Lagos- and Berlin-based startup Propel has secured €2.5 million in seed investment to support its mission of building sustainable talent pipelines for communities and facilitating the hiring of remote talent from emerging markets, particularly in Africa.
The funding round was led by No Such Ventures, with participation from APX, Golden Egg Check, and Future of Learning Fund. Propel plans to use the investment to drive the adoption of its community-as-a-service platform and generate €1 million in revenue for communities by the fourth quarter of next year.
Recognizing the importance of tech communities in emerging market ecosystems, Propel aims to address the missing distribution layer for the tech talent pipeline. While these communities excel at building and upskilling talent, they often struggle to connect them with job opportunities.
Propel fills this gap by providing a pipeline that connects talent from tech communities with global companies seeking diverse talent and specific skill sets. The startup leverages its network of talent pools spanning various skill sets, including software development, design, data science, and digital transformation skills.
Propel offers its pipeline of talent to global companies through its “community-as-a-service” model. The company has already collaborated with companies like Orange Telecoms, Stepstone, and several startups and scaleups across Europe.
In addition to access to work, tech talent from these communities can also benefit from partnerships with service providers, which provide access to healthcare, workstations, and later on, financial services such as loans and asset financing.
Currently serving over 100+ tech communities in 15 African countries, Propel aims to expand its reach and grow its ecosystem. The company plans to increase its number of communities to 500, with 1 million members across the board by 2024.
Propel generates revenue through hiring and placement fees and shares a portion of the revenue with the communities. This provides a new financial revenue stream for communities beyond grants and sponsorships, allowing them to grow and thrive.
With a team of 25 employees spread across multiple locations, Propel has successfully placed over 550 individuals in job roles across various countries. The company, backed by Google Black Founders in Europe and having raised over €3 million to date, plans to scale its community platform, introduce new client offerings, and deepen its ecosystem of communities.
No Such Ventures, one of the lead investors, praised Propel’s community-focused approach to driving the open talent economy and expressed excitement about partnering with the company on its growth journey.
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