Reach Capital 2024 Impact Report: Our Journey Towards Impact At Scale

This report shares how Reach invests for impact and how current macro-forces influence our impact theses. It features portfolio companies that align to these thesis areas, and provides a snapshot of where they are in their impact journey, how they got there, and what the next steps will be.

1. 2024 Impact Report
OUR JOURNEY TOWARDS IMPACT AT SCALE

2. How Reach Invests for
Impact
Implications for K-12
+Featured Reach
Portfolio Companies

Macro-Forces that Shape
Our Impact Thesis
WHAT’S INSIDE
Implications for
Workforce Development
+Featured Reach
Portfolio Companies
Solutions We’re Seeking
03 08 12
27 44

3. How Reach Invests for Impact
Reach Capital and Social Impact | 3

4. ABOUT REACH CAPITAL
Reach Capital Partners
We are early-stage, thesis-driven investors,
supporting founders who elevate human
potential and ignite purpose. Since 2015,
Reach has backed over 130 companies,
including many iconic and impactful
brands across learning (Brilliant, Lovevery,
Outschool), health (Cartwheel, Stepful,
Sketchy) and work (Handshake, Replit,
WorkWhile)
Our History
We are founders, operators, classroom
teachers, parents, and lifelong learners.
We are immigrants and first-gen college
graduates. We have as many former
educators as MBAs on our team. We are
the most diverse team in venture capital.
Our Team
Our varied life experiences and education
expertise help us identify pressing barriers
to learning and opportunity. We examine
societal trends, market drivers, and
emerging technologies to identify
opportunities for impact at scale. These
become impact theses which guide our
investment strategy.
Thesis-driven Investing

5. WHY IMPACT MATTERS
Reach invests in founders who strive to elevate human
potential and ignite purpose across learning, health, and
work. These companies make a meaningful difference in
people’s lives through increasing access to education,
enabling financial security, broadening career opportunities,
and helping them be better at what they do and who they
are. Our founders know that when they consistently deliver
value, everybody wins.
As investors, if we invest in and support founders who build
companies that deliver impact at scale, we can achieve
best-in-class financial returns.
Building a well-run, impactful company is a journey, one
that starts with a founder’s commitment to a mission,
unique insights about learners and workers and their pain
points, and conviction that they can deliver a solution.
Reach brings an arsenal of supports to help founders
realize their vision through creating delightful products
that deliver on their promises, getting them efficiently to
market, and changing people’s lives.
This report describes the journey and shares examples of
how Reach invests in and helps founders along the way.
We describe current macro forces that create
opportunities for outsized impact, highlight founders
building in those areas, and share stories of people they
have touched. We highlight companies at different stages
in their impact journey to illustrate steps they have already
taken and still plan to take in their quest to achieve
impact at scale.
Reach Capital and Social Impact | 5

6. Phases of a startup’s impact journey
Reach Capital and Social Impact | 6
Designed by experts
SCALE
ACCESS
QUALITY Loved by users MEASURED OUTCOMES
1.0 2.0 3.0
IMPACT DIMENSIONS
THE IMPACT JOURNEY
Pre-product market fit Product-market fit SCALED
More accessible than status quo Low cost ACCESSIBLE TO ALL
+ Designed by experts
+ Loved by users

7. We track impact growth
over time by calculating a
composite impact score
Reach Capital and Social Impact | 7
SCALE ACCESS QUALITYx( )+ =IMPACT SCORE
THE IMPACT JOURNEY

SAMPLE IMPACT PROGRESS FOR COMPANY
Reach Entry
12.0 Current5.0
Founded
In the example above, the company’s baseline Impact Score was
5 when Reach initially invested. Since then, its impact score has
grown to 12. (The maximum score is 18.)
COMPOSITE IMPACT SCORE
Impact base

8. Macro-Forces that Shape
Our Impact Thesis
Macro-Forces that Present Opportunities for Impact | 8

9. Labor shortages are a long-term trend
Partner commentary

Labor market tightness is our “new
normal.” In many sectors in the economy,
we see stark imbalances between the
demand and supply of workers, especially
those with specialized skills. This trend
applies across advanced economies
globally.
Technology can be used to impact this
imbalance in three ways:

McKinsey, 2024
Job vacancies per unemployed person in the US
2000 2010 2023
0
0.5
1.0
1.5
2.0
Macro-Forces that Present Opportunities for Impact | 9
➔ Increase the liquidity of
existing supply
➔ Increase the productivity
of existing supply
➔ Create net new supply
through training
COVID-19 Pandemic
7x
Increase since 2010
— Jomayra Herrera

10. 70%
consider flexible work
to be very or
extremely important

SHRM, 2024
Workers’ new priorities post-pandemic
80%
believe they would be
just as effective
and/or happier if they
work 4 days a week

APA, 2024
Partner commentary

The pandemic has fundamentally shifted
worker expectations, creating a demand for
more flexible work arrangements, including
remote work and greater control over
schedules and workloads.

This presents significant opportunities for
investment, particularly in platforms and
marketplaces that support flexible work
and self-employment solutions. By
investing in these areas, we can support
the evolving needs of the workforce,
empowering individuals to achieve better
work-life balance and fostering economic
resilience through innovative employment
structures.

