Texthelp Names Industry Veteran Gus Schmedlen as Chief Revenue Officer
With extensive experience in the education technology sector, Gus will lead Texthelp’s global sales division.
Woburn, MA – June 21, 2022 – Today, Texthelp, a global leader in literacy and assistive technology, announced it has appointed Gus Schmedlen, Ed.D., as its Chief Revenue Officer (CRO). In this new role, Dr. Schmedlen will help Texthelp meet its goal of advancing the literacy of 1 billion people by 2030.
Dr. Schmedlen brings over two decades of experience in the education technology sector to Texthelp. Before joining the company, he served as President & CRO at Merlyn Mind, a venture-backed AI technology company focused on the global education market. Gus also served as VP and Head of Worldwide Education at HP, a multinational technology company. There he oversaw a period of rapid expansion that led to the creation of a multi-billion-dollar global education technology business. During his time at HP, he also led international efforts to improve access to quality education for marginalized students.
“Gus has an impressive background in education technology. He is deeply passionate and committed to improving outcomes for everyone — in education right through into the workplace,” said Martin McKay, CEO and founder of Texthelp. “As Texthelp’s new Chief Revenue Officer, Gus’ background and expertise will allow us to expand our sales capabilities further than ever before. He comes to us with extensive experience in scaling revenues and accelerating growth for global organizations. His role will play a substantial part in our mission. We want to help create inclusive classrooms and inclusive workplaces around the world. We are very excited to have Gus as a part of the Texthelp team and I look forward to working with him.”
As CRO of Texthelp, Dr. Schmedlen will connect different revenue-related functions across the business. He will align the entire sales organization in accelerating growth by building sales capabilities across the company. He will also lead the team in driving sales excellence.
“I am excited to join Texthelp. I look forward to helping build an organization that is dedicated to advancing the literacy and numeracy of as many people as possible across the globe,” said Dr. Schmedlen. “Throughout my career, I have seen firsthand the positive impact technology can have on student outcomes in the classroom and beyond. In fact, I believe that everyone can benefit from Texthelp's tools, because each person thinks, learns, and works differently. People don’t leave dyslexia or other literacy challenges behind when they finish school. Texthelp’s impact is profound, as it goes beyond education into the world of work. This is something I'm very excited to be a part of.”
Dr. Schmedlen currently serves on the Board of Governors of JA Worldwide; the Board of Advisors at the mEducation Alliance; and the Board of Directors of the Whitaker Center for Science and the Arts. He also chairs the Leadership Council of the Brookings Institution Center for Universal Education. Dr. Schmedlen earned a B.A. in Classics from Colgate University, an MBA from Duke University, and an Ed.D. from the University of Pennsylvania.
About Texthelp®
Founded in 1996, the Texthelp Group is a global technology company helping people all over the world to understand and to be understood. It has led the way in creating innovative technology for the education and the workplace sectors for the last three decades.
Texthelp believes in a world where difference, disability or language are no longer barriers. It is focused on helping all people learn, understand and communicate through the use of digital education and accessibility tools.
With over 50 million users worldwide, the Texthelp suite of products includes Read&Write, EquatiO®, WriQ®, OrbitNote®, ReachDeck® and FluencyTutor® which work alongside existing platforms such as Microsoft Office and G-suite, enabling them to be integrated quickly into any classroom or workplace with ease.
In 2021, Texthelp acquired the Lingit Group, Wizkids and Don Johnston Inc. By combining capabilities and knowledge across the group, Texthelp can now provide a whole suite of literacy and numeracy support to more people across the globe
Discover more about us and how we support individuals from education right through to the workplace.