Good Jobs
Inclusive Economy | January 27, 2023
ImpactAlpha Deal Spotlight: Black-worker ownership
ImpactAlpha, January 27 — With more than half of business owners in the U.S. over 55 years old, there’s a “silver tsunami” of …
Photo by GMAC.
Dealflow | January 23, 2023
Bamboo Capital’s Build Fund backs Green Mountain Arabica Coffee in Rwanda
ImpactAlpha, January 23 — In Rwanda’s Karenge region, women-owned Green Mountain Arabica Coffee exports green unroasted coffee beans that it sources from 1,200 …
Photo by Ahamove.
Good Jobs | November 30, 2022
Igloo raises $46 million to provide insurance for gig economy workers in Southeast Asia
ImpactAlpha, November 30 — In Southeast Asia, insurance coverage as a benefit for employees is a luxury most small and even medium-sized businesses …
Photo credit: Tamul Plates
Good Jobs | November 17, 2022
Upaya Social Ventures exits India-based maker of sustainable tableware
ImpactAlpha, November 17 – Upaya Social Ventures made a $27,000 equity investment in Tamul Plates in 2015, helping the all-natural disposable plate and …
Photo by SweepSouth.
Good Jobs | October 4, 2022
South African home cleaning service SweepSouth raises $11 million, led by Alitheia IDF
ImpactAlpha, October 4 — The domestic services industry in Africa has a reputation for being unregulated and exploitative. Cape Town-based SweepSouth launched in …
Photo by The Sauce.
Inclusive Economy | September 20, 2022
PowerToFly raises $30 million to upskill and connect underrepresented talent with jobs
ImpactAlpha, September 20 — New York-based PowerToFly has raised $30 million to upskill and connect underrepresented talent with jobs. Millions of professionals use …
Photo by HCAP Partners.
Good Jobs | September 19, 2022
HCAP Partners raises $353 million to take its good jobs strategy nationwide
ImpactAlpha, September 19 — San Diego-based private equity impact investor HCAP Partners invests in underserved lower middle-market businesses. By working with businesses to …
Photo by iStock.
Investing in Health | August 19, 2022
ImpactAlpha Deal Spotlight: Addressing the nursing shortage
ImpactAlpha, August 19 — In the early months of the Covid pandemic, cheers would break out every evening in many cities to honor …
Incredible Health's founders Iman Abuzeid and Rome Portlock. Photo by Incredible Health.
Investing in Health | August 18, 2022
Incredible Health secures $80 million to help nurses do well in permanent jobs
ImpactAlpha, August 18 — A fifth of health care workers quit their jobs during the pandemic, due to insufficient pay, burn out and …
Good Jobs | August 5, 2022
ImpactAlpha Deal Spotlight: Reshaping jobs of the future
ImpactAlpha, August 5 — The U.S. economy will add nearly 12 million jobs by 2030. New talent development solutions, inclusive workforce strategies and …
Byron Dai and Rahul Mahida, the founders of Daivergent. Photo by NYT.
Inclusive Economy | August 4, 2022
Daivergent scores $3.3 million to support job seekers with disabilities
ImpactAlpha, August 4 — Around a fifth of the global population has cognitive variations such as autism, dyslexia and ADHD. Few workforce software …
Minnesota Rubber & Plastics employees celebrate the sale. Photo by KKR.
Inclusive Economy | August 3, 2022
KKR’s $950 million sale of Minnesota Rubber & Plastics means a payout for employees
ImpactAlpha, August 3 — KKR implemented its employee-ownership program for 1,450 employees when it acquired materials science company Minnesota Rubber & Plastics in …
Good Jobs | July 18, 2022
A $25 million plan to upskill and diversify the climate workforce
ImpactAlpha, Jul. 18 – The climate ground war will be won block by block, building by building (for context, see “Call No. 32: …
Terra.do's founder Anshuman Bapna | Photo by Terra.do.
Climate and Clean Tech | June 16, 2022
Terra.do scores $5 million to connect global professionals with careers in climate tech
ImpactAlpha, June 16 — Investors and executives in climate tech are seeing an upswell of talent (for context, see “In Silicon Valley, talent …
Photo by Crawley.