— Jomayra Herrera
93%
rank work-life
balance as a priority,
equal to pay

Randstat, 2024
Macro-Forces that Present Opportunities for Impact | 10

11. Generative AI use is growing quickly
Partner commentary

Generative AI tools are now regularly used
by a large and rapidly growing portion of
individual consumers and business
enterprises. In the near term, these tools
offer substantial opportunities for impact
by enhancing worker productivity across
various sectors.
Looking ahead, the growing prevalence of AI
will drive demand for new types of skills,
with projections indicating that up to
two-thirds of occupations could be
automated by 2030. Investing in AI-driven
solutions and reskilling initiatives will be
crucial in navigating this shift, ensuring that
the workforce remains adaptable and
future-ready.
— Jomayra Herrera


Macro-Forces that Present Opportunities for Impact | 11
38%
Actively deployed
By enterprises (1K+ employees)
42%
Experimenting
By U.S. consumers
SOURCE: IBM, Jan, 2024
31%
Have used
58%
Are aware of SOURCE: Forrester, March, 2024

12. Implications for K-12
Implications for K-12 | 12

13. Implications for K-12 | 13
Labor shortages in K-12
Partner commentary

The pandemic exacerbated long-term
shortages of teachers and support
specialists across numerous fields. While
the pandemic also forced broader
acceptance of remote services, we see
evidence that districts still prefer
face-to-face support, even at the expense
of cost efficiency and compliance.

Districts face post-pandemic budgetary
woes given increasing pension and health
care costs and decreasing enrollment and
associated revenue. While higher wages
may help fill job vacancies, they come at
the expense of other services and budget
line items.

— Steve Kupfer
American Association for Employment in Education, 2023
Severe shortages Some shortages
➔Languages
➔Math and science
➔Special education
➔Audiology
➔Speech pathology
➔School psychology
➔Computer science
➔Reading specialist
➔Tech education
➔Nursing
➔Occupational therapy
➔Physical therapy
➔Social work
➔Counseling
Academic fields
Supports

14. Partner commentary

Teachers and other K-12 workers are
burned out, significantly more so than
workers in other industries. K-12 jobs are
inherently at odds with broader workforce
trends, providing limited flexibility for
where and when employees can work. In
addition, working conditions and demands
in classrooms continue to be more
challenging given dramatic increases in
behavioral incidents and growing
non-English speaking populations.
Many (some research suggest up to 40%
of teachers) report having a side hustle to
supplement their income. With a tight
labor market and more flexible, better
paying options outside of schools, filling
vacancies and staff retention have
become high priorities for districts.
— Steve Kupfer
Implications for K-12 | 14
Rand, 2024
Burnout Percentage
59%
56%
60%
44%
35%
33%
Teachers
Working adults
with at least a
bachelor’s degree
Post-pandemic K-12 worker burnout

15. Partner commentary

AI is quickly being adopted in K-12 schools
with over 70% of teachers, students and
parents using AI chatbots at least once in a
while. Nearly all superintendents believe
that schools have an obligation to teach
students how to use AI effectively and
responsibly.

As districts scramble to develop AI policies,
teachers and students are quickly moving
ahead with limited guidance and
experimenting with readily available AI tools
to support teaching, learning, and work.
While most educators now feel positively
about the use of AI for learning, they’re still
wary about students using AI for cheating,
reduced human interaction, and data
privacy and security.

— Steve Kupfer
Implications for K-12 | 15
Generative AI use in K-12
About half of teachers, students and parents use AI chatbots at least
once a week for work or school
Parents
49%
49%
52%
24%
23%
18%
K-12 Students
Impact Research 2024
Teachers
Every once in a whileOnce a week or more
73%
72%
70%

16. Opportunities for
impact in K-12
Implications for K-12 | 16
Labor marketplaces and remote work opportunities can
access untapped labor pools and increase the supply of
providers who can support specific needs of students.
Flexible labor pools
Gen AI can help alleviate workloads for teachers,
therapists, and other roles with heavy paperwork
burdens and free them up for more frequent and
deeper student interactions.
AI co-pilots
Solutions that address root causes of burnout — e.g.
disengaged students, behavioral incidents, increased
student support needs outside of teaching — can help
reduce employee burnout and improve retention.
Improved working conditions

17. Featured Reach Portfolio
Companies in K-12
Implications for Workforce Development | 17

18. Since we invested
Clayful hired and trained coaches on
evidence-based practices and
developed rigorous escalation and
safety procedures. The team has
already pursued multiple studies to
measure outcomes. Many of the
students they serve live in
under-resourced rural communities.

Growth opportunities
Clayful is investing in a data
infrastructure to measure and report
student engagement and outcomes to
districts. In addition, they are building
a partner success function to ensure
high levels of student engagement.

