Cataphora Inc. today announced the official opening of its newest office, located in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Cataphora develops innovative software for analysis of individual and organizational behavior. The location was chosen because it provides a business-friendly environment, as well as offering Cataphora the opportunity to take advantage of local talent, notably from the Ann Arbor-based University of Michigan.
Cataphora has strong ties with the University of Michigan (U-M). Two of the company’s founders, Elizabeth Charnock, CEO, and Steve Roberts, CTO, are U-M alumni, as are many other employees at various levels throughout the organization. The new office builds on the company’s ties with U-M and the surrounding community.
“We’re very excited about the possibilities here in Michigan,” notes Chris Kurecka, Cataphora’s Manager of Michigan Engineering. “Cataphora thrives on the talent of its employees and the Ann Arbor area offers some of the best. We’ve found a group of superb employees, from both the University of Michigan’s Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) department within the College of Engineering, and from its School of Information.”
The office is currently staffed with both full- and part-time employees, some of them current U-M students, working primarily on software engineering and quality assurance efforts.
Cataphora operates in the cutting-edge field of analysis and understanding of digital character, as it relates to both individuals and organizations. Jude Yew, a Research Fellow at the U-M School of Information says, “As more of our daily lives are lived online, there is a pressing need to reflect on and make sense of the digital trails that we leave behind. The presence of Cataphora in Ann Arbor signals the importance that our city will play in this pioneering field of drawing insights and intelligence from massive records of digital activity.”
Kurecka adds: “It is vital that the US educational system continue to develop the necessary skills and talents, including math, engineering, and other disciplines, that businesses need in order to thrive. We hope this endeavor on the part of Cataphora will help, in the spirit of acting locally, to encourage such talent. We believe it is good for Cataphora and good for the community.”
In the months leading up to the Michigan office opening, Cataphora received valuable support from Ann Arbor SPARK, a public-private partnership whose mission is to advance innovation-based economic development in the greater Ann Arbor region, and from the University of Michigan’s Business Engagement Center. “We are thrilled to have another U-M alum-founded company locate in Ann Arbor,” comments Stella Wixom, Director of the Business Engagement Center. “It is a great example of how the University, working in conjunction with our community partners like Ann Arbor SPARK, can make an impact. We look forward to helping Cataphora meet their hiring needs and connecting them to additional University resources as they expand their operation in the region.”
About Cataphora, Inc.
Cataphora develops innovative software technologies for analysis of individual and organizational behavior, as it is memorialized in the digital records that are created as we go about our everyday lives. Cataphora has honed these technologies over the course of nearly a decade of analyzing huge volumes of data for large organizations. The technology provides the intelligence necessary to tackle the challenges associated with Big Data, discerning context across multiple sources of electronic data such as emails, documents, IM, phone logs, text messages and social networks. Cataphora divested its successful legal market business to Ernst & Young in May, 2011. Founded in 2002, Cataphora has been awarded several patents and is headquartered in Menlo Park, California. For more information please visit www.cataphora.com.
