Jobs for the Future Launches New Venture Arm to Invest in Workforce and Employment Tech
JFF Ventures will pair Fortune 1000 leaders with startups utilizing technological innovation to shut talent gaps and establish a a lot more inclusive workforce
BOSTON, Oct. 19, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Employment for the Long term (JFF), a nationwide nonprofit that drives transformation in the American workforce and instruction techniques, today introduced the launch of JFF Ventures, a new influence investing arm that will take care of funds centered completely on rising systems with the probable to increase economic mobility for personnel in reduced-wage work. The new expense arm marks a key expansion of JFF’s escalating aim on technology investing and acceleration, developing on the organization’s 2019 acquisition and incubation of the Employment Technologies Fund (ETF@JFFLabs). To date, JFF has previously invested in far more than 35 higher-affect technological innovation startups through ETF@JFFLabs, which will develop into JFF Ventures Fund I.
JFF Ventures will be supported by a freshly-fashioned Company Innovation Council of leaders in talent administration and development, investing, and company social duty who will advise tech business owners tackling some of modern most critical challenges similar to fairness, inclusion and economic mobility.
“At a time of increasing financial uncertainty and money inequality, it is really crucial that we devote in tech methods that can enable meet the elaborate talent demands of employers by investing in the boundless prospective of the American employee,” said Yigal Kerszenbaum, founding taking care of spouse of JFF Ventures. “This perform is about investing in organizations that are poised to make a important impression by unlocking opportunity for staff who have historically been the minimum very well served.”
In spite of lower unemployment and file job openings in some industries, the market place volatility of the past two several years has strike low- and middle-wage staff the most difficult, with 80{f5ac61d6de3ce41dbc84aacfdb352f5c66627c6ee4a1c88b0642321258bd5462} of task losses in 2020 coming from the lowest wage earners. Unemployment stands at all-around 3.8{f5ac61d6de3ce41dbc84aacfdb352f5c66627c6ee4a1c88b0642321258bd5462}, but the amount is about 1.5 instances increased for Black, Latinx, and Indigenous individuals. Meanwhile, far more than two-thirds of corporations all around the planet report using the services of difficulties—a 15-12 months substantial in the global labor marketplace.
To aid fix for these expertise and equity gaps, JFF Ventures will invest in seed- and early- stage firms with a dedicated target on producing technological know-how alternatives that build chances for financial improvement for personnel in small- and middle-wage work.
“The expertise and financial mobility challenges facing our country right now are far also complicated to fix with a one solution. As a substitute, we require to identify each individual ready spouse and use every lever at our disposal, which include direct investments in mission-aligned technological innovation startups,” said Maria Flynn, president and CEO of JFF. “JFF Ventures is a purely natural evolution of our attempts to bridge the divide between legacy schooling and workforce methods, emerging technologies, and companies who can assist to assure that no employee gets still left powering.”
As a result of JFF Ventures, JFF will prioritize investments in startups established or led by gals of all backgrounds and males and women of color. Extra than half of JFF’s current portfolio companies introduced with female founders, compared to 2.3{f5ac61d6de3ce41dbc84aacfdb352f5c66627c6ee4a1c88b0642321258bd5462} of firms who have acquired venture funding over-all, and 60{f5ac61d6de3ce41dbc84aacfdb352f5c66627c6ee4a1c88b0642321258bd5462} introduced with founders of coloration.
To give founders with insight into the needs of employers, the new JFF Ventures Corporate Innovation Council will deliver coaching, suggestions on go-to-sector approach, and suggestions on merchandise layout and enterprise product to help founders optimize product or service-current market match. Founding members consist of leaders from Fortune 1000 providers throughout major industries, like: Jocelyn Caldwell, vice president, Workforce Tactic and Planning at Walmart Todd Lewis, vice president at Prologis Ventures Milan Suri, senior director, Distribution Advancement Ventures at Northwestern Mutual and Nikita Steals, vice president, Tech Expertise Acquisition at Cash A person. The Council’s operate will be created feasible by means of generous support from Strada Education Community.
“Walmart is honored to join JFF’s freshly-fashioned Company Innovation Council, making use of our collective perception to enable early-stage companies deal with some of present-day best issues related to workforce equity, inclusion, and economic mobility,” claimed Jocelyn Caldwell, vice president, Workforce Approach and Planning at Walmart. “When we aim to help these early-stage corporations as they generate scale and achieve, we are also grateful for their useful insight into tech-based finding out and perform-focused innovations that will help create a additional inclusive foreseeable future of function.”
“Present-day expertise and fairness gaps are two sides of the exact same coin: extra and extra corporations are noticing that they are not able to meet up with their development and effectiveness ambitions with out placing talent and persons at the centre of company approach,” said Cat Ward, JFF’s vice president for Employer Mobilization, who leads the organization’s Company Leadership exercise. “By tapping into the know-how of corporate leaders who are on the frontlines of choosing and expertise improvement, we can assist to align emerging technologies with the wants of substantial business businesses they want to serve.”
For far more information about JFF Ventures call [email protected], and
check out www.jff.org/ventures.
ABOUT JFF: Jobs for the Foreseeable future (JFF) drives transformation of the American workforce and instruction methods to realize equitable economic progression for all.www.jff.org
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