Implications for K-12 | 18
On-demand, text-based
coaching for every kid
Maria
Barrera
Founders
Melissa
Pelochino
SCALE Pre-product market fit
Serving districts across 9 states
1.0
Free to students through schools
ACCESS Accessible to all3.0
QUALITY Promising outcomes
●Coaches trained on evidence-based
practices
●4.7 Average session rating (out of 5)
●Students with 2+ coaching sessions
saw an average improvement of 47%
in depressive symptom scores
2.0
Current Score
Reach III Entry
Pre-Seed, 2021
5.00.0
Impact thesis
80% of superintendents expect student well-being to increase in
importance, as mental health challenges continue to impact
attendance, behavior and academics. Clayful provides universal,
on-demand coaching for students to develop skills to navigate
everyday stresses.
IMPACT GROWTH
IMPACT SUBSCORES
Founded
2021

19. USER STORY
Stark Cry for Help
When Charlie reviewed the results of a 2023
survey of Plainwell middle and high school
students, he was deeply troubled: 40% had
struggled with suicidal ideation. Moreover, the
district’s 750 to 1 student-to-counselor ratio
meant that available resources were in short
supply.

PCS students took to Clayful shortly after its
rollout. In the first few months, 37% of
students had two or more contacts with
coaches. Usage among male students tripled
the state and national average. Engagement
peaked among ninth and tenth graders.
Implications for K-12 | 19
Turning Insights into Action and Services
Through anonymized chats, Charlie and his
team gained a clearer understanding of the
stressors students faced. Many felt anxious
about exams, assignments, and
procrastination. Others struggled with romantic
crushes, friendships, and loneliness.

These insights led to changes in student
services. Charlie is working with educators to
reduce test anxiety, create lessons focused on
growth over perfection, and bring counselors
into classrooms to discuss growth mindsets.
Students are also building resilience and
wellness habits through Clayful’s journaling
exercises.


Real chat messages sent by
students to Clayful coaches:
“Thank you so much for your
help it’s nice to talk to
someone that you can trust to
give their honest opinion”
“Thank you for helping me
with my problems it made
me feel a lot better about
myself thank you =)”
“I really appreciate what the
Clayful team is doing in
today’s world because this
stuff is life changing and life
saving”
Charlie Wynne
District Compliance and Coordinating
Officer, Plainwell Community Schools

20. Since we invested
Curipod launched in Feb 2023,
garnering immediate teacher love.
They have now reached 5M+ students.
The team has been hard at work
improving the quality of lessons,
aligning them to U.S. standards and
research-based lesson design
principles.

Growth opportunities
Curipod will continue improving
lesson quality by pairing instructional
designers (U.S. educators) with AI
experts, and leaning into subjects
such as middle school ELA, where
GenAI can enable entirely new forms
of powerful learning experiences.




Implications for K-12 | 20
Student engagement
platform powered by GenAI
Founders
SCALE Pre-product market fit
5M+ students reached
1.5
Free to students through schools
ACCESS Accessible to all3.0
QUALITY User love
●Grounded in research-based Nordic
pedagogical principles
●Curriculum design team of
experienced US educators
●Usage grew 4x in 6 months
1.5
IMPACT GROWTH
Impact thesis
Teachers’ top two challenges are motivating students and
managing their own burnout. Curipod enables teachers to deliver
highly engaging lessons that push students’ thinking, while saving
teachers time with the help of generative AI and its interactive
lesson delivery platform.
Frikk
Fossan
Eirik Hernes
Berre
Jens Aarre
Seip
IMPACT SUBSCORES
Current Score
Reach III Entry
Seed, 2023
6.83.5
Founded
2019

21. USER STORY
Cutting Lesson Planning Time in Half
Lesson planning used to be a grind for Heather,
who would spend hours compiling the right
materials for lessons and activities that would
get kids excited and engaged in class.

Curipod’s AI-powered lesson delivery platform
cut her planning time in half. It automatically
generates an interactive lesson that she can
customize to meet the needs of her students.

Beyond saving time, what Heather appreciates
most about Curipod lessons is how they can be
enriched with polls, exit tickets, drawing
activities and “brain breaks” that engage every
student in the classroom. These breaks
encourage students to discuss, collaborate,
and express themselves in creative ways.
Implications for K-12 | 21
Sparking Curiosity and Engagement for All
The platform’s AI-generated questions spark
curiosity and deepen thinking about the
subject. Students also love debating the
feedback delivered by AI on their work. As a
tech teacher, Heather believes it’s important
for students to see how AI will be a part of
their lives, why it’s not always perfect, and how
to evaluate its output with a critical eye.

Even the shy kids are engaged. “I have a
student who before would sit in the corner and
not say anything. Then I had the most genius
answers popping up on the screen, and it was
that kid!” she says. “It was that student who
would not ever speak or raise their hand who
now shares great insights.”
“Curipod gives
opportunities for
every student to have
a voice, and when
they feel that their
voice is heard and
important, they
invest more into their
learning.”

- Heather Brantley
Heather Brantley
CTE Web Communications Teacher
Pine Tree ISD, Texas

22. Since we invested
Cartwheel has deepened its
penetration in MA and expanded into
OH and IL with near universal
insurance coverage. Though
Cartwheel served 5 times more
students than the prior year, service
quality remains high.

