A people-centric model for employment -- at enterprise scale.
Employment is the best framework for social inclusion and financial empowerment. Jobful turns enterprise hiring into the engine that funds, scales, and validates real impact for vulnerable communities -- without trading off commercial returns. Secured ARR €500K+. Zero churn. 645 vulnerable workers placed in 2025 alone.
Vulnerable workers placed (2025)
via Jobs4all -- 4× our ToC projection
People trained (2025)
+35% over our 2024 plan
Vulnerable people reached (2025)
across all programs
Non-dilutive impact capital secured
NESsT · EBRD · ERSTE · Cisco · Ashoka
The Problem
Talent inequality is broken by design. The technology that creates it can fix it.
The labour market wasn't built for everyone. People with disabilities, refugees, and LGBTQIA+ professionals face structural barriers that mainstream recruitment technology was never designed to remove. The cost -- to them, to employers, to economies -- is enormous and growing.
Severe disability employment in Romania
Significantly below the EU average. Workplace accessibility, bias, and rigid hiring processes keep millions of capable people locked out of the workforce.
Romania's poverty / social-exclusion rate
The highest in the EU. The EU average is 21.4%. Vulnerable groups are over-represented in this number -- and structurally invisible to mainstream recruitment tech.
Inclusion is an afterthought
Mainstream recruiting tech is built for the majority. Vulnerable talent pools are left out by default -- not by choice. That's a market failure and a social failure. The companies that fix it will own the next decade of inclusive hiring infrastructure.
Hiring vulnerable people gets framed as charity
It isn't. People who have navigated displacement, disability, or discrimination develop adaptability, resilience, and problem-solving skills that most CVs cannot show. The barrier is the system -- not the talent.
When pressure rises, inclusion drops off the agenda first
Layoffs and economic uncertainty trigger protectionism. DE&I becomes a "next quarter" problem. Without infrastructure that bakes inclusion into the default hiring workflow, it never gets back on the agenda.
The Thesis
Employment is the best framework for social inclusion and financial empowerment.
“Jobful envisions an inclusive, equitable workforce market where diverse skills, mindsets, and ways of working thrive -- empowering everyone to reach their full potential.”
-- Our vision statement
A people-centric model for employment isn't a charity initiative. It's the only model that scales. When you build inclusion into the hiring infrastructure -- at the platform level, at the candidate-experience level, at the enterprise-buyer level -- every commercial customer becomes an indirect impact channel and every direct programme funds the next.
Our €500K+ ARR and 0% churn aren't separate from the social mission. They arethe social mission, executed at the scale and durability impact alone can't reach.
Theory of Change
From inputs to a globally inclusive labour market.
Every euro of capital, every line of code, and every employer relationship is structured to feed a single outcomes hierarchy. Below is the logic chain -- and the assumptions we test against every quarter.
- Capital (commercial + grant)
- Tech platform & AI
- Partner network
- Mission-aligned team
- Skilling & training
- Anonymised matching
- Employer DE&I enablement
- NGO digital strategy
- Community building
- Trained candidates
- Inclusive hiring processes
- Digitised NGO partners
- Accessible platform
- Vulnerable workers placed & retained
- Career mobility
- Income stability
- Employer behaviour change
- Globally inclusive labour market
- Equitable employment infrastructure worldwide
- 1M+ individuals empowered
- →Candidates gain confidence and skills through gamified pathways
- →Employers reduce bias via anonymised profiles + DE&I training
- →NGOs integrate Jobful into their workflows
- →Increased hiring of people from vulnerable groups
- →Increased employment for vulnerable groups across target geographies
- →Decision-makers access inclusive strategies that prioritise individual needs
- →Enhanced employability via tailored skilling systems
- →60% of job postings on the platform adhere to DE&I standards
- →75% of participating organisations implement inclusive policies
- →Jobful facilitates employment for 1M individuals globally
- →Globally recognised inclusive employment standards adopted by policymakers
Three Pillars of Impact
One platform. Three audiences. Three impact mechanisms.
Most impact ventures choose one channel. We've architected three -- because the labour market isn't one system. Each pillar reinforces the others: commercial revenue from Pillar 1 funds platform investment that compounds across all three.
Corporate / Enterprise
Audience: Fortune 500, banks, hotels, energy.
Enterprise clients hire vulnerable talent through anonymised candidate flows, DE&I reporting, and inclusivity programmes baked into the platform. Every commercial customer becomes an inclusive-hiring channel by default.
Mechanism
- → Candidate anonymisation
- → Vulnerable-hire reporting
- → DE&I training & meetups
KPI
Vulnerable hires facilitated through enterprise clients per year
NGOs / Public Sector
Audience: NGOs, public agencies, refugee networks.
Mission-aligned organisations get access to Jobful's platform infrastructure, scaling their placement capacity without rebuilding tech from scratch. Their reach becomes our impact multiplier.
