Ben Madilynn
THE first-ever spinout from the University of Strathclyde’s Business School is a cloud-based software platform designed to help disadvantaged people into work.
MyEmploy utilises questionnaires, machine learning and psychological research to understand jobseekers’ needs, provide tailored insights and predict outcomes. It is also the first such service to assess the impact of the jobseeker-adviser relationship.
Dr Joanna Butler, a senior teaching fellow in the Department of Work, Employment and Organisation, alumna and Chartered Occupational Psychologist, created the company and tool based on her 15 years of experience working in employability and skills providers organisations, further validated through her PhD research.
She said: “Many organisations rely on subjective, paper-based assessments to narrow jobseekers down to the jobs they want to do and the hours they want to work, rather than considering wider aspects of employability, such as confidence, self-efficacy and broader psychological features.
“As a result, too many people are not gaining meaningful and sustainable employment, and too many government employment programmes are not hitting their targets. The industry could make better use of analytics to understand their jobseekers’ needs and allocate appropriate resources.
“Importantly too, the jobseeker-adviser relationship is usually not accurately measured when looking at the success or otherwise of getting individuals into work.
“Employment advisers can change a jobseekers life as a result of their relationship with individuals. Yet, organisations don’t fully measure the impact of advisers on jobseekers’ prospects.
“MyEmploy takes a data-driven approach to addressing persistent issues in Jobcentres and welfare providers and organisations which are crucial for jobseekers’ entry into the labour market.”
MyEmploy uses online evidence-based assessments and machine learning to evaluate jobseekers as a whole person and the adviser’s impact to enhance an individual’s chances of obtaining meaningful employment.
The tool will also predict jobseekers’ likelihood of employment from day one and leverage data to make employability programmes more effective by identifying ‘what works for whom’ to improve services and more efficient allocation of resources and filling the need for consistent and comprehensive assessment tools which drive more tailored support.
Dr Butler added: “The benefits of such a personalised approach will include improved jobseeker success, achievement of targets and cost savings for providers and, more broadly, greater social inclusion.”
MyEmploy operates on a subscription-based model and targets a market including the Scottish Government, Department for Work and Pensions, and welfare organisations.
All of the funding support for MyEmploy has come from the University through a stage-gated process and includes £10,000 from the Stephen Young Entrepreneurship Awards in November 2023 after having won an Inspire 100 pitch competition. The company’s first client is a multimillion pound Saudi agency.