Growth opportunities
With a target of 100% insurance
coverage in each state, Cartwheel will
continue to scale by increasing
density in existing states and
expanding to new ones. In addition,
they plan to expand the mental
health services they offer districts.
Implications for K-12 | 22
Online mental health
support through schools
Founders
Impact thesis
92% of superintendents believe that the student mental health
crisis is worse today than in 2019. Cartwheel partners closely with
school districts to provide Tier II and Tier III support covered by
insurance.
Daniel
Tartakovsky
Joe
English
SCALE Product-market fit
4.3k students referred
2.0
Covered by insurance or schools
ACCESS Accessible to all3.0
QUALITY User love + outcomes
●Highly qualified Chief Medical Officer
●Parent NPS: 81
●93% of students feel better after first session
●5-point average decline in anxiety and
depression scores

2.5
IMPACT GROWTH
Current Score
Reach IV Entry
Series A, 2023
11.05.5
IMPACT SUBSCORES
Founded
2022

23. USER STORY
Acute Needs, Inadequate Support
Serving 16 public school districts in
Montgomery County and more than 130
educational entities across Ohio, the
Montgomery County Educational Service Center
(MCESC) provides critical learning and health
services to students and teachers.

Even before the pandemic, mental health was
a focus. Dayton was ravaged by the opioid
crisis, leaving fractured communities and youth
in need of more support. By 2023, MCESC had
built mental health partnerships with nine local
agencies, but all of them had waitlists ranging
from a month to almost a year. With demand
for resources outpacing local supply, MCESC
needed a new way to expand access to care.
Implications for K-12 | 23
Reducing Wait Times and Improving Access
Partnering with Cartwheel reduced wait times
from months to just 7-10 days. Expanded
services such as psychiatry, med management,
family therapy, and parent guidance also
allowed ESC to offer new types of care.

In January 2024, MCES established a
cost-sharing agreement for its member
districts. Four districts joined the first pilot.
Approximately 15,000 students across 27
schools in these districts gained access to
mental health services they wouldn’t otherwise
have due to waitlists, insurance issues,
language availability, transportation, and other
barriers. Within the first month, 50 referrals
were made for care.



“Parents were telling
us that mental health
support was difficult
to navigate and took
an inordinate amount
of time… Within a
short period, we are
helping to close the
gap – and Cartwheel
has been
instrumental.”

- Kathleen Lucas
Kathleen Lucas
Director of Student Services, Miamisburg
City School District

24. Since we invested
Swing increased coverage in seven
states, more than doubling their
business, while maintaining
best-in-class fill rates. With 50% of
subs on Swing being new to the role,
they have expanded the overall
supply of subs.

Growth opportunities
Swing will continue deepening
coverage in current geos while also
expanding into new states. They plan
to introduce ratings and feedback to
improve the quality of subs and may
expand to cover other staffing needs.
Implications for K-12 | 24
Substitute teacher
marketplace
Founders
Impact thesis
U.S. schools require over 150M substitute teacher days each year.
Districts struggle to recruit needed subs and often rely on costly
staffing agencies. Swing’s K-12 labor marketplace improve fill
rates and decrease costs, while providing flexible work
opportunities for teachers.
Mike Teng
SCALE Product-market fit
2.8k monthly active subs in 7 states
2.5
Free for substitute teachers
ACCESS Accessible to all3.0
QUALITY Loved by users
● Fill rates 17 percentage points
above national average
● Near perfect retention of top 100
Swing schools
2.0
IMPACT GROWTH
Current Score12.510.0
IMPACT SUBSCORES
Asha
Visweswaran
Founded
2015
Reach III Entry
Series C, 2023

25. USER STORY
From Paraprofessional to Impactful Teacher
A graduate of San Jose State University, Paul
has been with Swing since September 2022,
serving the Sacramento community. Before
earning his California teaching credential in
2023, Paul dedicated eight years as a
paraprofessional, enriching the lives of
students with special needs.

Although he’s also used other platforms to find
substitute gigs, he appreciates Swing for being
the most flexible and transparent. It allows
him to find opportunities that fit his schedule
and location, and get a better sense for the
assignment duration, pay and school culture.
For Paul, clarity about the class and the lesson
plan is key to a successful assignment.
Implications for K-12 | 25
Not Your Everyday Sub
Having worked various assignments — from
same-day fill-ins to covering for a teacher on
maternity leave — substitute teaching has
been a fulfilling experience that opened his
eyes to the importance of subs. “The world
needs more subs and teachers, because who’s
going to be there when no one’s there? You’re
going to impact not only these students, but
also other teachers and even the principal.”

Paul likes to infuse his classes with brain
teasers, trivia, and other fun activities to keep
class lively. “I’m not going to be here forever.
I’m going to make an influence on these kids’
lives even as a sub — I want to make a lasting
impression on them.”



“Swing gave me the
opportunity to step
up and finally
become a teacher in
my own classroom,
even as just a
substitute teacher.”

