Lockdowns have taken an inequitable toll on women’s professional and personal lives. As unemployment rates of women skyrocketed during the pandemic, those who weren’t negatively affected by lay-offs, faced a slew of homecaring burdens that often forced them to leave their jobs, or put their career development plans on hold. Globally, 54 million women lost their jobs during the first year of the pandemic and the slow economic recovery is making it difficult for them to return.
More needs to be done to not only bring women back into the workforce, but to also help them access high-skilled, stable careers, beginning with ensuring equitable access to education and eliminating gender biases in the recruitment process.
The opportunity for this to happen in the short run has emerged as the pandemic gave employers around the world an opportunity to test their capacity for remote and flexible work. The redefinition of the workplace, coupled with increasing focus on the health and wellbeing of employees, has created a new momentum toward gender parity. Some companies have started to recognize that women need access to benefits and effective support structures to offset pandemic impacts, from affordable childcare to clear work-life boundaries.
To connect women to decent employment in well-paid sectors, while helping employers to become more gender inclusive, NESsT partnered with portfolio company Mamo Pracuj to create Talenti - a job-searching platform tailored to the employment needs of women. The platform is far-reaching, and offers women the opportunity to access multiple services -- from parent-friendly working environments to career training and development opportunities. Instead of submitting their resumes to employers, each candidate first completes a survey to indicate their skills and ideal positions. Then, Talenti sends the candidate the available positions that best match their needs and skillset, offering expert advice and feedback along each stage of the recruiting process.
“We believe that an effective and safe recruitment process is based on professional support and understanding of the needs of both parties - women and employers. Additionally, we are convinced that Polish companies really need the ideas, energy, and communication skills that women bring to them.”
Mamo Pracuj Foundation joined the NESsT portfolio in September 2020, when it was hoping to be able to scale its work and impact on the lives of women. A social enterprise founded 10 years ago, Mamo Pracuj offers technical training and career guidance to women who are mothers or are considering motherhood so that they are equipped to stand out during the recruiting process and thrive in their roles long after hiring.
“Working in a digital economy requires a combination of technical skills and a set of qualities that I would describe as empathetic mindfulness. It is what enables us to cooperate effectively and to open ourselves to the new and unknown. We are convinced that diversified teams are more effective and that a female perspective in management and specialist positions is essential.”