Close

Inside-sales CRM with built-in phone dialer, email sequences, and SMS. Fully remote from day one. Bootstrapped, profitable, ~120 employees across 30+ countries.

Services CRM / Sales Software / Inside Sales
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Remote-First (No HQ, 30+ countries) HQ
120 employees
2013 founded

What is Close?

Close is a customer relationship management platform built specifically for high-velocity inside sales teams. Steli Efti (CEO) and Anthony Nemitz (CTO) founded the company in 2013 after their previous startup, ElasticSales, went through Y Combinator's Summer 2011 batch. What sets Close apart is a first-party phone dialer, SMS, and email-sequence engine bundled directly into the CRM, so sales reps can make and log calls without leaving the app. The core customer base is small and mid-market B2B companies with outbound and inbound calling motions. Close is fully remote by design and has been from day one; there is no headquarters and no mandatory office at any level. The team is intentionally small (approximately 120 employees) and highly leveraged: the company is profitable and grows on revenue, having raised very little outside capital beyond the ElasticSales seed and the YC round. Close is well-known in the remote-work community for a widely-published playbook covering async communication, meeting hygiene, hiring practices, and salary transparency. The team is distributed across 30+ countries, with an annual in-person retreat and quarterly team gatherings as the only regular in-person expectations.

Mission & values

Give sales teams a CRM that actually helps them make more sales by combining calling, email, SMS, and pipeline management in a single, focused workflow.

Qualifications

Close hires across engineering (backend, distributed systems, telephony infrastructure, mobile, security, frontend, ML and AI), product, design, developer relations, sales, sales engineering, customer success, marketing, and G&A. Application flow lives at close.com/careers. Every role is fully remote, with the eligible-country list scoped per posting to countries where Close has a legal entity or Employer of Record relationship. Interview loops emphasize written communication and asynchronous collaboration since Close does not expect same-time-zone overlap for most roles. Because the team is small, hires are highly leveraged; expect a thorough interview process and a work-simulation project for many roles.

Leadership

S

Steli Efti

Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer

Co-founded Close in 2013 after ElasticSales, which went through Y Combinator's Summer 2011 batch. Widely-published author and podcaster on sales, cold outreach, and remote work.

A

Anthony Nemitz

Co-Founder & Chief Technology Officer

Co-founded Close in 2013 with Steli Efti. Long-time engineering leader for the platform.

P

Phil Freo

Vice President of Engineering

Long-tenured engineering leader at Close. Frequent speaker on remote engineering culture and hiring.

Hiring process

  1. 1

    Apply at close.com/careers

    Browse open roles and submit through the Close careers portal. Applications often include written scenario questions.

  2. 2

    Recruiter screen

    Confirms role fit, target level, country of residence for entity match, and salary expectations.

    About 7 days

  3. 3

    Hiring manager interview

    Deep conversation with the manager who owns the position.

    About 7 days

  4. 4

    Work-simulation project

    Common at Close: a scoped, realistic project that mirrors day-to-day work in the role. Sometimes paid. Reviewed by the team.

    About 14 days

  5. 5

    Panel interviews and offer

    Cross-functional panels covering technical depth, remote effectiveness, and values fit. Offer includes base, bonus, and small equity grant.

    About 14 days

Funding

StageBootstrapped
Investors
Y Combinator (Summer 2011 batch, as ElasticSales)

Awards & recognition

  • ElasticSales / Close Y Combinator Summer 2011 batch · 2011

    Y Combinator

  • Bootstrapped to sustained profitability with a fully remote team · 2026

    Close

  • Widely-cited remote-work playbook and salary transparency · 2026

    Industry

Company information

Frequently asked questions

Is Close really fully remote?
Yes, and has been from founding in 2013. There is no headquarters and no mandatory office at any level. The only regular in-person expectations are an annual retreat and quarterly team gatherings.
Is Close bootstrapped?
Effectively yes. Close raised very little capital beyond the ElasticSales seed and the Y Combinator round. The business runs on subscription revenue and is profitable.
Who founded Close?
Steli Efti (CEO) and Anthony Nemitz (CTO) in 2013, after their prior startup ElasticSales went through Y Combinator's Summer 2011 batch.
Which countries can I apply from?
Each posting lists the eligible countries based on Close's legal entities and Employer of Record relationships. The workforce currently spans 30+ countries.
Does Close pay well?
Yes, at senior levels and above. Close publishes location-adjusted bands transparently in every job description and has openly shared the compensation formula. Equity is small given the bootstrapped model, but base pay is competitive with well-funded peers at senior levels.
How is Close different from HubSpot or Salesforce?
Close is purpose-built for outbound and high-velocity inside sales teams, with a first-party phone dialer, SMS, and email sequences bundled into the CRM. HubSpot and Salesforce are broader platforms with heavier customization and larger footprints.

Stay in the loop.

One email per week, 5 hand-picked roles.