- Paul Teogalbo
Paul Teogalbo
Substitute Teacher

26. Implications for K-12 | 26
K-12 companies to watch
Entry round Series B, 2024
Reach IV

Despite 20% of the population
having a learning disability,
only 4% of students receive a
formal diagnosis or support.
Under-resourced districts,
facing legal risks and
shortages of psychologists and
support specialists, struggle
with long waitlists. Marker
Learning leverages software to
automate and integrate labor
intensive processes and
disparate data sources,
increasing clinician capacity
and unlocking broader access.
Entry round Pre-seed, 2023
Reach IV

With districts still reeling from
pandemic learning loss and
teacher burnout, Paloma
provides an easy way for
districts to enlist parents as
teaching partners. With 79%
parental engagement in
partner districts, Paloma
unlocks up to 1,000 extra
hours of one-on-one
instruction for every
classroom.
Entry round Series A, 2024
Reach IV

While generative AI has the
potential to transform
learning, educators fear its use
by students to cheat. GPTZero
is building a suite of tools
around its AI-detection
technology to help educators,
students, and professionals
leverage AI thoughtfully in the
process of writing while
preserving human effort and
creativity.
Entry round Pre-seed, 2023
Reach IV

About 20% of children have a
developmental delay or
disability. The supply of
speech, occupational, and
physical therapists is severely
constrained, resulting in
months-long wait lists. Coral
Care’s 3-sided marketplace
connects therapists, families,
and insurance payers. Because
the platform makes a side
hustle easy for therapists, it
creates net new supply of
sessions.

27. Implications for
Workforce Development
Implications for Workforce Development | 27

28. Key sectors need to address job vacancies
Partner commentary

We see persistent labor shortages in key
parts of the global economy, including
education, healthcare, construction,
manufacturing. Within these sectors there
are many different roles that each have
unique underlying drivers for shortages,
which have real implications for economic
opportunity and growth.

— Jomayra Herrera
Implications for Workforce Development | 28
Job vacancy rate by sector, 7-country average %
McKinsey, 2024
0 1 2 3 4 5
Manufacturing
Trade
Information
Transportation
Construction
Professional services
Healthcare
Leisure and hospitality
2010 2023
Job vacancy rate %

29. Employers respond to demands for flexibility
Partner commentary

Given the tight labor market and challenges
in attracting and retaining workers,
employers are having to adapt policies to
address worker demands.

Today workers have options — e.g. other
workplaces, gig work, or even working for
themselves — where they are more likely
find what they’re looking for in terms of pay,
work-life balance, flexibility, and values.

— Jomayra Herrera

Implications for Workforce Development | 29
Average days per week working from home after the pandemic ends
1.5
2
2.5
3
Jan 2021 Jan 2022 Jan 2023 Jan 2024
WFH Research, 2024
Employer Plans
Worker Desires

30. McKinsey, 2024
Partner commentary

Since the release of ChatGPT in November,
2022, business leaders have reported a
surge of AI adoption in their organizations.
They are rapidly experimenting, adopting,
and realizing value from generative AI.
Business functions that most regularly use
AI are marketing and sales, product
development, and IT. Value is created
through cost reductions in HR and service
operations, as well as through revenue
increases in supply chain, inventory
management, and marketing and sales.
That said, it’s important to recognize that
workers are concerned about losing their
jobs and having access to training about AI.
— Jomayra Herrera

Businesses rapidly adopt GenAI
Implications for Workforce Development | 30
Source: McKinsey, 2024
Business functions at respondents' organizations that have adopted AI
1 or more functions
2 or more functions
3 or more functions
4 or more functions
5 or more functions
% of
Respondents

31. Opportunities for
impact in workforce
Self-employment and increasing liquidity
As workers increasingly want flexible work, business
models such as labor marketplaces and
business-in-a-box platforms can enable additional
liquidity with existing supply.
Workflow augmentation tools
If labor supply remains constrained, increasing
productivity of the existing workforce can help address
unmet demand. GenAI tools can be a significant
accelerant by augmenting workers’ skills and expertise.
Creating net new supply
Cost-effective models that create net new supply for
hard-to-fill roles will thrive as employer demand
remains high.
Upskilling
As the need to reskill only accelerates, there is
increasing demand for upskilling, especially when it is
in the flow of work.
Implications for Workforce Development | 31

32. Featured Reach Portfolio Companies in
Workforce Development
Implications for Workforce Development | 32

33. Implications for Workforce Development | 33
Since we invested
Hopps has found product-market fit
with SMBs seeking help for developer
and marketing tools on a low-cost,
pay-as-you-go basis. The company
has rapidly taken off, with strong
monthly growth and best-in-class
take rate, retention, and unit
economics.

Growth opportunities
Hopps will deepen its focus on
prosumers and SMBs, explore
go-to-market partnerships, and
expand their white-labeled
subscription offering. Hopps plans to
augment live human help with AI
assistance to improve support
provided in the flow of work.
Live, on-demand expert
support for SaaS tools
Founders
Impact thesis
On average, companies use more than 10 digital tools every day.
Employers struggle to train employees on these tools to be
effective in their roles. Hopps’ marketplace of experts provides
on-demand help across many popular software tools and skills.
SCALE Product market fit
4,200+ users

2.0
Low cost-per-min paid by employer
ACCESS
More accessible than
status quo
1.0
QUALITY Loved by users
● Rigorously vetted experts
● 75 NPS
● Best-in-class retention metrics
after 2 years
2.0
IMPACT GROWTH
Current Score
Reach III Entry
Seed, 2021
6.02.0
IMPACT SUBSCORES
Aamir Latif
Founded
2019

34. Teach Someone to Fish…
A real estate developer by day, Buck also runs a
side business to help his peers build websites
and pitch decks to raise funds for their real
estate projects.

