About Relate
We built Relate because the engagement survey stopped working.
Our mission: transform how the world builds relationships, one interaction at a time. Starting with how companies measure engagement.
The short version
1
Work moved into meetings
Hybrid work moved the workplace onto Zoom, Teams and Meet. The survey stayed on paper.
2
Trust is observable
Trusted Advisor Associates spent 25+ years showing that trust shows up in behavior: who follows through, who listens, who gets heard. We built Sandi to see it.
3
So it’s always on
Now a CHRO sees engagement continuously, and sees risk coming, without asking anyone to fill anything in.
Our Leadership
Led with a steady vision and commitment to trust
Relate Team
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Rowland Hirst
Co-Founder, CEO
Rowly has over 25 years global experience across investment banking, equity derivatives, and technology-driven innovation. After early success as the youngest Head of Warrants in the Australian market, he went on to lead equity and derivatives teams thriving on Wall Street through the global financial crisis. At Macquarie Capital, he built relationships with over 100 institutional investors, helping earn the firm top industry rankings.
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Geoff Blaisdell
Co-Founder, CTO
As a strategic C-level technology leader with a deep technical background, proven leadership skills, and robust business acumen, Geoff Blaisdell drives profitability and efficiency through holistic enterprise architecture, infrastructure, and operations strategies. With a career focused on technology startups and financial services, he is an expert in driving growth and innovation within dynamic industries. Prior to founding Relate, Geoff served as the head of technology for Western Asset Management Company, where his team of 300 with an annual budget of $80M developed an IT architecture and environment in which the firm was able to scale to $1M in revenue per employee annually. He was recruited to develop and implement an in-house Aladdin®-like software platform design to support trillions of dollars in AUM while leading the organization's IT strategy, operations, and development. He integrated an acquired company, built and led the 300-member globally distributed IT team, directed the build and launch of new international office locations, and navigated the 2008 financial crisis by developing new systems and tools to meet Western clients' evolving needs. Geoff has also held senior technology leadership roles with Fisher Francis Tree and Watts, Putnam Investments, and BlackRock Financial Management. Geoff earned a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York. He is a screening committee member with Maine Angels, an angel investor organization based in Maine, an advisor for Naples Technology Venture, and an advisory board member for Relate Research and Technology Company. He has also been a featured guest on multiple podcasts, including The Do Zone, Sales POP!, Join Up Dots, and School for Startups Radio.
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Tom Keenan
Co-Founder, Chief Revenue Officer
Tom is the Co-founder, and Chief Revenue Officer of Relate Research and Technology Co, a global company helping businesses scale and measure the most important factor in their relationships – trust. Prior to co-founding Relate, Tom’s career spanned 25 years in asset management business development. During this time, Tom spent 8 years in Asia, first in Hong Kong with BlackRock, and then in Singapore where after leaving BlackRock was CEO, Robeco Singapore and head of Wholesale Distribution, Asia-ex Japan. Tom is passionate about the fact that the digital world in which we all now operate requires a transformation in the traditional approach to building commercial relationships and maximising top-line business performance. Tom holds a Bachelor of Business from UTS, Sydney, and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Murdoch University in WA.
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Dan Mather
Head of Customer Success
Dan Mather is a seasoned executive with over 20 years of experience in enterprise technology, financial services, and startups. At Relate, he leads Customer Success and Product ensuring clients achieve exceptional outcomes through a customer-first approach and scalable processes. Dan’s career began in London with senior roles in the Investment Banking Technology groups at DLJ and Credit Suisse, before moving to Fidelity International where he spent a decade as Head of JPAC Technology Services. He later transitioned into high-growth companies, serving as Head of Sales at FrontYa and Chief Customer Officer at SecureCo. Known for his hands-on leadership style, Dan has built and scaled international teams with a focus on automation, efficiency, and trust. He is passionate about the future of work and the role of AI in transforming customer engagement and organizational performance.
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Dave Froelich
Chief Strategy Officer
Dave is a strong leader with 20+ years of experience in financial services, corporate learning, and enterprise technology. As Chief Strategy Officer at Relate, he leads the company's vision and growth strategy through strategic planning, partnerships, and investor relations. He ensures Relate stays true to its mission and drives long-term success. Dave also served as CEO of two growth-stage technology companies. In 2022, he led HealthyLongevity.cafe, preparing the business for U.S. launch and positioning it for franchise growth. Earlier, he became CEO of Mindmarker, where he raised millions in funding, grew revenue by 50%, and added marquee clients including Cigna, Coca-Cola, GE, Kaiser Permanente, Microsoft, and State Farm. Before his entrepreneurial CEO roles, Dave held senior leadership positions at Deutsche Bank. He is also active in LGBTQ+ advocacy, mentoring emerging entrepreneurs and advancing inclusion in business.
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Kristy McCann Flynn
Chief Voice & Customer Evangelist Advisor
Kristy McCann Flynn is one of the most credible voices at the intersection of people, culture, and technology and she has lived every side of the conversation Relate was built to solve. As Founder and CEO of 127 Ventures, and Co-Founder and CEO of SkillCycle (formerly GoCoach), Kristy has spent 25 years building companies, transforming enterprises, and coaching the leaders navigating the hardest moments in the future of work. She has served as Interim CHRO at MoneyLion, WeWork, and Western Asset Management, led global HR strategy at Pearson through $497M in acquisitions, and raised $15M+ as a founder before a PE exit — earning Inc. 5000 recognition three years running along the way. She knows what it costs when organizations are flying blind on employee sentiment. She knows what it means for a manager to have no real-time signal on their team. And she knows, firsthand, what changes when leaders finally have the intelligence to act before a problem becomes a loss. That is exactly why she is here. As Chief Voice and Customer Evangelist Advisor for Relate, Kristy brings the practitioner perspective that makes Sandi's value impossible to ignore — the voice of every CHRO, every people leader, and every founder who needed this yesterday.
It’s budget season. Put the money somewhere that looks forward.
Run Relate on real teams for one quarter: a continuous engagement score, early warnings and coaching after every meeting. If it doesn’t tell you more than your last survey did, walk away. If it does, every dollar goes toward year one.