Mechanism
- → Digital strategy for partners
- → Platform licensing (REN, Startup Refugees)
- → Ashoka NGO-tech POC
KPI
NGOs digitised + multiplier on their annual placements
Jobs4all Ecosystem
Audience: Vulnerable individuals served directly.
The bridge between employers, NGOs, and government agencies. Jobs4all is Jobful's direct-impact arm -- a digital-first ecosystem that increases employability for people with disabilities, refugees, and LGBTQIA+ professionals.
Mechanism
- → Direct candidate skilling
- → Inclusive matching
- → Community support & mentorship
KPI
Vulnerable candidates placed + 1-year retention
Communities We Serve
Three vulnerable communities. Three named validators. One platform.
Each community we serve has a structural barrier mainstream hiring tech wasn't designed to remove. Each one has a named external partner who vouches for our methodology and funds our work.
People with disabilities
Romania: only 12% employment rate for severe disabilities
We've built the entire platform around accessibility -- assistive-device support, anonymised profiles to prevent bias, and tailored skilling for digital roles. Delivered in partnership with Jobs4all and BCR.
Validated by
Jobs4all · BCR · ERSTE Foundation (€50K+, 2024 launch grant)
Migrants & refugees
114M people displaced globally (UNHCR, 2023)
Launched for Ukrainian refugees in February 2022 and scaled into the Refugee Employment Network. We provide career training, job placement, language pathways, and community access -- through a platform that doesn't strip away dignity.
Validated by
UNHCR · IOM · EBRD (€50K+, multi-year 2022–2025) · IKEA Social Entrepreneurship via NESsT REI
LGBTQIA+ community
First Romanian company in NESsT Violet Fund
A dedicated programme launching in 2026 with NESsT Violet Fund backing. We're building inclusive hiring and training tailored to LGBTQIA+ professionals -- the third vulnerable community where we extend the same playbook that works for disabilities and refugees.
Validated by
NESsT Violet Fund (€100K+, 2026) · Measurable DEI committee + targets
SDG Alignment
Two primary UN Sustainable Development Goals. Direct, measurable contribution.
Decent Work & Economic Growth
Every direct placement is a measurable contribution to SDG 8.5 (full and productive employment for all). Our Jobs4all retention infrastructure addresses SDG 8.6 (substantially reduce the proportion of NEETs).
Reduced Inequalities
Anonymised matching, bias-resistant AI, and dedicated programs for people with disabilities, refugees, and LGBTQIA+ professionals directly advance SDG 10.2 (empower social, economic, and political inclusion of all).
Secondary alignment
Performance
The numbers that tell the impact story.
In 2025 we beat our own Theory of Change projections by 4× on placements. These are the metrics we report to our funders quarterly -- and the ones the €1M Impact Tranche will compound.
| Metric | 2025 Actual | 2026 Projection | Pillar |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vulnerable workers placed (Jobs4all direct) | 645 | 700+ | Pillar 3 |
| People trained | 1,349 | 1,500+ | Pillars 2 + 3 |
| Vulnerable people reached | 3,452 | 4,000+ | All |
| Companies adopting inclusive hiring policies | 12 | 10+ net new | Pillar 1 |
| NGO / public-agency partnerships active | 6 | 4+ net new | Pillar 2 |
| LGBTQIA+ programme -- baseline | Measurement begins Q3 2026 | Launching with NESsT support | Pillar 3 expansion |
Why 645 matters more than the projection: Our 2024 Theory of Change projected 120–150 placements via Jobs4all for 2025. We delivered 645 -- over 4× the plan. This is what happens when the same platform that drives commercial ARR is also the platform serving vulnerable communities: the technology investment compounds across both engines.
From the founder
Why I built this -- and why it doesn't slow down when pressure rises.
Mihai Cepoi
Founder & CEO, Jobful
Speaker, Ashoka partner, NESsT Violet Fund participant
“From our experience, employers look at hiring migrants, refugees, or people with disabilities as charity. That's patronising -- and it shows a lack of understanding of the potential of a professional to impact an organisation. People who have gone through struggles in different ways are a huge untapped definition of talent. We know that these are potentially spectacular talent.”
“At the end of the day, the main purpose of any startup is to grow. In our case, we redefined success. It means growing the business -- but it also means impacting and making life better for vulnerable communities and for all professionals.”
“Every time we began working with a new community -- refugees, people with disabilities -- we discovered needs we hadn't yet considered. This helped us to adapt our technology to strengthen our support.”
-- Mihai Cepoi · From NESsT Violet Fund (2026) & IKEA Social Entrepreneurship (2024)
Validation Arc
€245K+ in non-dilutive impact capital. From five institutions that don't fund impact-washing.
Each of these partners runs rigorous impact diligence before deploying capital. Five of them -- across four years -- have backed Jobful's social mission. Their cumulative endorsement is the strongest external validation an impact VC can underwrite against.