Initially he turned to freelancers on Fiverr to
develop the first version of this service. But he
had difficulty managing them, and without
knowing how they built the site, “I didn’t like
that I had no idea what was going on,” he said.
Buck asked them to record Loom videos to get
a better understanding of how the tech pieces
fit together, but most were reluctant to do so.

Although Buck wasn’t a techie — he studied
creative writing in college — he still wanted to
know how to how to use the latest tech tools.
…and They’ll Build a Business for a Lifetime
Through Hopps, Buck connected with experts
who taught him how to build with over a dozen
tools, including Airtable, Figma, Webflow, and
Zapier. With hands-on guidance through screen
sharing, Buck learned how each piece worked
and fit together to create a high-quality user
experience. Buck is proud to be one of the
most frequent Hopps users, meeting with
experts several times a week.

Today, his website — dealpage.io — has helped
over 50 real estate developers raise more than
$200 million in capital. He’s not done with
Hopps, either: He’s excited to try the
forthcoming Generative AI features to expand
the services offered on his site.
“DealPage is a huge
part of my business,
and Hopps is pretty
much how I built it.
I’m quite thankful for
what they provided
and taught me.”

- Buck Buczkowski
USER STORY
Implications for Workforce Development | 34
Buck Buczkowski
Founder, dealpage.io

35. Since we invested
Stepful’s first 15-person cohort
learned in person and achieved high
completion and placement rates
(~80%). Keeping this high outcome
bar, they introduced online
components, study groups and
coaches. The model is now highly
scalable with strong economics and
outcomes.

Growth opportunities
Expand and deepen end-to-end
training solutions for employers.
Stepful’s upskilling programs help
healthcare providers address talent
shortages, while delivering free
training to employees.

Implications for Workforce Development | 35
Healthcare vocational training
Founders
Impact thesis
Stepful enables people with a high school degree to start a career
path in healthcare. It offers training programs that are low cost,
fast, and scalable.
SCALE Product-market fit
Tens of thousands of students
2.0
Scholarships available
ACCESS Low cost2.0
3.0
QUALITY User love + outcomes
● 80% completion (2x better than
alternative solutions)
● 85% certification (15 points above
national average)
● 4x faster placement than trade schools
and community colleges
2.5
IMPACT GROWTH
Current Score
Reach III Entry
Seed, 2021
IMPACT SUBSCORES
Edoardo
Serra
Tressia
Hobeika
Carl Madi
9.0
Founded
2020

36. USER STORY
Stepping Into a New Career at 52
Born and raised in Cuba, Pedro worked around
the world in the oil industry before moving to
the U.S. at the age of 52. He started teaching at
a Miami community college, and also worked
as a nursing assistant at Lakeland Regional
Health Medical Center to supplement his
income. But the long days and physical
demands of the job were tough for his age.
Still, he wanted to stay in healthcare.

Upon his supervisor’s suggestion, Pedro took
Stepful’s Certified Clinical Medical Assistant
program. Over six months, he learned the
essentials of clinical patient care, and enjoyed
meeting classmates from different
backgrounds and countries, some of whom he
continues to keep in touch with.
Pursuing Future Opportunities in Healthcare
He praises his teacher for guiding him through
the coursework and what to expect during the
interview process. “They gave me all the skills
and prep to be ready for the next step.”

After finishing the program, he applied for
three jobs at Lakeland and got the one he
wanted most — working as a CCMA in the
endocrinology department.

Pedro’s journey with Stepful may not be over.
He recently met several company staff who
visited his hospital, and they discussed his
aspirations. He’s considering moving into
medical administration — which Stepful also
offers a program for. “I believe that is going to
be my next step,” he says.
“I am very grateful for
Stepful and the team.
With their program
and support, my life
has changed.”

- Pedro Arturo
Implications for Workforce Development | 36
Pedro Arturo
Medical Assistant
Lakeland Regional Health

37. Since we invested
Aprende has dramatically increased
the number of students enrolled and
expanded their offerings to over 100
courses, while maintaining high NPS
scores and customer satisfaction.

Growth opportunities
Aprende is now pursuing B2B
partnerships with healthcare systems
that enable employers to offer their
Spanish-speaking workforce free
upskilling opportunities to become
Patient Care Technicians.

Implications for Workforce Development | 37
Online vocational training for
U.S. Hispanic learners
Founder
Impact thesis
Aprende helps Spanish-speaking people in the U.S. achieve the
American dream by teaching vocational skills that can increase
their income and improve their quality of life.
SCALE Product-market fit
Serve 250K+ Hispanics

2.5
Cost ranges from $30-100 per month
ACCESS Low cost 2.0
QUALITY Loved by users
● 4.6+ stars Google Play & Apple App stores
● 40% of graduates increased their income
● 95% have improved their life quality
2.0
IMPACT GROWTH
IMPACT SUBSCORES
Martin Claure
Current Score
Reach III Entry
Series A, 2020
10.06.0
Founded
2019

38. USER STORY
Rebuilding a New Life in the U.S.
Daikelly practiced medicine and worked as a
general practitioner in her home country of
Venezuela when political unrest forced her to
move. At the age of 26, she started a new life
in the United States.

