CEO and Founder, KangoHR
About Todd Horton
Todd Horton is the CEO and founder of KangoHR, a company he started in 2009 with the mission to make employee recognition simple, meaningful and real. His work in HR spans more than twenty years across compensation, talent acquisition, leadership development and organizational behavior.
Todd studied at Boston College before earning his MBA from Yale School of Management. At Yale he focused on organizational behavior along with general management. This foundation has shaped his approach to leadership and the way he helps companies build stronger people practices.
Before launching KangoHR, Todd spent his early career in compensation at Salary.com and later moved into talent acquisition at Monster. His work took him across the world, including China, South Korea and India, where he led marketing for JobKorea and completed long term assignments in global markets. These years helped him develop a broad, multicultural view of management and the role of HR inside fast growing organizations.
KangoHR, originally KangoGift, began as a simple way to help people feel appreciated at work. Entrepreneur Magazine recognized the idea as a brilliant concept, and the platform has since been covered by major publications for its innovation and impact. Todd has been quoted in Forbes, Bloomberg, USA Today, Fortune and others for his insights on recognition, culture and the evolving role of HR.
Todd has spoken at World at Work on Emotional Intelligence in the workplace and continues to share his experience with HR and Total Rewards teams who want to build programs that support real connection and performance. He enjoys combining authentic leadership with strategic thinking to help enterprises manage and grow their talent.
Outside of work, Todd is a distance runner, a fan of dad jokes and someone who tries to lead KangoHR the same way he would want to be led. He believes deeply in the power of soft skills for emerging leaders and the difference recognition can make in a modern workplace.
