But first, let’s start with you

Did you know that of your about 4,000 weeks on this planet, you’ll spend 2,500 working?

The question “what work is right for me?” follows all of us through life. But there’s no one right answer. Like many things in life, it’s a pursuit.

The first third of our career has a large bearing on this pursuit. There are so many sliding doors moments early on. Just think about your own career - it’s probably pretty different to what you first pictured. And it will keep changing!

Here’s the secret. When our work aligns with our values and skills, we find meaning - we feel alive, we contribute, and we grow.

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It’s time to change how young people find work

Major job boards were the first digital platforms to help with finding work, and they’ve done a pretty good job to date. But Gen Z are now asking for a different experience that meets the modern world of work. One that puts candidates and job fit, rather than advertising dollars, at the centre. This ultimately leads to better outcomes for everyone.

Over the past decade, major shifts in modern AI tech and in workforce dynamics has created the opportunity to build a better way for Gen Z to find work that fits them.

Hatch is guided by two core insights:

1. Matching based on holistic fit
   To find the best job matches, you need to look beyond a CV and into someone’s underlying skills and values. This “holistic fit” matching unlocks meaningful pathways for candidates, and the best hires for employers.
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2. Connecting people with people, not job ads
   Job ads are too generic for the fast changing world of work. To really help someone find a team where they can belong and grow, platforms need to look more like social communities where you can understand who’s in the team, how they like to work, what they’re motivated by, and whether you want to join them.

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I hired hundreds of people in my time at The Iconic and saw these insights play out time and time again.  But it’s not just me - anyone who’s looked for a job or hired for their team knows them to be true. It’s time a better platform was built to help young people find work that fits them.

Our story so far

Since the first day Chaz and I first came together to work on this problem, we and the broader Hatch team have been motivated by long term social change. We often talk about what it means to build a 100 year company that can help many generations around the world find meaning in work no matter what education, work, or socio-demographic background they’re from.

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Hatch launched pre-Covid as a platform for university students to land paid student roles with top Australian employers based on their strengths, motivation and fit.

During the pandemic, as quickly as the world around us changed, we spun up a solution to help thousands of stood down workers find new opportunities based on their transferable skills. That experience showed us Hatch’s insights applied not just to uni students but to the wider workforce.

Since then, Hatch has expanded and is now the go-to jobs marketplace for Gen Z in Sydney. It has become the home of the best roles for people in the first 10 years of their careers. Through modern AI matching technology and a totally re-imagined profile and search experience, we’re changing the way that people discover work.

Our growth in Sydney to date

• We’ve grown a community of 150,000+ young professionals
• We’ve built modern AI matching technology, that’s delivered over 2 billion matching recommendations
• There’s over 120 leading employers actively hiring Gen Z on Hatch
• More than 2,000 people have landed roles through Hatch

Our funding round

We’re now incredibly excited to announce an AU$7 million funding round.

Over the past year, Hatch has grown 10x in Sydney. This investment will help us expand nationally, so that any Gen Z person in Australia can find meaningful work, no matter their background.

We will be investing into:

• Product enhancements - including our AI matching technology, the richness of team and candidate insights, and more ways for candidates and teams to interact on the platform.
• User growth - creating the biggest community of Gen Z professionals and leading employers in Australia.
• Geographic growth - expanding nationwide over a 2 year period before becoming a global platform.
• Hatch team growth - in particular our ML/AI and technology teams.

Our funding round was led by experienced marketplace investor Rampersand. Several other major Australian venture funds participated including Alberts Impact Ventures, Aura Ventures, Investible, and Jelix Ventures, as well as existing private investors including Ahmed Fahour.

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"We believe that matching is going to be key to how every person discovers work in the future. We’re delighted to be partnering with Hatch through their future growth as they continue to change how people navigate their careers."
Taryn Pieterse, Rampersand

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This investment will help us grow our team, learn from new and experienced advisors, and supercharge our growth on our mission to help all people find meaning in work.

Following this round we will set an impact metric to help drive our long term social impact. This is something I’m particularly excited about.

I want to give a very, very heartfelt thanks to everyone on this journey. Building something big is the work of many - it takes partnership and feedback from customers and community, talent and passion from team members and partners, and vision and wisdom from investors. Thank you all so much.

We couldn’t be more excited for what’s to come.

We’re hiring!

Come join us! We’re looking for top talent across machine learning & AI, software engineering, marketing, sales, and more, who want to join a high performing culture and make a genuine difference.

Check out our open roles.

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