Meet the Founders - CareerEar
An online platform that provides career opportunities for underserved communities.
CareeEar was selected as 1 of the 15 high-impact, social enterprises to join the Inclusive Economy Partnership’s 2021 BOOST cohort. Senior Associate, Gabby Morgan, has been working closely with Claudine Adeyemi, Founder and CEO, to provide bespoke mentorship and support for CareerEar’s scaling needs throughout the programme. Just this month, CareerEar announced its partnership with the New Statesman Media Group, who will provide career opportunities to first time career seekers on the platform. It is partnerships like these which have been inspiring to see and which really encapsulates why Conduit Connect was so excited to be a partner for BOOST this year. To wrap up our formal partnership, we thought what better way than to sit down with Claudine and learn more about the inspiration behind the platform and what her happy-track is. Keep scrolling to find out!
1. Describe your startup in two sentences
CareerEar is a data-driven, community powered online platform for individuals from underserved communities who need to make decisions on their first or next career. We prepare career-seekers for the future of work by ensuring that those who do not typically have networks of support or equal access to opportunities are able to discover and learn about the careers of the future and choose a path that’s right for them. Through this, we support employers to build diverse workforces.
2. What gave you the inspiration?
I wanted to be a lawyer when I was a child. But I didn’t know any and didn’t even know anyone who had been to university. I then left home at the age of 16 and not only had the challenges of pursuing my legal career but also the challenges of life as a young independent person. When I arrived at my law firm in Central London, I didn’t feel like I fitted in as there wasn’t really anyone from a similar background to me. I realised that this was a wider problem and decided to do something about it. Working with employers to learn more about the challenges whilst also providing direct support to career-seekers, I spotted an opportunity to help employers to close their skills gaps by accessing untapped talent who are full of potential and career ready as a result of receiving support through our technology.
3. How did you meet?
Precious and I met at an event run by Black British Business Awards back in 2018. We had such a fun evening and stayed in touch. Many months later she offered me support whilst I was writing a job specification for a Head of Product role. She loved the final version of the spec and was so excited about the vision and mission that she took the role herself!
4. What has been your greatest success to date? And your greatest challenge?
Our greatest success to date is punching above our weight to land a contract with DWP to be a Kickstart Gateway, supporting young people, through our platform, into employment.
Having limited resources and therefore having to drive forward our success with only a part-time team.
5. How has Covid affected your business?
It provided us with the opportunity to accelerate our plans to also support adult career changers. We started out only targeting young people but we were inundated at the start of the pandemic with enquiries from adults asking if the platform could also be used to support them. We quickly adapted the platform in order to expand and our career changers are now the fastest growing members on the CareerEar platform.
6. What kind of impact is your business having and how do you measure it?
When it comes to impact outcomes, we look at how confident an individual feels about taking the next step in their career journey. This involves measuring their confidence before they start using the platform as well as at regular intervals thereafter. As far as outputs go, we are concerned with the number of members who go into training and/or employment. Our goal is to support 1 million people into training, employment and/or to have career confidence by 2027.
7. When you were little what did you want to be when you grew up?
Claudine Adeyemi: A lawyer
Precious Ene: A nurse
8. If you weren’t doing this, what would be your plan B?
Maybe a career coach or something like that. Something that involves helping others to win in life!
9. What would you save in a fire?
My mum’s jewellery
10. Who is your role model/ greatest influence? And why?
My mum. I always hear stories about the woman that she was - kind, supportive and high levels of integrity. Plus she was a hustler. Alongside her day job, she had a career in music as a reggae artist appearing on Top of the Pops in the 70s when she was just 16. Making it in the music industry is hard and requires grit and resilience. She then fought off cancer before having my brother but sadly passed away when the cancer returned a couple of years later. Growing up and throughout my life I’ve always strived to live in a way that she would be proud of - from the values that I hold through to the goals I achieve.
11. What is your happy track?
Just Fine - Mary J Blige
12. What’s your motto? OR What are your company values?
My personal motto is - Set goals. Achieve. Celebrate. Repeat.
As a company, we have five core values but one that is key for me in this space is collaboration. You cannot achieve impact at scale without collaborating.
13. What are you most looking forward to in 2022?
This unique opportunity to grow a solution that is one of a kind whilst creating opportunities for others to join me on the journey.