Inclusive Economy | June 14, 2022
Nava Benefits raises $40 million to help small businesses lower the costs for employee benefits
ImpactAlpha, June 14 — Larger companies have the capital and resources to offer more and higher-quality benefits. Smaller businesses are burdened by excessive …
Photo by Achievers.
Inclusive Economy | June 10, 2022
ImpactAlpha Deal Spotlight: Upskilling workers
ImpactAlpha, June 10 — Half of the global workforce will need new skills by 2025. From healthcare to financial services, tech firms are …
Photo by Guild Education.
Inclusive Economy | June 9, 2022
Guild Education raises $175 million to help employers unlock career mobility for their employees
ImpactAlpha, June 9 — Denver-based Guild Education has raised $175 million to help employers create career development opportunities for their employees. The company …
Photo credit: Alicia Powell.
Podcasts | May 27, 2022
Live-ish from Davos: Taking on the world with BlocPower and friends
ImpactAlpha, May 26 — Donnell Baird arrived at Davos this week with his partners from Brooklyn and Ithaca, where BlocPower is greening thousands …
Photo credit: Moves.
Inclusive Economy | May 26, 2022
Moves raises $5 million to help gig economy workers become owners
ImpactAlpha, May 26 — Roughly 57 million U.S. workers work in the gig economy, and that workforce is expected to grow to 86 …
Photo credit: Manara
Good Jobs | May 10, 2022
Manara scores $3 million to upskill tech workers in North Africa and the Middle East
ImpactAlpha, May 10 — Former engineers Iliana Montauk and Laila Abudahi launched Manara last year to offer coding classes for engineering students from …
Photo credit: RideTandem.
Good Jobs | May 4, 2022
RideTandem scores $2.2 million to alleviate ‘transport poverty’ for blue-collar workers
ImpactAlpha, May 4 — Public transportation is increasingly inaccessible for low-income workers in the U.K., particularly in rural areas. “Half of the lowest-earning …
BlocPower's Civilian Climate Corp workers with the owner of the building. Photo by Roodgally Senatus.
Green Infrastructure | April 7, 2022
Inside BlocPower’s mission to upskill workers and green New York City buildings (photo story)
ImpactAlpha, April 7 — On a recent early spring day, a half-dozen workers were installing heat pumps in a two-unit property on Ellis …
Mursal Hedayat. Photo credit: Chatterbox.
Refugee Lens Investing | March 16, 2022
Chatterbox snags over $2 million to connect tech-skilled refugees with jobs
ImpactAlpha, March 16 — London, U.K.-based Chatterbox launched in 2016 as an online language learning school for Syrian refugees to earn a living …
Impact Voices | March 2, 2022
Urging meat companies to protect workers and mitigate risks in their supply chains
ImpactAlpha, March 2 – COVID-19 hit the global meatpacking industry with force and put a spotlight on the industry’s long-standing hazardous labor practices. …
Photo credit: Score.
Dealflow | March 2, 2022
Advantage Capital aims to invest $200 million in minority-owned businesses in underserved communities
ImpactAlpha, Mar 2 — New Orleans-based Advantage Capital has leveraged more than $3 billion since 1992 for small businesses in underserved communities in …
Inclusive Economy | February 28, 2022
Social Finance will deploy $100 million from Google to upskill tech workers
ImpactAlpha, February 28 – Boston-based Social Finance has pioneered student-friendly “career impact bonds,” a form of income-sharing agreement, to reduce the risks to …
Scaler Academy founders | Photo credit: Scaler Academy.
Good Jobs | February 2, 2022
Scaler Academy secures $55 million to upskill Indian tech workers
ImpactAlpha, February 2 — Only about 1% of India’s graduating software engineering students find meaningful employment. This “has opened up opportunities for avowed …
Photo credit: Lyra Health.
Investing in Health | January 20, 2022
Lyra Health raises $235 million to help employers provide mental health benefits
ImpactAlpha, January 20 — Burlingame, Calif.-based Lyra Health works with companies like Uber and Morgan Stanley to provide mental health benefits for 10 …
Photo credit: Prevented Ocean Plastic Southeast Asia.
Climate Finance | January 13, 2022
Circulate Capital aims to build plastic waste recycling infrastructure in underserved Indonesia
ImpactAlpha, January 13 — Indonesia generates around 7.8 million tons of plastic waste annually. 4.9 million tons of plastic waste is mismanaged — uncollected, …
Illustration by Career Karma.
