ (internal development), Guide™ (external coaching), and Transform™ (comprehensive all-levels solution). These are complemented by service modules including 1:1 Leadership Coaching, Group Coaching (Leadership Labs and Leadership Studios), Mentoring Module, On-Demand Coaching Module, and Individual Contributor Coaching. The Accelerate offering provides self-service coaching for individuals. Software features include the Manager Dashboard for organizational visibility and Leadership Roadmap for goal collaboration. The company was acquired by BTS in April 2025, expanding its global coaching network of 700+ credentialed coaches certified by IAC, EMCC, CCE, and ICF.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Expand™: Scalable internal development programs
- Guide™
- Transform™
- Accelerate
- Dynamic Leader Development Suite
Products and services
- Dynamic Leader Development Suite Tech-powered coaching and mentoring platform that combines scalable software for building, managing, tracking, and measuring leadership development programs with world-class coaching from certified coaches; sold to enterprise and mid-market organizations.
- Expand Scalable internal development program that enables organizations to expand leadership development using internal resources and programs.
- Guide Guided development program utilizing external coaching from Sounding Board's global network of credentialed experts.
- Transform Comprehensive development solution covering all levels of leadership with both internal and external coaching programs integrated.
- 1:1 Leadership Coaching One-on-one personalized coaching that develops dynamic leaders and future-proofs business by working with certified coaches on individual leadership development goals.
- Group Coaching Leadership Labs Enables collective learning and collaboration through group coaching sessions designed for cohorts of leaders.
- Group Coaching Leadership Studios Enhances existing leadership development programs with group coaching centered around an organization's internal or third-party learning content.
- Mentoring Module Software-enabled mentoring that provides insight, guidance, and support through structured mentoring relationships within organizations.
- On-Demand Coaching Module Software module providing leaders with extra coaching support on-demand when they need it, offering confidential and unbiased expert assistance.
- Individual Contributor Coaching Coaching program designed to help high-potential individual contributors develop foundational leadership capabilities and discover their leadership potential before transitioning to management roles.
- Accelerate Personal, professional coaching for individuals looking to expand their leadership capabilities; a self-service option for individual users.
Quantifiable outcome
- 100% improvement in ability to successfully interact with others across all functions
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use Sounding Board, Inc
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments10 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Sounding Board, Inc technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
AI capability1 record
Feature4 records
Sounding Board, Inc partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- BTScoreBTS, a global talent development firm, acquired Sounding Board in April 2025 to expand its global coaching services. The acquisition integrated Sounding Board's network of 700 credentialed coaches into BTS's coaching service line. BTS now uses Sounding Board's Dynamic Leader Development Suite and coach network to serve global companies' end-to-end coaching needs, from executive to frontline. The acquisition is a strategic expansion of BTS's leadership development capabilities.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Sounding Board, Inc competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- BetterUp: BetterUp is the largest pure-play enterprise coaching and leadership development platform, combining a global coach network with a SaaS platform for HR buyers. It is the closest direct competitor to Sounding Board's Dynamic Leader Development Suite, with similar target buyer (CHRO/L&D) and overlapping module offerings (1:1 coaching, group coaching, on-demand).
- CoachHub: CoachHub is a Berlin-based enterprise digital coaching platform with a global credentialed coach network and AI-enabled matching. It competes head-to-head with Sounding Board in mid-market and enterprise L&D deals, particularly outside North America, and uses a similar SaaS-plus-human-coaching model.
- Torch Leadership Labs: Torch offers leadership coaching, mentoring, and manager development programs to enterprise customers via a hybrid platform plus certified coaches model. It is highly comparable to Sounding Board in target market (HR/L&D leaders), coaching delivery model, and vertical focus on leadership development.
- EZRA (LHH Coaching): EZRA was an enterprise coaching app integrated into LHH (a division of Adecco) following its acquisition, serving global enterprises with 1:1 coaching and development programs. Comparable to Sounding Board in the hybrid digital-plus-human coaching model and enterprise buyer profile.
- Chronus: Chronus is a mentoring and coaching software platform focused on enterprise talent development, including leadership pipelines, mentoring programs, and DEI use cases. It is a direct competitor on the software/SaaS side of Sounding Board's offering, though lighter on bundled human coaching services.
Broad incumbents
- FranklinCovey: FranklinCovey is a large, established provider of leadership training, content (e.g., 7 Habits), and enterprise learning programs. It overlaps with Sounding Board's leadership development positioning at enterprise HR/L&D buyers but delivers primarily through training content rather than a coach-network-plus-platform model.
- DDI (Development Dimensions International): DDI is a long-standing leadership development and assessment firm serving global enterprises with leadership programs, assessments, and consulting. It competes with Sounding Board on leadership development methodology and assessment capabilities but lacks a peer coaching marketplace model.
- Korn Ferry: Korn Ferry is a global organizational consulting firm with a significant leadership and talent development practice, including executive coaching and assessment. Comparable to Sounding Board on enterprise buyer and leadership development scope, but operates at much larger scale and as a consulting-led business rather than a SaaS platform.
Others
- BTS: BTS is the global talent development and consulting firm that acquired Sounding Board in April 2025. It is now Sounding Board's parent and primary distribution channel, operating in the same enterprise leadership development space via consulting engagements and simulation-based learning.
Emerging players
- MentorcliQ: MentorcliQ is an enterprise mentoring software platform focused on employee mentoring, DEI programs, and leadership pipelines. It competes with Sounding Board's Mentoring Module and DEI use cases but is software-only, without the bundled human coaching network.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Sounding Board, Inc social profiles
Digital presenceSounding Board, Inc financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Sounding Board, Inc leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Sounding Board, Inc funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds5 records
Investors10 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Sounding Board, Inc M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Sounding Board, Inc
What does Sounding Board, Inc do?
Sounding Board provides a cloud-based SaaS leadership development platform, the Dynamic Leader Development Suite, that combines coaching program management software with human coaching services delivered by a network of 700+ credentialed coaches. The platform supports 1:1 coaching, group coaching (Leadership Labs and Leadership Studios), mentoring, and on-demand coaching modules, organized under three program tiers (Expand, Guide, Transform) plus an individual self-service offering (Accelerate).
Is Sounding Board, Inc a public or private company?
Sounding Board, Inc is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently acquired.
When was Sounding Board, Inc founded?
Sounding Board, Inc was founded in 2016. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Sounding Board, Inc based?
Sounding Board, Inc is headquartered in Aliso Viejo, United States, in the North America region.
How does Sounding Board, Inc make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. SaaS Platform Subscription is the primary driver. The others are coaching Services.
Who are Sounding Board, Inc's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are BetterUp, CoachHub, Torch Leadership Labs, EZRA (LHH Coaching) and Chronus. Broad incumbents are FranklinCovey, DDI (Development Dimensions International) and Korn Ferry. BTS is listed as an others. MentorcliQ is listed as an emerging player.
Does Sounding Board, Inc have an API?
No public API is recorded for Sounding Board, Inc.
What industry is Sounding Board, Inc in?
Sounding Board, Inc's product category is Leadership Development Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDABAAAK, Leadership Assessment, 360 Feedback & Development Planning, with a secondary code of EDABANAF, Team & Group Executive Coaching (Leadership Teams). Its NAICS code is 61143 and its SIC code is 7372.