Daikelly wanted to return to the healthcare
sector. As a former doctor, she did not lack
experience but encountered significant
hurdles. Language was one. Also, her medical
degree also wasn’t recognized in the U.S., and
the healthcare accreditation process was not
easy to grasp. “I saw the health field in this
country as impossible,” she said.

To make ends meet, she started working as a
housekeeper at a hotel.
Implications for Workforce Development | 38
Returning to Healthcare
She entered the Patient Care Technician
program from Aprende and HCA after seeing it
on social media. Over the next four months,
she learned not just subject-specific content,
but also English language and professional
work etiquette in the States. Most importantly,
she valued the support from her Success
Coach who helped her prepare for interviews.
The cohort-based program also allowed her to
connect with other students who she says
have been crucial to her personal and
professional development.

Immediately after completing the program, she
was hired at St. Mark’s Hospital, where she
currently works as a PCT.
“I’m so grateful for
Aprende Institute and
HCA Healthcare for
the opportunity they
gave me and the
support to fulfill my
dreams.”

- Daikelly Duarte
Daikelly Duarte
Patient Care Technician
St. Mark’s Hospital

39. Since we invested
WorkWhile expanded to serve tens of
thousands of workers while also
improving fill rates, maintaining high
worker NPS, and collecting evidence
of improved financial wellness for
workers. They also introduced forklift
certification, which enables a 10%
increase in pay.

Growth opportunities
WorkWhile will continue regional
expansion to fuel growth on both
sides of the marketplace. They will
also expand upskilling opportunities
for workers that unlock higher paying
work opportunities.
Implications for Workforce Development | 39
On demand labor marketplace
for hourly workers.
Founders
Impact thesis
Hourly workers are subject to inconsistent and inflexible work
schedules and unreliable hours. For employers, acquiring and
retaining workers is a top challenge. WorkWhile provides an
on-demand labor marketplace with a worker-first approach,
providing flexibility and stability for hourly workers.
Amol Jain
SCALE Product-market fit
Tens of thousands of active workers
2.0
Free and open to all workers
ACCESS Accessible to all3.0
QUALITY Loved by users
● Worker-friendly features like
next-day pay, flexible schedules,
free telehealth and free training
● 71% of workers say WorkWhile is
important to their financial
obligations
2.0
IMPACT GROWTH
Current Score
Reach III Entry
Series A, 2021
10.06.0
IMPACT SUBSCORES
Jarah Euston
Founded
2019

40. USER STORY
Finding Flexibility and Stability with
WorkWhile
Johnny Martinez is a former college
administrator. But as the grind of the job began
to take a toll, the aspiring entrepreneur started
a book-selling business on eBay.

He discovered WorkWhile during the pandemic
as he was looking for something to supplement
his income. This was a time when many
businesses struggled to find and retain
workers. Through the platform, he was
connected to opportunities at Ollie’s Bargain
Outlet, a discount retailer in Harrisburg,
Pennsylvania. He worked as a Module Picker
and other shifts on the warehouse floor.
Implications for Workforce Development | 40
Turning Gigs into Growth
To date, Martinez has completed 166 shifts
through WorkWhile — all while growing his
business. He can find shifts that fit with his
flex schedule, and the ability to get paid the
next day has provided steady income during
this transitional time in his career. These
factors distinguished WorkWhile from other gig
platforms Martinez has used.
Moreover, he sees each shift not just as a job
but an opportunity to learn and improve his
own business. He has made connections with
his site general managers who offer
mentorship and business tips. He’s even taken
to mentoring new workers on shift, helping
them see WorkWhile as a stepping stone
toward their career goals.
“I don’t see this as a
job. I see this as an
opportunity to learn.
It gave me discipline,
it gave me real-world
experience… it
showed me how to
build relationships.”

- Johnny Martinez
Johnny Martinez
Gig Worker and Entrepreneur in Texas

41. Since we invested
Replit now has 30M+ users, 40%
under age 24. We’ve seen the
founders’ vision come to life in the
platform with collaboration features,
“bounties” where developers can earn
money by completing projects, and
“Ghostwriter,” an AI coding assistant.

Growth opportunities
To achieve its mission of reaching the
next billion software creators, Replit
will play a central role in redefining
how software is developed. We
expect that many of those billion
creators will not be engineers!