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)
€50K+ · Multi-year grant (2022–2025)Funding dedicated skilling programmes for Ukrainian refugees through the Jobs4Ukraine deployment.
“Supporting dedicated programs for skilling Ukrainian refugees.”
ERSTE Foundation
€50K+ · GrantFunded the official launch of Jobs4all -- Jobful's direct-impact arm for people with disabilities in Romania.
“Supporting the official launch of our direct impact strategy.”
Ashoka
Strategic partnershipInternational collaboration framework for developing the proof of concept for NGO digital strategy (Pillar 2).
“Proof of concept development for NGOs digital strategy.”
Cisco Foundation
€45K+ · Recoverable loanFunding AI innovation features specifically designed for vulnerable groups -- accessibility, anonymisation, bias-resistant matching.
“Supporting the expansion of the Jobful platform with dedicated AI features for vulnerable groups.”
NESsT Violet Fund
€100K+ · Recoverable grant · LatestFirst company from Romania to join the NESsT Violet Fund. Expanding Jobful's inclusive recruitment support for the LGBTQIA+ community, with a measurable DEI committee and inclusive hiring targets.
“Expanding our impact for the LGBTQIA+ community.”
Ecosystem
Distribution and validation built over seven years.
Mission Validators
Impact Deployments
Commercial Distribution
Verification & Measurement
Our impact isn't claimed. It's reported quarterly to funders who don't accept impact-washing.
Partner-validated outcomes
Our impact metrics are reported to -- and validated by -- institutional funders that require rigorous outcomes verification before deploying capital.
- ✓EBRD multi-year grant reporting (2022–2025)
- ✓NESsT Violet Fund DEI committee + targets (2026)
- ✓ERSTE Foundation grant outcomes (2024)
- ✓Cisco Foundation recoverable-loan milestones (2025)
- ✓UNHCR validation of Jobs4all methodology
Internal impact methodology
Our measurement framework is built on Jobful's Theory of Change and tracks across four dimensions:
- →Education: people trained, peer-to-peer learning sessions, graduates
- →Employment: people placed, in process, retained
- →Employers & partners: trained on inclusivity, mentors, available jobs
- →Organisation: % of employees and selectees from underrepresented groups
On the roadmap: Independent third-party social outcomes audit planned in 2027. 12-month retention tracking moving into production in 2026.
The Impact Tranche
€1M dedicated impact tranche. Equity-only. Ringfenced for vulnerable-group outcomes.
Separate from our commercial bridge, the Impact Tranche is structured for funds whose mandate requires SDG-aligned, outcome-tracked deployments. Same Seed-stage valuation. Different success criteria.
Instrument
Equity
Priced at Seed-stage valuation. No special class -- impact investors hold the same shares as commercial Seed.
Size
€1,000,000
Suitable for a single lead impact fund or a small syndicate of 2–3 aligned funds.
Returns tracked on
Financial + Impact
Standard equity upside plus quarterly impact outcomes reported against the Theory of Change.
How the €1M deploys
Engine 1 · Scaling direct impact
~€500K
Jobs4all ecosystem expansion + LGBTQIA+ programme launch + Romania → CEE replication.
- → LGBTQIA+ dedicated programmes (NESsT-co-funded)
- → Geographic replication into 2 CEE markets
- → Retention infrastructure: 12-month tracking + post-placement support
- → Direct placement target: 700+ in 2026, 1,000+ in 2027
Engine 2 · Scaling indirect impact leverage
~€500K
Pillar 2 NGO/Public deployments + AI accessibility features + Pillar 1 enterprise inclusion programs.
- → Digitise 4+ new NGO/public-agency partners (Pillar 2)
- → AI accessibility & bias-resistant matching (Cisco-funded base, scale-up)
- → Enterprise inclusivity programs at 10+ commercial clients (Pillar 1)
- → Replicate REN / Startup Refugees model in DACH
Mission-lock commitment:Jobs4all operates through Asociația pentru o Angajare Echitabilă as a separately-governed NGO arm. The Impact Tranche includes a contractual commitment that Jobful's commercial direction will not pull resources, talent, or attention away from the social mission -- and an annual public impact report demonstrating this.
Impact-VC FAQ
The questions every impact fund asks. Answered upfront.
Next Steps
If you fund employment-as-inclusion, we should talk.
The Impact Tranche is open through 2026. Minimum ticket €250K, lead-investor positions available. We're looking for 1–3 funds whose mandate aligns with SDG 8 + 10 and who bring impact diligence rigour, not just capital.
Book an Impact Briefing
30-minute call with Mihai. Walk through the Theory of Change, metrics, and tranche mechanics together.
Sign NDA · Access Data Room
Full financials, audited methodology documentation, partnership outcomes reports, and reference contacts.
Commit to the Tranche
Term sheet, mission-lock clauses, and quarterly impact reporting schedule signed digitally.
Be the lead capital in inclusive employment infrastructure.
€1M Impact Tranche, open through 2026. Lead investor position available.
Data Room