Edtech Leader CareerFoundry Raises Round of Seed Funding
Berlin, Germany (PRWEB) June 24, 2015 -- CareerFoundry, a leading provider of online mentored courses in UX design and web development, announced today that it has just closed a round of seed funding to accelerate growth and invest in new verticals. The funding was led by Tengelmann Ventures, with Stefan Glänzer, Paul Föckler and Victor Henning of Mendeley also participating. This investment brings CareerFoundry’s total funding to seven digits.
“This round of funding is a testament to CareerFoundry’s mission to develop innovative, high-quality education programs to help anyone build a career in the tech industry in six months, no matter where in the world they are,” said CareerFoundry CEO and co-founder Raffaela Rein. “With this investment, we will increase our support services, and expand our course offerings to include high-growth verticals that will help our students succeed in the future job market.”
Part of CareerFoundry’s growth strategy includes collaborating with other top-ranked partners. CareerFoundry recently partnered with the EBS Business School Oestrich-Winkel, one of Germany’s top 5 business schools, to offer the first ECTS credit bearing elective on digital competencies in Germany. The course, Startup Skills 101, will arm future leaders with the tools they need to navigate, shape and create the ideas and markets of the 21st Century. In June, CareerFoundry and the prestigious Zeppelin University on Lake Constance teamed up to offer students a special summer course in web development.
Over the last few years, the demand for highly-skilled technical workers has surged faster than most education institutions can keep up with, leaving many young adults unprepared for the changing job market. At the same time, this so-called “tech skills gap” means many high-paying job openings remain unfilled while companies struggle to find qualified candidates. In fact, in Europe alone, there are 5.6 million unemployed people under the age of 25, despite almost one million vacant job listings within the tech industry.
“We are excited to partner with CareerFoundry to help them accelerate on the strong momentum they’ve achieved in a short time,” said Christian Winter, CEO of Tengelmann Ventures. “CareerFoundry offers a scalable, practical solution for global education and employment problems, and we know this additional investment will help them skyrocket.”
The last year has seen a 400 percent growth rate for CareerFoundry. This growth, combined with their mission, has led to accolades. The European Commission named CareerFoundry as one of six finalists for European Young Innovator of 2015. They were also named one of the top 20 German Startup Newcomers by startup media site Gründerszene. And in June 2015, CareerFoundry was named one of EdTech’s 20 most innovative startups.
ABOUT CAREERFOUNDRY
CareerFoundry is the world’s first online career accelerator for vocational tech skills. Taught by industry experts, their globally-accessible, mentored courses provide beginners and career changers with the skills they need to launch new careers and navigate future markets. With online courseware, a vibrant and supportive student community, and experienced mentors available remotely via Skype, students are able to study part-time, at their own pace, with a clear end result of a professional portfolio ready to take them into a new tech career within six months.
ABOUT TENGELMANN VENTURES
With over 40 fast growing startups worldwide, Tengelmann Ventures is one of Germany's leading venture capital investors. Their proven track record for success includes early stage investment in companies like Zalando, Delivery Hero Holding, Westwing, Global Fashion Group, brands4friends and Stylight.
Tengelmann Ventures is 100% owned by the Tengelmann Group, an international operating retail company. With interests spread across a variety of industries, their subsidiaries include OBI, KiK, Kaiser's Tengelmann, Tengelmann e-stores and TREI Real Estate. The Tengelmann Group, established in 1867 in Mülheim an der Ruhr, is a family-owned business now in its fifth generation. The Tengelmann Group employs more than 72,000 people in over 4,000 stores in 15 different countries. The group’s total annual revenue for 2013 was EUR 7.82 billion.
Rose Allabarton, CareerFoundry, http://careerfoundry.com, +49 30 48492016, [email protected]
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