Implications for Workforce Development | 41
Online coding platform to
learn, build, collaborate, and
host all in one place
Founders
Impact thesis
Replit’s mission is to empower the next billion software creators. Its
AI-powered software development and deployment platform
enables people to learn, build, share, and ship software quickly,
providing ubiquitous access to opportunities through tech
innovation.
SCALE Scaled
30M+ users

3.0
Free
ACCESS Accessible to all 3.0
QUALITY Loved by users
● Number of users grew from 5M
in 2020 to 30M+ 2024
● 240M projects created (as of
July 2023)
2.5
IMPACT GROWTH
Current Score
Reach I Entry
Pre-Seed, 2016
16.54.5
IMPACT SUBSCORES
Amjad Masad Haya Odeh
Founded
2016

42. USER STORY
A Journey of Creative Tinkering
Pietro Schirano is a civil and nuclear engineer
by training, and a designer at heart. That
passion led him to work in major tech names
like OpenTable, Meta, Uber and Brex.

After ChatGPT launched, he started tinkering
with AI projects on Replit. Its ease of setup and
deployment made it easy to quickly turn ideas
into working prototypes. One project that he
shared with his team at Brex landed him a role
as the company’s AI team lead.

A lifelong tinkerer, he continued to build side
projects on Replit. From a personal website to
a GPT-generated game of pong and a Bing AI
clone called Zing, Schirano soon amassed an
online following.
Implications for Workforce Development | 42
From Building Apps to Building a Brand
Replit's platform provided everything he
needed to experiment with AI and to build and
deploy apps to tens of thousands of users.
When his app DesignerGPT, which lets users
write prompts to generate a complete website,
was among the top trending apps on OpenAI’s
GPT Store, Replit’s autoscale deployments
helped him handle high volumes of traffic
without interruption.

Today, Pietro is the co-founder of EverArt,
which helps creators and companies fine-tune
AI image models on their brands. Replit has
been a big part of his personal brand. His work
and projects have been featured on podcasts,
at conferences, and in news outlets like BBC
and Vox.
“It’s an honor to go
from being someone
who is just passionate
about something to
being the person who
people ask to speak
about it. And I
wouldn’t be here
without Replit, that’s
just a fact.”

- Pietro Schirano
Pietro Schirano
Co-Founder, EverArt

43. Workforce companies to watch
Implications for Workforce Development | 43
Entry round Seed, 2024
Reach IV

New technologies like 5G, IoT, and cloud
computing are rapidly transforming the
telecom industry. This transformation
requires massive reskilling and upskilling
to meet the immense demand for this
workforce. LabLabee offers virtual labs
that allow telecom workers to learn and
hone skills with real-world scenarios.
Entry round Pre-seed, 2024
Reach IV

Take2 improves the hiring process for
high-volume, customer-facing roles (e.g.
sales, patient coordinators, hospitality) by
enabling employers to screen candidates
using job simulation assessments.
Performance in these simulations have
high predictive value for success in the
job, leading to higher performance and
retention. Take2 leverages Generative AI
to create simulations and score the
results at scale.
Entry round Pre-seed, 2024
Reach IV

Upduo enables scalable 1:1 training
through peer learning. The platform
leverages AI to surface existing
knowledge of high performers,
intelligently match employees across
geographies, and structure a guided peer
learning experience. On average, Upduo
improves performance on targeted
metrics by more than 10% after one
month of training.

44. Solutions We’re Seeking
Wishlist | 44

45. Wishlist | 45
AI-driven workflow
tools that augment
the worker
Partner commentary
These tools can both streamline or complete tasks and
uplevel performance with recommendations and tips.
They’re especially valuable in industries with significant
labor shortages, increasing digital adoption, and a large
amount of data to leverage.


Solutions we’re seeking
K-12 example
Make delivering effective Tier 2
and 3 interventions easy for
educators by recommending
interventions designed around
classroom and resource
constraints, and streamlining
the required paperwork and
communication.
Workforce example
Support clinicians with
routine tasks like prescription
refills and patient follow-ups
and suggest clinical
interventions. Exist in the
flow of a clinician’s workflow
like the EHR.
— Steve Kupfer

46. Wishlist | 46
Personalized learning
in the flow of work
Workforce example
Leverage augmented reality
on a manufacturing floor so
technicians get training and
automated support in the
course of their work.
Solutions we’re seeking
Partner commentary
Professional learning typically suffers from lack of
engagement and relevance, and rarely leads to meaningful
behavior change. Embedding learning — such as relevant
content, mentorship connections, and simulations — into
actual work activities can accelerate the development and
application of new skills.
K-12 example
Help teachers reconfigure
curriculum on the fly to
accommodate the 20-25% of
students who have
accessibility requirements.
— Jomayra Herrera

47. Wishlist | 47
Data-driven
retention insights
and interventions
Solutions we’re seeking
Workforce example
Provide insights about
employee sentiment and
engagement, and then
deliver personalized
interventions, such as
variable pay, rewards, shift
changes, and manager
recognition.
K-12 example
Provide teachers microdoses
of professional development
in the flow of work that
address immediate
challenges and root causes
of burnout, while improving
job satisfaction, work life
balance and empowerment.

Partner commentary
Industries that struggle with labor shortages have a strong
incentive to retain staff but have challenges predicting
turnover. Tools that help employers understand why
employees leave, gathering insights to predict turnover, and
helping to administer personalized interventions at scale
could be immensely valuable.
— Jomayra Herrera

48. www.reachcapital.com
[email protected]