Sept 28 (Reuters) - Recruiting software maker Gem raised $100 million in a funding round led by investment firm ICONIQ Capital, lifting its valuation to $1.2 billion. Existing investors of the San Francisco-based company, Accel and Greylock Partners, also participated in the Series C round, Gem said on Tuesday, along with new investors Sapphire Ventures and Meritech Capital. Gem was founded in 2017 by Steve Bartel and Nick Bushak, former engineers at Dropbox Inc and Facebook Inc respectively, who saw the need for a modern recruiting software that would replace spreadsheets and other archaic ways of keeping track of applications. Its platform integrates with LinkedIn, email and clients’ Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS). Chief Executive Officer Bartel said companies were relying more on people and technology to differentiate their business in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. “That really increased the demand for Gem, especially in the enterprise market,” Bartel said. Gem, which has more than 800 clients including Twilio Inc , Lyft Inc and Robinhood Markets Inc, has tripled its annual recurring revenue over the past year and doubled its customer base over the same period. Gem’s software is helping clients engage with candidates and hire from anywhere in the world, including markets where it does not have an established brand yet, Bartel said. Funds raised will be used for product improvement and to expand internationally, such as in high-growth regions of Western Europe and parts of Asia Pacific. (Reporting by Sohini Podder in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.