Dealflow | January 11, 2022
Career Karma raises $40 million to reskill workers for digitally-based careers
ImpactAlpha, January 11 – Nine out of 10 employers see or expect to see skill gaps in their workforce. San Francisco-based Career Karma …
Photo credit: Slang.
Dealflow | January 4, 2022
Slang secures $14 million to upskill English-language skills for Latam workers
ImpactAlpha, January 4 — In Latin America and elsewhere, proficient English speakers are more likely to secure a job. Boston, Mass.-based Slang provides …
Photo credit: East African Business Week.
Dealflow | December 16, 2021
Aceli Africa raises $27 million to boost lending to agribusinesses in East Africa
ImpactAlpha, December 16 — More than half of East Africans depend on agriculture for their livelihoods, but loans to grow their businesses are …
Photo credit: CDC.
Impact Investing | November 18, 2021
Achieve Partners acquires Ro Health to create apprenticeships for school health workers
ImpactAlpha, November 18 — New York-based Achieve Partners has acquired Ro Health, a Seattle-based medical staffing and home health agency, to advance an …
Dealflow | November 10, 2021
Equitable economic growth tops agenda at Commerce Department convening
ImpactAlpha, November 10 — Top officials across the Biden administration committed to advance economic equity for communities of color and underrepresented groups, at …
Photo credit: Pamela de Marion Silva Diaz
Podcasts | November 4, 2021
Solving for both unemployment and labor shortages with high-quality jobs (podcast)
ImpactAlpha, Nov. 4, 2021 – It’s one of the paradoxes of the pandemic era. Across the U.S., more than 10 million jobs are …
Photo credit: Workable's Resources.
Capitalism Reimagined | October 12, 2021
Omidyar Network commits $10 million in grants for reimagining capitalism
ImpactAlpha, October 12 — Markets can be, and are being, reshaped by movements, policies and investments. Omidyar Network, which has spun off a …
Dealflow | September 8, 2021
Employee Ownership Catalyst Fund raises nearly $5 million to back worker-ownership conversions
ImpactAlpha, September 8 — The open-ended fund, co-managed by Mission Driven Finance and Project Equity, received commitments from Living Cities and other impact …
Dealflow | September 7, 2021
Microverse secures investment to expand income share agreements for global talent
ImpactAlpha, September 7 — The Latin-led edtech, which is looking to connect at least one million young software developers from emerging markets to …
Dealflow | September 2, 2021
Achieve Partners acquires Metmox to create apprenticeships for cybersecurity
ImpactAlpha, September 2 – There will be an estimated 1.8 million unfulfilled cybersecurity jobs in the U.S. next year. That makes the industry …
Innovative Finance | August 19, 2021
Social Finance raises $49.9 million for workforce-focused UP Fund
ImpactAlpha, August 19 – The W.K. Kellogg, Inherent and Phillips foundations are among the latest backers of Social Finance’s UP Fund, which deploys …
Dealflow | July 22, 2021
Achieve Partners acquires Optimum Healthcare IT to fill healthcare labor gaps
ImpactAlpha, July 22 – Florida-based Optimum Healthcare IT provides staffing and consulting services to 150 hospital systems in the U.S. Achieve Partners acquired …
Photo credit: Getting Smart.
Good Jobs | June 29, 2021
Achieve Partners raises $180 million to boost apprenticeships and job placements
ImpactAlpha, June 29 — The fund will acquire businesses that provide apprenticeships in health care, information technology and other industries facing skills shortages, …
Photo credit: Getty Images.
Dealflow | June 28, 2021
Employee ownership to get a boost from Apis & Heritage’s buyout fund
ImpactAlpha, June 28 — Bethesda, Md.-based Apis & Heritage Capital Partners helps small and mid-sized businesses with large workforces of color transition to …
Capitalism Reimagined | June 22, 2021
Turning the renewed power of workers into a lasting pillar of stakeholder capitalism
These days, American workers could well be saying, as Richard Fariña wrote and Nancy Sinatra sang, “Been down so long it looks like …
Flat Vector Illustration.
Dealflow | June 14, 2021
KKR’s Burning Glass merges with Emsi to form labor market data platform
ImpactAlpha, June 14 — KKR in 2019 acquired a majority stake in Burning Glass, a software company that sells intelligence on labor market …