Virtual Gurus founding CEO Bobbie Racette, the first Indigenous woman in Canada to raise a Series A round, is stepping down to become the company’s president. COO Elliot Schneier has been appointed as the new chief executive.
Schneier joined the Calgary-based startup as COO in May 2024. The company said he has since played a key role in scaling operations and launching Virtual Guru’s receptionist chatbot, VG Connect.
“I’m grateful Bobbie will continue to shape our vision while we scale a company that reflects the future we want to see.”
Elliot Schneier
Before Virtual Gurus, Schneier was in executive roles at Ohio-based startups Zirtual, Fundable, and Startups.com. In a LinkedIn post, Racette said Schneier has “a track record of scaling and exiting” large scaleups, and “brings knowledge of scale and strategy.” As CEO, Schneier will focus on scaling the Virtual Gurus platform, expanding into new markets, and deepening the integration of its artificial intelligence-powered solutions, Virtual Gurus’ vice-president of marketing Vicki Laszlo told BetaKit.
In her new role as president, Virtual Gurus said Racette will lead the company’s purpose and impact initiatives, strengthen enterprise partnerships, and elevate the brand presence across North America while continuing to guide the company’s mission. Virtual Gurus’ purpose and impact strategy “goes beyond job creation,” Laszlo said, and includes community-driven programs and wraparound support services.
“What began with a mission to create space for underrepresented talent has grown into an international platform delivering real economic impact,” Racette said in a statement. “This next chapter allows me to expand that impact while empowering new leadership to take us further.”
Founded by Racette in 2016, Virtual Gurus is a gig work platform that connects remote assistants to companies looking for help with tasks like bookkeeping, marketing, and customer support, with a focus on employing historically underrepresented individuals. Virtual Gurus said it has so far delivered over 800,000 hours of work and paid out $15 million in wages to its virtual assistant community.
Racette bootstrapped the company for around three years, struggling to raise capital in the early days as potential investors shied away due to the company’s diversity and inclusion focus, she told BetaKit in 2022. Racette went on to lead Virtual Gurus through an $8.4-million CAD Series A round and struck partnerships with organizations such as Mastercard, Bank of Montreal (BMO), and Telus.
Racette spoke with BetaKit in May 2024 about Virtual Gurus’ plan to expand in the United States (US) and raise a Series B round by the end of that summer. At the time, she said she wanted to target mainly American investors, as 65 percent of the company’s revenue was US-based.
“When you have predominantly already hit the market here [in Canada], you really have no other choice but to open into other markets,” Racette said at the time.
Virtual Gurus has yet to announce a Series B round, but accompanied Racette’s news with word that she had “closed the first tranche” of the company’s next funding round. Laszlo told BetaKit the funding closed last week, but declined to disclose how much was raised. When BetaKit asked about Virtual Gurus’ intention to raise a Series B last summer, Laszlo said the company “prioritized alignment and long-term value creation over speed.”
“Our goals remain on track. We had strong interest from partners and chose to move forward with this initial tranche while continuing to evaluate strategic opportunities,” Laszlo said, adding that the new funding will support the growth of Virtual Guru’s platform and VG Connect.
Virtual Gurus also appointed former Benevity CEO Kelly Schmitt as chair of its majority-women board of directors. Other members include Racette, Schneier, Telus’s Ka-Hay Law, The51’s Shelley Kuipers, and Raven Indigenous Capital Partners’ Althea Wishloff.
“As we evolve, I’m grateful Bobbie will continue to shape our vision while we scale a company that reflects the future we want to see, one that’s inclusive, tech-enabled, and deeply human at its core,” Schneier said in a statement.
Earlier this year, Racette was appointed board chair of Montréal-based nonprofit QueerTech, a position she also holds at the Indigenous Prosperity Foundation.
Feature image courtesy Bobbie Racette.